TAX FIRM NEEDS TO RAMP UP DURING PANDEMIC TAX SEASON
Facts:
The Client is a financial company that offers tax-related financial products and services, through a network of tax preparation franchises, independent tax professionals, and online tax preparation providers. Unifin supports three lines of business, each with their own unique agent skill requirements and separate training process.
Situation:
It is the 2021 tax season, and almost a full year since the onset of the pandemic. The Client needs manpower to support its extended operations and increased volumes. Unifin is asked to ramp-up from 15 steady-state agents to 265 seasonal agents to handle the expected volume influx from tax season. Hours of operation will be extended as the season progresses.
Ramp-up and ramp-down plans are put in place, however, in mid-March 2021, the I.R.S. announced the tax deadline was being extended through May 17 which required ramp-down schedule to be revamped. Additionally, the Economic Impact Payments and their tax consequences create confusion among many taxpayers, leading to even higher call volumes. Lastly, the I.R.S. incorrectly routed refunds back to the Client instead of the taxpayers which triggered additional calls.
Solution:
Unifin is able to quickly train, add, and drop agents when needed. Unifin used subject matter experts (SMEs), who were trained and developed in-house over 90 days, to subsequently train 200 seasonal agents in February. Unifin developed a robust staffing plan, strategically targeted training, intricate planning, and forecasting, coupled with flexible and non-traditional scheduling to ensure performance and excellent service.
Benefits:
Unifin was able to maintain service levels throughout the entire extended tax season. The Client and its previous provider had never been able to maintain service levels. In fact, contractually, the service levels are waived during tax season. However, Unifin’s cumulative service level and call abandonment rates were maintained well above target during each weekly and monthly reporting period. Unifin’s flexibility was the intangible quality that brought it all together, quickly addressing the extension of the tax season and the incorrectly routed taxpayer refunds.