Figi's

A true story: This past Sunday I decided to order a Christmas gift for our friends Doris and David and another for my cousin Suzy — ideally the same gift for both, something foodie and festive. I went to the following Web sites: Swiss Colony, The Wisconsin Cheeseman, Hickory Farms, Red Cooper, Fortnum & Mason, Amazon.com, See’s Candies, Ghirardelli Chocolate Co., Jelly Belly, Mrs. Field’s Gifts, Figi’s, Dean & DeLuca, Cross Creek Groves, Godiva Chocolatier, and Harry & David. All were happy to take my order for two of the same item. I could not for the life of me figure out how to

Problem: Call volume that spikes from 60 calls per day during non-peak season to 60,000 calls per day during the holiday rush. Solution: Use metrics and flexible-scheduling techniques to help achieve agent efficiency without overstaffing. Results: 97-percent call center service levels and 90-percent agent-utilization rates maintained throughout most of the rush. As it is for many catalogers, the December holiday season is a booming time at Figi’s, the Marshfield, WI-based gift-giving speciality food mailer. Call volume builds from 60 calls per day during the non-peak season, to a whopping 60,000 calls per day during the holiday rush. To handle the volume, Catherine