At a planning meeting, Regionalâs management team agreed that an acceptable cus- tomer service goal is to answer at least 85% of the incoming calls immediately. During the planning meeting, Regionalâs vice president of administration pointed out that the data show that the average service rate for an agent is faster than the average arrival rate of the telephone calls. The vice presidentâs conclusion was that personnel costs could be mini- mized by using one agent and that the single agent should be able to handle the telephone reservations and still have some idle time. The vice president of marketing restated the importance of customer service and expressed support for at least two reservation agents. The current telephone reservation system design does not allow callers to wait. Callers who attempt to reach a reservation agent when all agents are occupied receive a busy signal and are blocked from the system. A representative from the telephone company suggested that Regional Airlines consider an expanded system that accommodates waiting. In the expanded system, when a customer calls and all agents are busy, a recorded message tells the customer that the call is being held in the order received and that an agent will be available shortly. The customer can stay on the line and listen to background music while waiting for an agent. Regionalâs management will need more information before switching to the expanded system.
Managerial report
Prepare a managerial report for Regional Airlines analyzing the telephone reservation system. Evaluate both the system that does not allow waiting and the expanded system that allows waiting. Include the following information in your report:
1. A detailed analysis of the operating characteristics of the reservation system with one agent as proposed by the vice president of administration. What is your recom- mendation concerning a single-agent system?
2. A detailed analysis of the operating characteristics of the reservation sys- tem based on your recommendation regarding the number of agents Regional should use.
3. A detailed analysis of the advantages or disadvantages of the expanded system. Discuss the number of waiting callers the expanded system would need to accommodate.
4. This report represents a pilot study of the reservation system for the 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. time period during which an average of one call arrives every 3.75 minutes; however, the arrival rate of incoming calls is expected to change from hour to hour. Describe how your waiting line analysis could be used to develop a ticket agent staffing plan that would enable the company to provide different levels of staffing for the ticket reservation system at different times during the day. Indicate the information that you would need to develop this staffing plan.
At a planning meeting, Regionalâs management team agreed that an acceptable cus- tomer service goal is to answer at least 85% of the incoming calls immediately. During the planning meeting, Regionalâs vice president of administration pointed out that the data show that the average service rate for an agent is faster than the average arrival rate of the telephone calls. The vice presidentâs conclusion was that personnel costs could be mini- mized by using one agent and that the single agent should be able to handle the telephone reservations and still have some idle time. The vice president of marketing restated the importance of customer service and expressed support for at least two reservation agents. The current telephone reservation system design does not allow callers to wait. Callers who attempt to reach a reservation agent when all agents are occupied receive a busy signal and are blocked from the system. A representative from the telephone company suggested that Regional Airlines consider an expanded system that accommodates waiting. In the expanded system, when a customer calls and all agents are busy, a recorded message tells the customer that the call is being held in the order received and that an agent will be available shortly. The customer can stay on the line and listen to background music while waiting for an agent. Regionalâs management will need more information before switching to the expanded system.
Managerial report
Prepare a managerial report for Regional Airlines analyzing the telephone reservation system. Evaluate both the system that does not allow waiting and the expanded system that allows waiting. Include the following information in your report:
1. A detailed analysis of the operating characteristics of the reservation system with one agent as proposed by the vice president of administration. What is your recom- mendation concerning a single-agent system?
2. A detailed analysis of the operating characteristics of the reservation sys- tem based on your recommendation regarding the number of agents Regional should use.
3. A detailed analysis of the advantages or disadvantages of the expanded system. Discuss the number of waiting callers the expanded system would need to accommodate.
4. This report represents a pilot study of the reservation system for the 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. time period during which an average of one call arrives every 3.75 minutes; however, the arrival rate of incoming calls is expected to change from hour to hour. Describe how your waiting line analysis could be used to develop a ticket agent staffing plan that would enable the company to provide different levels of staffing for the ticket reservation system at different times during the day. Indicate the information that you would need to develop this staffing plan.
