National Telecommuting Institute, NTI, Celebrates 20 Year Anniversary of First Virtual Call Center for the US Government

In August 2004, NTI opened the Form and Publication virtual call center for the US Government.

UNITED STATES, August 30, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Twenty years ago, starting a virtual call center was a huge undertaking. There were no complete out of the box solutions. That is why the US Government had not yet tried to open a virtual call center. That was until Source America and the Ability One Program awarded NTI the contract to open its first virtual call center in 2004. A bonus was NTI planned to staff the Form and Publication virtual call center mostly with people with disabilities who needed at-home employment.

We sat down with a group of four employees who have been at the call center since its inception in 2004 to discuss how the call center has evolved over the years.

“When we first launched the program, we communicated thru Yahoo chat.” said Laura, who has been leading the call center for the last 20 years.

“At the beginning, I remember we had multiple chat rooms. We had to assign a Coordinator to the chat to juggle it all.” said Patty, Team Lead.

“We are now able to use more developed tools for communication. Plus, our workforce management tools have been improved so we are now able to have a better view of who is doing what at any given time.” added Laura.

“Security is much more intense now than when we started” said Kim, Team Lead.

The team also discussed their tips for managing virtual teams and working with people with disabilities.

“Patience is key.” said Laura. “Every employee, no matter if they have a disability or not needs individual attention. And some will require more time than others.”

“There is no ‘one size fits all’!” agreed Patty. “I have learned how to talk to different people, address their concerns based on their specific situation. Sometimes I need to a provide different way of doing a task tailored to their ability. In the end, we get the same results.”

“You need to care about your team, rather than just about how they do the job. It’s a fine line, but if they are happy, things gel better.” said Kim.

“I am a big fan of constant encouragement and appreciation! I like to remind my team that I am always there for them when needed.” Said Laura.

“I like to make team meetings fun and interesting! It’s so much more engaging that way.” said Cathy, Team Lead.

“By being virtual, we are missing the water cooler or coffee pot time you get in an office setting. I like to make it up by throwing out a couple non work things here and there to make them smile and relax during my meetings.” added Kim.

The Team also took time to reflect on the past twenty years.

“It is impressive to make it to a 20-year anniversary with the same organization these days.” Said Alan Hubbard, NTI’s President and COO. “NTI is lucky to have such wonderful and dedicated employees like you, Laura, Cathy, Patty and Kim!”

“Thanks, Alan.” said Laura. “It has been very fulfilling to me personally to be able to assist NTI in their mission to provide employment opportunities for the disabled community. I have been able to assist individuals with varying degrees of disability and it continues to amaze me at how determined they are to be successful, independent workers.”

“It’s been a blessing working from home in every sense of the word. I have gotten to know my team in a much closer and deeper way, to some degree. No, I don’t know them personally, physically, but I know of them and that is what connects us. For the last 20 years, I have the privilege of knowing that some got married, some had kids, some had grandbabies. What a journey! Thanks, NTI!” said Patty as the conversation came to an end.

For more than 25 years, NTI has been helping Americans with disabilities find remote employment with training programs and job opportunities. For more information, go to www.NTIcentral.org.

Leah Terrasi
NTI
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