NHS Blood and Transplant
CONTRACT FOR THE PROVISION
OF CONTACT CENTRE SERVICES
For NHS Blood and Transplant
(NHSBT ‘Helpline’ and ‘Donor Line’)
Contract Ref: NHSBT0910/S/SP
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 1 of 46
link to page 3 link to page 4 link to page 6 link to page 6 link to page 12 link to page 15 link to page 17 link to page 18 link to page 19 link to page 20 link to page 22 link to page 26 link to page 26 link to page 28 link to page 29 link to page 29 link to page 30 link to page 31 link to page 32 link to page 32
Contents Page
1.
Introduction ........................................................................................... 3
2.
Background ........................................................................................... 4
3.
NHSBT General Operations ................................................................. 6
4.
Inbound Operations .............................................................................. 6
5.
Outbound Operations ..........................................................................12
6.
Quality Requirements ..........................................................................15
7.
Mailing Fulfilment Requirements .......................................................17
8.
Issues Management Provision ...........................................................18
9.
Service to NCC Customers .................................................................19
10. Additional Service Options .................................................................20
11. Account Management, Reporting and Invoicing ...............................22
12. Data Network ........................................................................................26
13. NHSBT Systems Connectivity ............................................................26
14. Critical Incident response Procedures ..............................................28
15. Future Developments ..........................................................................29
16. Failure of the Service...........................................................................29
17. Contract Development .........................................................................30
18. Ownership of Records .........................................................................31
19 Contract Timings .................................................................................32
20 Other Contractual Requirements .......................................................32
Appendix 1 – Contact volumes
Appendix 2 – Inbound Calls Handled
Appendix 3 – Outbound Calls handled
Appendix 4 – Web Tasks Handled
Appendix 5 – Social Media Responses
Appendix 6 – SMS Sent
Appendix 7 – Inbound Call Profile
Appendix 8 – Customer Satisfaction Surveys
Appendix 9 – KPIs
Appendix 10 – Donor Feedback Handling Figures
Attention: Mandatory Requirements are shown in bold italics.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 2 of 46
1. Introduction
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is a Special Health Authority, dedicated to
saving and improving lives through the wide range of services we provide to the
NHS. Our ambition is to be the best organisation of our type in the world.
As an essential part of the NHS we take pride in playing our part to make the most of
absolutely every donation - from blood and organs to tissues and stem cells.
The donors who make our work possible do so selflessly, giving life and changing life
for the better. It is because of them, and the people who need their life saving and
life enhancing donations, that we strive to be the best in all we do.
We are responsible for:
Encouraging people to donate organs, blood, stem cells and tissues
Optimising the safety and supply of blood, organs, stem cells and tissues and
matching them to patients
Helping to raise the quality, effectiveness and clinical outcomes of blood and
transplant services
Providing expert advice to other NHS organisations, and to the health
departments of the four UK countries
Commissioning and conducting research and development to improve
outcomes for patients
Implementing relevant EU statutory frameworks and guidance.
We were formed in October 2005 from the merger of the National Blood Service and
UK Transplant.
We are grateful to our donors who generously provide the donations vital to so many
patients. We are proud to support and enable altruistic donation in the UK.
A single thread unites and connects everyone at NHSBT – our vital role in making
sure the precious altruistic donations we receive from the public continue to save
and improve as many lives as possible.
We do this by focusing on our key values: Caring, Expert and Quality. These values
cut through everything we do and shape how we work together, and with others, to
achieve our ambition and deliver our purpose.
We care about the patient, our donors, their families and colleagues, who together
meet patient needs
We are expert in meeting the needs of our customers and partners
We provide quality products and services and positive experiences for donors, staff
and patients
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) have three operational areas:
• Blood Supply (BS) – made up of Blood Donation, Manufacturing and Logistics, and
Customer Services
• Organ Donation and Transplantation (ODT)
• Diagnostic and Therapeutic Services (DTS)
In 2015/16 our donors:
• Donated nearly 1.8m million units of blood and platelets
• Provided 3,529 organs for transplant
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 3 of 46
• Enabled us to issue over 13,000 individual tissue donations
(incl. corneas)
• Added 1,950 units to the NHS Cord Blood Bank
We strive to deliver an excellent blood donation and donor experience to ensure a
sustainable blood donor base, underpinned by flexible collection and donor invitation
processes and high levels of collection productivity.
Our priority is to deliver a sustainable blood supply that recognises the ever
increasing demand for O- whole blood, A- platelets and Ro donations.
Donor satisfaction is essential to ensure we maintain a strong donor base to meet
current and future patient need. Therefore, we will continue to improve the donor
experience and maintain an effective donor base whilst also restructuring the service
to ensure that we achieve upper quartile productivity levels when compared to our
international peers
We also aim to recruit more donors from specific communities who are more likely to
have blood groups that are more in demand than others, notably Black – African and
Black Caribbean, mixed race and Asian communities.
We will continue to build on the success of the new website and donor portal, and
keep investing in giving donors a positive online experience – making it easier to
interact with us online – particularly for younger donors whose
Digital expectations are higher.
NHSBT need to recruit circa 195,000 new blood donors per year in order to maintain
an acceptable pool of donors and book over 2 million appointments to collect our
circa 1.6 million units of whole blood per year.
Our Strategic objectives for Organ Transplantation seek to build on the excellent
progress of the last five years and aims to match world class performance in organ
donation and transplantation. These can be summarised as:
Continue to increase the numbers of people prepared to donate organs after
their death or as living donors and work with hospitals to make sure that as
many donated organs as possible can be transplanted safely
Continue to support the implementation of the soft opt out legislation for organ
donation in Wales and support any further changes in legislation that may
potentially emerge from the other national UK Governments;
We are therefore looking for world class strategic partners who can support NHSBT
in meeting these objectives for Blood and Organ Donation.
2. Background
This contract concerns the provision of a leading edge, donor focused multi-channel
National Contact Centre (NCC) solution dealing with inbound and outbound contacts
from potential and existing blood donors as well as those wishing to register or who
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 4 of 46
are already registered with the NHS Organ Donor Register (ODR), and members of
the public.
We expect any potential provider to be able to deliver an integrated multi channel
approach including inbound calls, outbound calls, web formhandling, emails, SMS,
interactive messaging, social media, push messaging along with any other channels
that may become popular with our donors over the course of the contract term.
Any potential providers needs to be able to provide NHSBT with best practice in the
industry with regards to contact centre solutions to drive high quality, efficient and
appropriate contacts with our Blood and Organ Donors.
Contacts relate to appointment booking, queries, new donor registration, online
technical support, administration and update of existing donor records and medical
issues including responses to marketing campaigns. Effective Donor complaint
handling and integration with NHSBT in this area is also a key deliverable. Future
needs may encompass provision of contact centre support to other Directorates
within NHSBT.
The following specifications are requirements that potential successful contractors
must fulfil in order to supply a service to handle or make contacts, update records,
deliver information, promote Blood and Organ Donation. collect data and, where
necessary, to provide a fulfilment service on behalf of NHSBT.
NHSBT intends working in partnership with the successful contractor to develop the
service. Although based upon a Service Level Agreement (SLA) this partnership is
expected to encourage a real involvement on the part of the successful contractor in
the Core Purpose of NHSBT, which is “To save and improve patients’ lives”.
The Offer Schedule documents provide the detailed pricing matrices that potential
successful contractors are required to complete. (The Offer Schedule is provided in
the NHSBT0910 Tender, Commercial Envelope)
The handling of all blood and ODR donor contacts is a critical part in the overall
NHSBT communications strategy. The provision of a timely, professional and
efficient contact handling service plays a vital role in establishing and maintaining the
life time relationship between NHSBT and its blood donors and those joining the
NHS Organ Donor Register.
The Organ Donor Register records the following decisions for members of the public
who reside within the UK for more than 6 months of a year: Register to donate
organs/tissue, register not to donate organs/tissue and appoint a person(s) to decide
on your behalf after death (this option is available for Scottish registrants but is not
recognised within Scotland if you die in Scotland).
NHSBT are currently migrating our cores systems during 2017. Access to the
NHSBT Blood core system in the future will be delivered to the contact centre via MS
Dynamics, which will be accessible over the internet and be cloud based. Access will
also be enabled to a web based Donor Knowledge Base (DKB). The DKB provides
access to current information that enables a user to advise donors of their eligibility
to donate. It also contains other relevant and useful donor information.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 5 of 46
Any Contact Centre provider would also have access to the Organ Donor Register
to enable the management of new registrations and query handling of this aspect
of the Contract. Again this will be accessed over the internet.
3. NHSBT General Operations
3.1. NHSBT needs to collect around 6000 donations per day. To do this we hold
around 100 blood collection sessions each day in a selection from over 4,500
venues including halls, hospitals, colleges and companies and our own static
clinics
3.2. Registered donors are invited, usually by letter, to attend these sessions.
Alternative technology supplementing these invitations has been used
including SMS text messaging and Email. NHSBT will consider any current or
future technology for such work. It is anticipated that during the lifetime of this
contract invitations will be sent electronically instead of by white mail.
Invitations offer donors the opportunity to contact the call centre in advance
of the session for additional information or to book an appointment, along as
promoting our online services for appointment booking.
3.3. NHSBT, on our Core System, maintains records of registered blood donors.
This database holds previous donation history, personal and other donor
details. It also contains a full audit trail from donation to end-user hospital. It
is planned that MS Dynamics will deliver a full CRM system for contact centre
use, although there may be a supplier need to deliver elements of any
contact handling solution.
3.4. Retention of existing donors through the provision of a high quality,
accessible and customer-focused service is critical to the ongoing success of
NHSBT.
3.5. Those who wish to donate organs and/or tissue after death are encouraged
to join the ODR via a number of channels but at present the NCC deals only
with those choosing the telephone to register or make other enquiries. The
NCC must ensure flexibility for a multi-channel approach in the future.
4. Inbound Operations
4.1. The core purpose of the inbound service Helpline activity is to collect
information from and provide information to potential and current blood
donors and potential organ donors and channel their responses to the
relevant operating unit. In most cases this channel will be via accessing MS
Dynamics and the ODR. It is envisaged both systems will be Cloud based
and accessed over the internet. Access will be via Active Directory
Federation Service (ADFS) with a single sign on with unique username and
password
. During contract initiation, NHSBT will work with the
successful supplier to develop suitable integration with MS Dynamics
for inbound contact handling and outbound automated dialler
technologies. Suppliers should outline their experience in utilising and
integrating contact centre solutions with a Cloud based MS Dynamics
CRM. The telephone response service is a key communication channel in
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 6 of 46
building the life time relationship between NHSBT and potential donors.
Around 80% of inbound calls are relating to some sort of appointment
booking activity, including a medical query and then appointment booked for
example. Inbound Help Line calls are principally categorised as follows:
4.1.1. Appointments
4.1.2.
Change of details
4.1.3. 1st Line support for online users
4.1.4.
Contingency
4.1.5.
General Query
4.1.6.
Issue/Feedback
4.1.7.
Medical Queries
4.1.8.
Post Donation Issues and Donor Adverse Events
(PDI/DAE)
4.1.9.
Registrations plus Appointment
4.1.10.
Initial Registrations
4.1.11.
Re-Registrations
4.1.12.
Non - ‘England’ enquiries
4.1.13.
Abandoned Calls
4.1.14.
Literature requests
4.2. The current nationally advertised donor response telephone number is 0300
123 23 23 and in 2015 received over 1.1 million calls at an average duration
of 195 seconds for a blood donor call. An average Organ Donation call lasts
275 seconds and represents around 5% of the overall inbound call volume.
The call centre facility must be available to donors and potential donors
24 hours per day, 7 days per week, and 365 days per year including all
Public and Bank Holidays.
4.3. The ability to handle in bound calls from Welsh speaking callers
efficiently is mandatory for Organ Donation calls. The typical monthly
average is 250 calls per month for this requirement.
This has risen
significantly at times (such as during 2015 with Welsh opt out
legislation) so the ability to scale up contact handling in Welsh
language should also be demonstrated.
4.4. Total Call volumes vary from day to day but averaged 22,460 per week in
2015. Based on July 2016, split per day is:
4.4.1. Monday 22.7%
4.4.2. Tuesday 18.9%
4.4.3. Wednesday 17.5%
4.4.4. Thursday 16.8%
4.4.5. Friday 15.7%
4.4.6. Saturday 4.8%
4.4.7. Sunday 3.5%
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 7 of 46
4.5. Increases in call traffic can occur as a result of planned and unplanned media
coverage of issues related to NHSBT activities or areas of interest. The
majority of variations in call traffic can be predicted in response to specific
marketing campaigns to attract donors’ calls to action. However,
unplanned
media attention can generate a sudden increase in call volumes which
the successful contractor must be able to demonstrate an ability to
manage. These have increased call volumes to 42,000+ per week with a
recorded maximum of 11,250 on one day. (Appendix 2 – Inbound Calls
Handled, Appendix 7 – Inbound Call Profile).
4.6. Occasionally the NCC may be expected to set up one-off call handling
facilities for areas of significant public interest that may be created by
Ministerial (HM Government) Announcements or very significant Public
Relations announcements from NHSBT.
4.7. NHSBT has an umbrella website and then websites for Blood Donors &
Organ Donors. The NHSBT Blood Donor website www.blood.co.uk is hosted
on Microsoft’s Azure platform.
The successful contractor may be required
to host response forms that come from subsections of this website. In
2015 there were over 40,000 webforms submitted that required a response
from the website.
The successful contractor may be required to work with
third party NHSBT approved agencies on web marketing and development
activity, such as micro sites and email alerts.
4.8. Website response activity is to collect information from and provide
information to potential and current donors and channel their responses to
the relevant operating unit. The Website response service is a key
communication channel in building the lifetime relationship between NHSBT
and potential donors.
4.9. NHSBT provides a secure “Online Service" via blood.co.uk to enable Blood
donors to manage their donor account, search for and book appointments.
Over 1.2 million people have registered for an online account with this now
the most popular method for donors to book appointments.
4.10. NHSBT also provides a mobile app (NHSGiveBlood) offering for iOS,
Android and Windows phones.
4.11. Donors can use this to manage their Donor Account, search for and book
appointments. As of September 2016 there are over 650,000 downloads of
the mobile app, with 90,000 donors using it a month.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 8 of 46
4.12.
The successful contractor is expected to provide first line support for
users of the online service and mobile apps. This will be done by utilising
the DKB.
4.13. Website requests at present are principally categorised as follows:
4.13.1.
Session Details
4.13.2.
Complaints
4.13.3.
Compliments
4.13.4.
Change of Details
4.13.5.
General Information
4.13.6.
Medical Queries
4.13.7.
Jobs in NHSBT
4.13.8.
Contacts from other Blood Service or Healthcare
Professionals
4.13.9.
Dedicated Session Enquiries
4.13.10.
Requests for Donor Cards Etc.
4.13.11.
Website and general feedback
4.14. The Website facility is available to blood donors and potential blood donors
24 hours per day, 7 days per week, and 365 days per year including all
Public and Bank Holidays.
4.15.
The successful contractor must be able to provide automatic
responses to web site queries where suitable i.e. providing an
acknowledgement of receipt to a donor complaint.
4.16.
The successful contractor shall provide personalised responses
(within the limitations of the DKB) within six working hours.
Performance to this will need to be demonstrated and reported upon.
4.17. There are no current requirements to undertake activities related to the
Organ Donor Website.
4.18. For members of the public with questions about organ or tissue donation or
wishing to register as an organ or tissue donor the inbound Donor Line
service activity is to process caller requests to register their organ donation
wishes on the ODR. Callers can also amend their ODR records and
withdraw from the ODR. The ODR is managed by a third party supplier and is
held in the cloud.
The successful contractor will have controlled access
to the ODR and will be expected to export some ODR data via secure
transfer to NHSBT on an adhoc basis for business continuity purposes
when the ODR is unavailable using xml format. Organ and tissue donation
Inbound Contacts are principally categorised as follows:
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 9 of 46
4.19. Organ and tissue donation Inbound Contacts are principally categorised as
follows:
4.19.1.
ODR related:
4.19.1.1. Registration
4.19.1.2. Amendments
4.19.1.3. Withdrawals
4.19.2.
Organ Donation Queries
4.19.3.
Requests for Literature
4.20.
NHSBT currently uses interactive SMS to generate requests for call
backs from blood and organ donors to support blood stocks or campaign
activity.
The successful contractor must be able to deliver this
functionality utilising a long or short code SMS service. However
through the course of this contract NHSBT reserve the right to manage
in-house.
4.21.
SMS is occasionally used as a channel of registration for ODR for
campaigns.
The contractor must have the ability to add and amend
keywords used for campaigns within 24 hrs.
4.22.
NHSBT has the largest Facebook community of any blood service in
the world with nearly 600,000 ‘likes’ and over 60,000 Twitter followers. For
Organ Donation we have nearly 300,000 ‘likes’ and 28,000 followers on
Twitter. NHSBT also has its own YouTube channel, Snapchat and Instagram
pages.
4.23.
The contractor will be expected to provide a Moderation service for the
Social Media (SM) space and also to be capable of enacting SM
‘conversations’, placing posts and tweets as required. Current levels of
activity range from 4,000 – 14,000 posts/tweets a month requiring a
response.
It is a requirement of the contract for the contractor to
support NHSBT’s positive perception within the SM space (see also
section 10).
4.24.
The successful contractor will need to provide 100% moderation
across all current and future social channels. The supplier will need to
utilise a social media tool to manage all public posts directed to NHSBT
on our pages and also pull in posts as a result of promoted activity
online. Daily reporting will be required to demonstrate performance.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 10 of 46
4.25.
NHSBT has piloted Web Chat but has yet to define the anticipated
volumes of chat messaging.
4.26.
Other technologies to deal with the Inbound Service will be employed
when NHSBT, in conjunction with the successful contractor, decide it is
appropriate. These technologies may include Speech automation, Artificial
Intelligence or Robotic Process Automation where suitable. Others may
emerge during the period of the Contract.
Successful contractors should
note that NHSBT expects to introduce these as they become generally
available and therefore the successful contractor shall be equipped to
do so in a timely and cost effective fashion. We will be seeking indicative
costs for these features if currently used for other services.
4.27.
Channel shift has become a significant area of concern and the ability
for users to switch channels to communicate with NHSBT and vice versa
must be as simple as possible within commercial constraints.
4.28.
It is known that users of NHSBT Contact Centre services will usually be
using some form of mobile technology and as such processes and
procedures must enable such communications to be conducted as easily as
possible.
4.29.
Information donors seek by channel may change frequently and
the successful contractor must be able to demonstrate the ability to
communicate such changes to contact handling agents immediately.
4.30. All scripts for inbound contacts will be designed with the authorisation of
NHSBT and remain the property of NHSBT. All amendments to scripts must
be approved and authorised in writing, usually by email, by NHSBT.
4.31.
The successful contractor shall accommodate requests for
planned amendments to inbound contact scripts, including all
necessary training of operators, where applicable.
4.32.
NHSBT may require other immediate changes to contact scripts
reflecting specific business requirements e.g. cancellation of a session,
urgent change in medical guidelines.
In these circumstances the
successful contractor must be able to accommodate the relevant
changes without undue delay.
4.33.
The successful contractor should provide a means of
communicating and registering that a communication has been
effective (possibly using some form of web-based wiki or bulletin board
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 11 of 46
system) for urgent messages all active agents are required to note their
awareness of such messages.
4.34.
It is anticipated that scripts will be consistent across all NHSBT
centres.
4.35.
A post donation information (PDI) transfer service is required for issues
beyond the capability of the 1st level group. Examples may include severe
negative reactions to the donation by donors or subsequent onset of illness in
the donor following blood donation.
The successful contractor will be
expected to transfer this data to NHSBT for the attention of medical
staff in real time or, if this is not possible, within 30 minutes of receiving
the call.
4.36.
At present a PDI is transmitted by email from within NHSBT’s core
system to NHSBT as back-up to mid-call transfers (in-hours) or telephone
contact (out-of-hours) but alternative routes for transmission of this
information will be considered as part of the SLA with the successful
contractor.
4.37.
The Inbound operation performance should not be adversely
affected by demands placed upon the Outbound service.
4.38.
The successful contractor will also support NHSBT’s Emergency
Planning – Incident Helpline. This is a national number for NHSBT staff to
contact to help co-ordinate constant messaging and guidance for any serious
incident preventing NHSBT staff from accessing a NHSBT property – for e.g.
flooding beside a donation centre preventing access. NHBST will establish a
process to ensure that these messages are kept up to date with the
successful contractor. Anticipated volumes would be approximately 200 calls
per year, although this could be significantly higher if there was a major
national incident.
5. Outbound Operations
5.1.
There is a requirement for the provision of a timely, professional and
efficient outbound contacting service on behalf of NHSBT.
5.2.
The core purpose of outbound contacting is to encourage donors to book
appointments, remind them of upcoming appointments they may have
booked or encourage existing or prospective donors to attend an upcoming
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 12 of 46
session. The use of outbound contacts is a critical part of the overall
NHSBT communications strategy.
5.3.
There is a large range of call types currently being made. Donors can be
targeted by specific blood group, performance segment or geographical
location but not yet at their request.
5.4.
The majority of calls will take place on weekdays (currently between
12:00 and 20:30hrs) to home addresses. Operators will be expected to
follow any one of a number of scripts applicable to the category of
donor being called. Weekend calls may also be required from time to
time.
5.5.
The successful contractor will need to be able demonstrate
experience of running successful outbound campaigns utilising an
automated dialler with Computer Telephony Integration (CTI)
developed with client’s core systems. Preferable to this will be
experience of integrating Soft Phone technology with Cloud based
Client CRM systems to deliver both outbound and inbound call
handling.
5.6.
A minimum of 24-hrs notice in advance of the call action date will be given
for all ‘routine’ call requirements (calls must usually be made on the date
specified). Currently we specify rules-based logic to enable the successful
contractor to deduce the call date from the data.
5.7.
Change of session information files (less than 5% of the total) will be
advised prior to 10:00 on the day of calling.
5.8.
It is likely that an “instant” call list may be generated by our systems for
insertion into the same day calling list at any time in order to meet the
requirement to inform Donors of late changes or cancellations due to venue
availability or other issues. Normally these calls would take priority over
others in order to prevent donors from making wasted journeys.
The
successful contractor must be able to demonstrate their ability to
manage this to the satisfaction of NHSBT.
5.9.
The estimated call volumes are expected to be between 1,000,000 and 3
million calls a year (2 Million calls in 2015). Activity can be higher in
response to short term requirements, and for the past three years have
exceeded 2 million, peaking at 17,000 call requests per day. A typical
‘Contacted’ total will be around 8,000 per day at present, with peaks of over
11,000. Outbound calls last around 65 seconds on average (including
automated answer machine messages being left).
The successful
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 13 of 46
contractor must be able to cope with these volumes. (See Appendix 3
Outbound Calls Handled)
5.10.
The successful contractor will be required to report information on
call out-comes to NHSBT in an agreed electronic format. The timely
and accurate reporting of this information will be considered as part
of the SLA.
5.11. All scripts for outbound contacts will be designed with the authorisation of
NHSBT and remain the property of NHSBT. All amendments to contact
scripts must be approved and authorised in writing (to include the use of
email) by NHSBT.
5.12.
The successful contractor shall accommodate requests for routine
amendments to contact scripts (Telephone/SMS/Etc.), at reasonable
notice including all necessary training of operators in the new script
and at an agreed cost. Examples of a simple script would be a change of
pre-programmed telephone number or NHSBT site address. We would
expect this to be implemented immediately without the need for formal
training. An example of a complex change would be a fundamental change
to our clinical guidelines such as a decision to exclude donors who may
have had a blood transfusion themselves since 1980. This change would
require software developments as well as re-training by NHSBT personnel
for all agents prior to going live.
5.13. NHSBT may require other immediate changes to contact scripts reflecting
specific business requirements e.g. cancellation of a session or an urgent
change in medical guidelines.
In these circumstances the successful
contractor must be able to accommodate the relevant changes
without delay.
5.14. Further projects are also likely to be developed over time.
5.15.
The Outbound operation performance should not be adversely
affected by demands placed upon the inbound service.
5.16. NHSBT does not have any routine outbound requirements for the NHS
Organ Donor Register.
However in particular campaign periods that
generate high call volumes a call-back service may be required.
NHSBT will whenever possible give due notice of this requirement as and
when it arises. However, sometimes activity is prompted by an item or
report on TV or radio of which NHSBT has no advanced notice.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 14 of 46
5.17.
The successful contractor will need to have the ability to provide a
call back service to maximise donor contacts.
6. Quality Requirements
6.1.
The successful contractor will operate an appropriate, validated
quality system and be ISO 9001 accredited.
Where no certification is
held Suppliers should provide details of their management systems
including the processes and controls they have identified as
necessary for the requirements of this contract. NHSBT Quality Audits
will be carried out before and during the contract at appropriate intervals.
These audits may be extended to any subcontractor used by the
successful supplier. Continuance of the Contract is dependent upon
maintaining registration and successfully satisfying NHSBT Audit
requirements.
6.2.
The successful contractor shall operate an information security
management system that is ISO27001 certified.
6.3.
The successful contractor must comply with applicable information
rights legislation, initially the Data Protection Act 1998, then the EU
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) from 25th May 2018, and
subsequently with whatever other data protection legislation may
apply within the UK, within the life of the contract.. The GDPR
introduces specific obligations for data processors (including contact centre
providers). The successful contractor will be expected to deliver the
service in a way that respects service users’ privacy and supports
NHSBT’s legal obligations as Data Controller.
6.4.
The successful contractor must advise and assist NHSBT to ensure
compliance with relevant sector-specific legislation, including but not
limited to the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003
6.5.
The successful contractor must demonstrate their agent recruitment
process includes the assessment for suitability of working within a
Contact Centre environment as well as within the UK public health
service. Contractors are required to ensure that they comply with the legal
and sector requirements of recruitment and selection within an NHS
environment. These standards are set out by accessing the following link to
the
NHS
Employers
website
http://www.nhsemployers.org/your-
workforce/recruit/employment-checks. Specifically this requires employers
to undertake the following checks:-
6.5.1. Verification of Identity Checks
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 15 of 46
6.5.2. Checks of a candidates right to work
6.5.3. Registration and Qualification checks
6.5.4. Employment and Reference Checks
6.5.5. Criminal Record Checks
6.5.6. Occupational Health
These checks are subject to change from time to time and contractors are
required to ensure that they keep abreast of developments and ensure
compliance with foreseen and unforeseen developments that may arise
during the life of the contract. Examples of a foreseen development are
the impending establishment of the Safeguarding Authority. Contractors
are required to demonstrate and evidence how:-
a) they ensure compliance with their existing pre employment
checks where they have the same checks in place as NHSBT
b) they would propose to ensure compliance with the current NHS
Employment checks specified above in relation to this contract
c) they propose to keep themselves up to date with developments
in this area e.g. in relation to the requirements of the
Safeguarding Authority
6.6.
The successful contractor must have training programmes for staff
working predominantly on this contract, which have been accepted
by NHSBT as suitable for the purpose. Process will include specifying
the initial and ongoing training, with records of uptake and achievement.
6.7. NHSBT will resource and provide appropriate training modules covering an
introduction to NHSBT and a medical briefing as required, currently two
hours but subject to change and development, this training is to be
provided at the start and may be updated (annually or bi annually) to all
staff at no cost to NHSBT (depending upon NHSBT resource availability).
6.8.
The successful contractor must be able to provide a clear audit trail
back to the individual agent for all contacts made on behalf of
NHSBT..
6.9.
The successful contractor must demonstrate effective monitoring of
agents.
At least one call / contact per week must be monitored per
agent employed on behalf of NHSBT. The results at an area of
business level (inbound, outbound, social media, web handling etc)
should be reported back to NHSBT on a monthly basis.
6.10.
100% call recording is required along with simple recording
retrieval, preferably by NHSBT directly from the successful contractors
system.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 16 of 46
6.11.
The successful contractor must be able to demonstrate the ability to
operate effective business testing for all call script and system
changes. NHSBT will provide a separate Training system using duplicated
NHSBT data for business testing and staff training in accordance with
NHSBT change management protocols.
6.12.
The successful contractor will work with NHSBT in planning and
managing changes to the service, including developing validation
protocols for major planned changes to minimise the risk of service
failure. A copy of the validation protocols and testing approach will be
required within the Tender response.
6.13.
Any downtime as a result of a successful contractors failed IT or
telephony change that exceeds the Recovery Time Objectives set out
in Section 16 will lead to a 10% liquidated damage being applied to
that total months invoice.
6.14.
All other changes planned by the successful contractor, including
systems, people and location, should be assessed for the risk they
pose to service delivery to NHSBT and be communicated in a timely
fashion to promote partnership with NHSBT in the effective
management of change.
6.15.
All documentation provided as records of compliance with NHSBT
quality requirements i.e. Training, change control, validation must be
in a format and content approved by NHSBT.
7. Mailing Fulfilment Requirements
7.1. Routine confirmatory letters may be required in response to specific call
routes and outcomes. The successful contractor may be required to
provide this fulfilment mailing service.
7.2.
In these circumstances the successful contractor shall despatch all
fulfilment mailings within an agreed period from receipt of the call,
generating the mailing. Typically, this will be 24 hours from receipt of
the call unless otherwise agreed by NHSBT.
7.3. Alternatively, and most likely,
the successful contractor may be required
to despatch donor data requiring the generation of fulfilment mailing
to a separate mailing house. In such circumstances the dispatch of
data must take place within 12 hours of receiving the originating
donor call.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 17 of 46
8.
Issues Management Provision
8.1.
The successful contractor will be expected to deliver an Issues
Management facility which would include the appropriate triaging,
logging and assigning of complaints, feedback and compliments
received through the NHSBT helpline and email facilities, onto the
donor feedback database. (See Appendix 10 Donor Feedback Handling
Figures).
8.2.
A second line team would be responsible for handling more complex
issues, logging complaints, feedback and compliments and allocating
the issues to the correct department for investigation and response,
where required.
8.3.
The successful contractor’s staff will be able to provide a triage
response service from a knowledge base that will include either a
verbal response at the time or acknowledgement, with a follow up
verbal or written response within a specified period.
8.4.
The successful contractor will also be able to receive, acknowledge
(within 24 hrs) assess, scan, log and assign all correspondence
received through routes other than the NHSBT helpline and email
facilities.
8.5.
Where a final written response is required following the investigation
of a complaint, issues management provision will also include
collating relevant information received from assignees into a suitable
donor focussed email.
8.6.
Escalation support would be provided by NHSBT to support initial contacts
that were deemed to be both ‘serious’ and urgent and also for completing
Executive level responses.
8.7.
There is a need to maintain a consistently high grade and standard of
service, which recognises the unique relationship between donors and
NHSBT.
8.8.
The key performance indicators upon which the successful
contractor will be measured include time to respond as well as the
manner of the verbal or written response from the donor’s
perspective.
8.9.
For the designated areas of responsibility for the NCC, the successful
contractor will need to manage Blood Donation Complaint, Feedback
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 18 of 46
and Compliment handling, ensuring targets are met for 24 hour
acknowledgment and 18 day closure.
8.10. Through effective complaint management drive Donor retention from Blood
Donor Complainants.
9. Service to NCC Customers
9.1.
The successful contractor will be expected to deliver a consistently high
grade and standard of service, which recognises the unique relationship
between donors, potential donors and NHSBT.
9.2.
The key performance indicators upon which the successful contractor will
be measured are to be derived from at least two forms of caller satisfaction
measurement. Traditional measures for Call Centre operations will also be
required including the overall grade of service provided to callers at peak
and non-peak hours, the speed and efficiency of call answering, the pro-
active response to customer complaints and ongoing commitment to
service enhancement going forward. (Appendix 9 – KPIs).
9.3.
Part of the development of the service is the ability of the successful
contractor to be monitored through service levels derived from customer
satisfaction surveys. All customer satisfaction surveys may be sourced or
designed by the successful contractor and then authorised by NHSBT and
remain the property of NHSBT. All amendments to these surveys must be
appraised and authorised in writing by NHSBT.
The successful
contractor will provide any relevant assistance to the creation and
maintenance of these surveys as may be required.
9.4.
The successful contractor shall work with NHSBT and any third party
supplier to achieve an agreed number of successfully completed
automatic surveys each calendar month for calls handled entirely
within their team and demonstrate the selection of such calls is
entirely random. These surveys should be offered at the start of the call
anonymously. NHSBT will wish to approve any supplier that may be offered
as a partner for this requirement.
9.5.
The successful contractor shall, where applicable, ensure each
Website response provided has a link to a Website Response Survey.
9.6.
All complaints relating to the NCC service will be investigated and a
full report detailing any necessary corrective and preventative action
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 19 of 46
will be provided by the successful contractor within 48 hours of
receiving the complaint.
9.7.
Queries raised by NHSBT which require clarification or investigation
will be investigated by the successful contractor with the objective of
responding within 48 hrs or two working days.
9.8.
Any significant failures in service delivery will require an Incident
report to be provided. A full report detailing any necessary corrective
and preventative action will be provided by the successful contractor
within 48 hours of an incident. An example of an Incident Report
should be provided as a part of Supplier’s responses.
9.9.
The successful contractor will work in line with NHSBT’s standard
incident management process, including priority classifications and
associated times. To support this a contacts list will be developed
with associated response times against each.
9.10.
The successful contractor will be expected to interact directly with
NHSBT’s service desk to report and manage incidents as required,
both in and out of hours. We would expect the successful contractor
to work towards a service desk to service desk relationship.
9.11. All Key Performance Indicators (including Primary KPIs) will be subject to
regular review and amendment by agreement. However it is anticipated
that none will be reduced and many may have targets increased, as
Customer Service becomes more demanding.
9.12. Appendix 8 - provides an example of a current survey questions.
10. Additional Service Options
10.1. NHSBT expects to work with the successful contractor to develop the NCC
going forward. In response to this initiative,
NHSBT expects the
successful contractor to have the ability to provide additional service
options to the standard contract should they be required.
10.2.
Currently NHSBT sends Short Message Service Message (SMS) texts
to a large number of mobile phones each day via the NCC. (See
Appendix 8 SMS Sent).
10.3.
This functionality may be delivered through NHSBT’s core systems in
the future, but the successful contractor will be expected to have the
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 20 of 46
technical ability to provide a SMS sending service or else utilise a 3rd
party provider to deliver this functionality, should NHSBT require this.
10.4. Volumes of SMS sent are significant and the successful supplier would be
required to handle large batch sizes and high frequencies of sends
. The
successful supplier will need to be able to demonstrate the capability
to send at least 1.5 million SMS per month, with peak daily activity of
up to 100,000 SMS with the ability to send 2,000 SMS per minute as
close to real time as possible from provision of data from NHSBT
systems. Suppliers should outline the performance of their SMS
processing and sending solution in their response.
10.5.
The successful contractor will be expected to have the technical
ability to record all inbound and outbound telephone calls and
maintain these recordings for a period of 6 months for quality
purposes.
10.6.
The successful contractor will be able to provide detailed histories for
all non-call activities they undertake on behalf of NHSBT for a period
of 6 months following completion of those contacts. I.e. a record of an
email exchange should be maintained for 6 months or which numbers were
sent SMS texts up to 6 months ago.
10.7.
The successful contractor will be fully conversant with the
management of Social Media contacts and NHSBT's social media
groups. A record of successfully managing the principle Social Media
contacts for Facebook and Twitter for major customers over at least
twelve months will be expected. To include monitoring and
moderation of posts during both business and out of hours with the
use of modern social media management systems or tools. Capacity
to cope with high volumes of social media posts during campaigns,
crises and other exceptional circumstances.
10.8.
The successful contractor will be able to provide a Web Chat service
that can be demonstrated to be cost neutral in deployment compared
to voice calls. A record of successfully providing such a service for a
major customer will be expected.
10.9.
The successful contractor will be expected to have the technical
ability to provide “real time” information relating to level and grade of
service either routinely or, preferably, by provision of remote access
facilities.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 21 of 46
10.10.
The successful contractor will be expected to inform NHSBT of any
development within the Contact Centre Industry that may enhance the
service offered to donors.
10.11.
The successful contractor may be required to undertake various
research projects on behalf of NHSBT.
10.12. Other activities will be costed on a project by project basis.
The
successful contractor must be able to manage such requirements and
be pro-active in advising of strategies and best practice for these
special projects.
10.13.
The successful contractor will provide appropriate workspace at each
site for use by a NHSBT representative that includes the ability to
gain access to the NHSBT IT system in a way which enables near
normal work to be undertaken to that done when on NHSBT premises.
Appropriate IT & Telecommunications facilities should be available.
10.14. The successful contractor may be expected to be a central co-ordination
point for NHSBT On-call Rotas. The precise nature of this is not yet defined
but typically may involve managing call-outs for IT or Clinical staff.
10.15.
Push messaging is a channel that NHSBT will also expect provision
from any successful contractor, either directly or through a 3rd party
supplier. This service is utilised to increase engagement with our
mobile app users and encourage appointment booking. Service
provision should include both simple and rich messaging capability.
10.16.
Full reporting on the performance of mobile app push messaging
shall be made available to NHSBT to access via web based solution
as we desire. The Supplier should provide examples of the types of
reporting they can provide to support push messaging.
11. Account Management, Reporting and Invoicing
11.1.
NHSBT anticipates an Account Director and support from at least one
other Account Manager (with a minimum of 12 months experience
within the successful contractor’s organisation), will be required to
liaise on a day-to-day basis with designated NHSBT contacts for any
of the contact handling services described here as well as for ad-hoc
projects as appropriate. An Operational Manager will be required to
oversee the work of an Inbound Team Manager and Outbound Team
Manager and in so doing be the Operational Lead for this contract.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 22 of 46
Specialist Team Leaders for Customer Experience and Social Media
will also be expected to ensure appropriate levels of expertise are
available for this contract. (In practice it is likely that a team of contacts is
established.)
11.2.
NHSBT would also expect an Accountable Executive to be aligned to
the NCC service and be a member of the Successful Contractor’s
Executive team
11.3.
This Accountable Executive would participate in 6 monthly strategic
reviews with NHSBT, and help ensure a robust partnership approach
between both organisations.
11.4. Accurate, timely and user friendly reporting is a key requirement for this
project.
The successful contractor will be expected to provide reports
on all contacts received into and made from the NCC including
ineffective and ‘hoax’ calls. The format of these reports will be agreed
with NHSBT as appropriate. In all cases source data must be readily
available and provided along with the reports requested. NHSBT shall
withhold payment of 10% of the monthly invoice for that particular
month, should the successful contractor fail to produce the reports for the
KPIs identified within 3 working days of month end.
11.5.
A narrative will be associated with all reports where there is a
variation outside of that agreed as being within normal limits.
Similarly a narrative will be provided for all reports scheduled
monthly or more.
11.6.
Reporting must be in an agreed format and via agreed mechanisms.
Usually these will be either via email or a dedicated Internet site or in
Excel format.
11.7.
It is expected that there will be regular monthly contract review
meetings at an operational level with quarterly business reviews
providing a more strategic overview, allowing the successful
contractor to update NHSBT on innovations in the contact centre
industry.
11.8.
These would be supported with twice-yearly contract review meetings
at a senior management level.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 23 of 46
11.9.
NHSBT will work with the successful contractor to design a suite of
reports required during contract implementation, along with a
monthly Balanced Business Scorecard, but the following provide a
summary of the core reports that will be required:
Daily – Outbound (sent within 16 hrs of calling)
NHSBT requirements
Outbound Call outcome reports
Outbound Contact Rate
Volume loaded, contacted and answer phone messages left
Calls classified as ‘successful’ or ‘unsuccessful’
Additional donor information – as appropriate
Reports on SMS sent
Daily Call-back Report
Daily – Inbound
NHSBT requirements for Blood donor and ODT calls
Calls offered
Calls Answered
Average call length
GOS
Performance vs forecasted call volumes
Performance by interval
Daily – Social Media
NHSBT requirements
Volume of posts
Volume of responses
Performance on resolves
Performance on replies
Weekly – (Each week to run from Monday to Sunday.)
Outbound/Inbound data
(to be provided by mid day on first working day
following a weekend.)
NHSBT requirements
Inbound Cumulative version of daily reports
Outbound weekly summary of daily reports.
Weekly Summary of daily reports on SMS
Weekly – Organ Donation additional reports
Call outcome summary
Ethnic breakdown
Organisation type
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 24 of 46
Media source
Monthly – Outbound/Inbound (To be provided by mid day on first
Monday following the end of the month. Each month to be
calendar.)
Monthly version of daily/weekly inbound reports
Monthly version of daily/weekly outbound reports
Secondary Grade of Service (as measured using Calls received by
ACD and all calls answered by person or machine).
Number of agents starting training/leaving successful contractor and
turnover percent for short-term staff and long term staff.
Number of Complaints (against the NCC). Percentage to be
reported also as percentage of calls received by ACD.
Number of Issues/Complaints received & processed. Percentage to
be reported also as percentage of calls received by ACD.
Time taken to process Issues/Complaints (%age within two working
days)
Number of Call Recordings provided for a) Issues/Complaints, b)
Random Surveys, c) Random Transferred Call Surveys.
Monthly Summary of daily reports on SMS
Summary staffing report showing number of agents and support
staff used (inbound/outbound).
Quality performance by area of business from internal monitoring
(see Appendix 9, KPIs)
Donor satisfaction results (see Appendix 8)
ODL monthly report requirements
Call outcome summary
Ethnic breakdown of callers
Organisation type
Country breakdown
Registrations by country
Gender
Quarterly –
ODL quarterly report requirements
Call outcome summary
Country breakdown
11.10.
The successful contractor will be required to invoice NHSBT at
monthly intervals. Where appropriate, invoices should show
information related to costs incurred by NHSBT Directorates (Blood,
Organ etc) as agreed with NHSBT. Separate invoices should be
raised for charges relating to the Help Line and the Organ Donor Line
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 25 of 46
activity,
broken down by English and Welsh activity. Invoicing
arrangements to be discussed post Contract Award stage.
11.11.
Invoices should reflect the work done for each period but also fit
within a “standard” format to allow for rapid checking and
authorisation. An electronic version should be available as well as a
paper invoice. All supporting documentation should be provided with each
invoice supplied.
NHSBT also use payment by EDI.
12. Data Network
12.1.
The successful contractor will access NHSBT core systems and ODR
via a Cloud based solution. This will be accessible across the internet
using an Active Directory Federation Service (ADFS) Single sign on, with
unique username and password.
12.2.
If data is required to be transmitted to third parties on public
networks then security will be enabled through the use of encryption
technology. Currently this transfer is via sFTP with agreed NHSBT
standard encryption.
12.3.
File transfers must be monitored and notification of successful
transfer sent to NHSBT.
Any failure in file transfer should be notified
to NHSBT by the supplier along with remedial action to correct.
12.4.
The successful contractor must also be able to supply a proven
backup system for storing all transferred information.
12.5.
The successful contractor must comply with the requirements of
NHSBT information security policy and sign an agreement to that
effect. Any changes to the specification or the means of data
interchange must be approved by NHSBT Information Security Officer
as appropriate prior to any changes being implemented. No changes
may be made without due notification to and approval from the NHSBT.
The NHSBT Security Policy is available on request.
13. NHSBT Systems Connectivity
13.1.
NHSBT requires the successful contractor to access our CRM system
via the Cloud to view and update donor and session information and
the ODR. It will also provide the NCC with access to the NHSBT Blood
Donor Knowledge Base. This allows NCC operators to answer a wide
range of donor enquiries and update our core system with the outcome.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 26 of 46
13.2. The NHSBT CRM System will be Cloud based and accessed over the
internet.
13.3. The application does not require any locally installed plug-ins or
components other than a browser.
The application requires the NCC to
use a version browser -1 or above.
13.4. During Contract implementation there will be a period for integration with
the successful contractors systems.
The successful contractor should
outline their previous experience of setting up and integrating their
telephony systems with a Cloud based CRM solution.
13.5. The NHSBT CRM Systems will be available 24x7 other than for planned
downtime for system upgrades (see below).
The successful contractor
must provide a 24x7 Technical contact to assist in the case of
unplanned downtime.
Response to call must be within 30 minutes and
all NHSBT related fixes to be completed within 4 hours.
13.6.
The successful contractor must ensure that their internet connectivity
is capable of managing significant number of staff accessing
NHSBT’s Cloud based Systems. Please outline how you would also
monitor user experience and performance of any connections.
13.7.
Software releases need to be coordinated with the successful
contractor to ensure the minimum system downtime is achieved.
Currently there are four planned per year.
13.8. Software releases are usually planned for Sundays between 6pm and
10pm but are subject to change to meet NHSBT operational requirements.
The successful contractor must ensure that software releases are
managed at the NCC and provide technical support if required. The
ODR also has two software releases but these are currently not scheduled
as the build and hosting is outsourced, generally two service and
maintenance releases are provided annually.
The successful contractor
is expected to support these releases which may include software
updates and changes. There may be other adhoc hotfix releases
throughout the year.
13.9. All Software changes will be deployed to the test/training system
for
acceptance testing by the successful contractor before deployment to
the production system.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 27 of 46
13.10. The information volunteered by callers may be of a personal nature and
must be treated accordingly.
NHSBT will need to approve the security
measures and policies put in place by the supplier and the supplier
must agree to abide by NHSBT security policy (supplied on request).
13.11.
NHSBT require that contact centre agents use unique accounts on the
network that are valid for the period of employment of the agent. The
account names must not be reused by another agent at any time in
the future.
13.12. ODR Specification is an embedded document:
Redacted
13.13.
The successful contractor will be required to be ITIL process
compliant for all areas where an IT process is delivered to support the
delivery of service for NHSBT. Experience of working to this level of
compliance should be provided in responses.
14. Critical Incident response Procedures
14.1.
The successful contractor will be expected to have robust procedures
for dealing with external critical incidents which may involve
immediate response from NHSBT e.g. terrorism, major rail/air
crash/etc.
14.2.
In these circumstances the successful contractor must be able to
respond to a sudden increase in contact volume with an agreed level
of service which will include a standard ‘Critical Incident’ response
message provided by NHSBT until a specific message is received
from the approved NHSBT contact.
14.3.
The successful contractor must be able to increase the number of
operators allocated to handling NHSBT contacts appropriate to the
volume of contacts within 4 hours of being alerted to the event.
NHSBT operators must be ‘protected’ from all other of the successful
contractor’s customer contacts in these circumstances.
14.4. In a response to an internal or external Critical Incident the contractor may
be required to act as a portal of information for NHSBT staff, their
customers and donors. The information requirements are likely to involve
but not be restricted to, the collation of incident details, the impact the
incident may be having upon NHSBT service provision and enquiries from
staff, customers and donors.
The successful contractor will play an
active part in NHSBT's emergency preparedness arrangements. This
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 28 of 46
will include but, not be restricted to participation in exercises and scenario
specific script development and delivery related to NHSBT’s Critical
Incident response, as well as to support communications exercises.
15. Future Developments
15.1.
The successful contractor shall assist with ongoing developments
and be prepared to work pro-actively to add value to the service to
donors and general public throughout the period of the contract.
15.2. NHSBT will effect progressive improvements to their IT systems to
automate routine processes within the period of the contract. As NHSBT
move to a CRM approach for the core blood donation systems,
the
successful contractor will be expected to provide proactive
suggestions to help improve agent performance and donor
experience.
15.3. The successful contractor has direct interface with the Organ Donor
Register at the outset. Currently Agents are able to directly register
members of the public, update existing records, withdraw a record and
request letters in the ODR. Future developments may include direct access
provided to members of the public to access and manage their own
records.
Consideration should be given to the impact of this change
and how the contractor can continue to add value to the service
without impacting on contract cost. Full consultation will be sought with
the contractor prior to any implementation.
15.4. On the 1st December 2015 the Welsh Opt Out Legislation Bill came into
effect, with the potential for other countries, Northern Ireland, Scotland and
England following suit. However, these changes will not be implemented at
the same time and there may be different policies for each country. The
NCC will be expected to manage these variances and provide advice and
guidance to callers using the DKB database. The NCC will be required to
alert the relevant NHSBT manager(s) to any issues arising from changes in
policy and provide meaningful MI in a timely manner to NHSBT in relation
to any difficulties that may arise.
15.5. The National Living Wage is expected to impact upon the costs of any
successful contractor during the lifetime of this contract.
Consideration
should be given to how this cost would be passed onto NHSBT in the
Offer Schedule section of this response. A summary as to how the
successful contractor will help NHSBT mitigate these costs should
also be provided.
16. Failure of the Service
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 29 of 46
16.1. Failure by the successful contractor to meet agreed performance indicators
regarding contact handling as required will have a direct impact on the
ability of NHSBT to provide blood products, organs and tissue to hospitals
for patient care.
16.2.
The successful contractor is required to advise NHSBT at the earliest
indication if there are likely to be delays to contact management for
any channel, so that the appropriate action can be taken and
alternative arrangements made.
16.3.
Rolling updates on investigation into failures are expected along with
recovery planning.
Suppliers should outline how they would handle
communication during service provision issues, both for intermittent
and major issues.
16.4.
Failure by the successful contractor to provide the required contact
handling performance will be considered to be a breach of contract.
In such a case NHSBT may consider termination of the contract, and
seek remedies against the successful contractor as set out in the NHS
Conditions of Contract for the Supply of Services. Any costs recovered
from the successful contractor may include the cost of importing blood
products, organs or tissue to ensure that the requirements to hospitals are
fulfilled.
16.5.
The successful contractor will be responsible for providing and
maintaining the services to the Contract Standard at all times and will
ensure continuity of supply (at no extra cost to NHSBT and any
Beneficiary) in accordance with the specification. The successful
contractor must have in place contingency plans and arrangements
which are approved by NHSBT to ensure continuity of supply within
the specified Recovery Time Objective for the services identified by
NHSBT - Inbound and Web based services within an hour and
Outbound services (including SMS) within 24 hours. The recovery of
services must not exceed the Maximum Tolerable Period of
Disruption identified by NHSBT - Inbound and Web based services
established within an hour and Outbound services within 24 hours of
the disruptive challenge to supply.
16.6.
The plans and arrangements should be IS022301 compliant, validated
through external audit, with the successful contractor either IS023301
accredited/certificated or have a system aligned to the standard. The
arrangements must be exercised on at least an annual basis and the
outcomes of the exercises shared with NHSBT.
17. Contract Development
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 30 of 46
17.1. During the first year of the contract,
the successful contractor will be
required to provide a service in-line with the specification issued with
the tender.
17.2. After the first year and for the remainder of the contract period (including
any extension period)
the successful contractor will be required to
develop the service provided in-line with technological and service
trends. Any developments suggested by the successful contractor must be
agreed and approved in writing by NHSBT, and may form an addendum to
the contract.
17.3. Developments will be expected to enhance the service offering and/or
provide cost savings. Any cost savings achieved will be expected to be
reflected in downward pricing of the respective contract component(s).
NHSBT would expect to achieve a 1%+ saving per year over the
length of the contract with no service deterioration (excluding the
impact of NLW increases). . The successful contractor will recommend to
NHSBT opportunities to deliver these savings and NHSBT will review and
agree whether these are feasible. These 1% savings should not be built
into or considered in the Pricing Schedule responses by the Successful
Contractor.
17.4.
It is a contractual requirement that service and cost developments are
brought to the attention of NHSBT by the successful contractor on a
regular basis. NHSBT is not obliged to agree to the implementation of any
suggested developments. Failure to comply with this contractual
requirement may result in the early termination of the contract by NHSBT,
by giving a minimum of 6 months notice of termination in writing to the
successful contractor.
17.5.
Once the contract has been put into effect, should the successful
contractor choose to re-locate the core centre of agent activity to a
different centre(s) or site(s) which requires NHSBT to incur extra
charges and costs in order to maintain the current level of contact
and support such extra costs will be borne by the successful
contractor for the period of this contract. This will also apply if any
additional location comes into use.
17.6.
No re-location of activity should be undertaken without full
consultation with NHSBT. Such agreement not to be unreasonably
withheld.
18. Ownership of Records
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 31 of 46
18.1
NHSBT records held by the successful contractor and any associated
audit trails remain in the ownership of NHSBT and shall be released
to NHSBT, in an agreed format and media, at no additional cost upon
expiration or termination of the contract.
18.2
The successful contractor will provide the details held in the
document database for NHSBT records in an agreed electronic
format at no additional cost upon expiration or termination of the
contract.
18.3
All data relating to donors can only be stored for 6 months by the
successful contractor. This is to include call recordings, donor PID,
records of contacts via web forms and social media.
18.4
NHSBT will expect the Successful Contractor to keep data relating to
volumetrics and performance for the full duration of the contract
period.
19
Contract Timings
19.1 This contract commences in March 2018 for a period of 5 years with the
option to extend for a further two one year periods. The 5/6 months prior to
this will be a period of set-up, training and development whilst a phased
hand-over from the existing contractor takes place (if required).
During
this period the successful contractor will support NHSBT in efforts to
ensure no deterioration in service occurs.
19.2
When it has been determined that the contract shall end (i.e. not
renewed or extended further)
the successful contractor shall maintain
standards of service at the levels prevalent at the time of notification
(or better) until a hand-over has been completed. This will be for no
more than the final six months of any notice period.
Further, the
successful contractor will co-operate fully in the closedown of this
contract and hand-over to a successor provider. NHSBT will reserve
the right to withhold payment, should the services be required to be sought
from an alternative supplier and any additional costs associated will be
recouped from the Contractor. Should deterioration of service occur to a
significant extent and the safety of the blood supply is imperilled or results
in reputational risk for NHSBT then appropriate redress may be sought.
19.3 This contract may be extended in the future to include the provision of
services for any other NHSBT Directorate with the successful contractor.
20
Other Contractual Requirements
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 32 of 46
20.1 The contract will require the successful contractor to agree with
current NHS Terms & Conditions and to maintain compliance should
these change through the life of the contract.
20.2 The successful supplier will be expected to work within the
requirements and spirit of UK Law in relation to the transfer of
business activity from one supplier to another. This will include, but
not exclusively, the provisions of the Transfer of Undertakings
(Protection of Employment) Act.
20.3 The successful supplier may need to provide a dedicated Critical Incident
Helpline service to be available 24x7x365. The key attributes of this
service are:
20.3.1 The adoption of a dedicated 24hr single critical incident reporting
telephone number for the entire organisation. This would ensure that all
calls are responded to in a timely manner and by a human voice. The
single incident number could go alongside the current Emergency
Planning Incident Helpline on Staff ID cards
20.3.2 NCC to hold incident management contact details for the organisation.
20.3.3 NCC operators to be able to forward any reported incident to the
appropriate person/department.
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 33 of 46
Appendix 1
Inbound calls handled Outbound contacts Web tasks Social Media Responses SMS sent
Jan-14
128173
207180
1907
3408
336994
Feb-14
102726
180936
2609
3074
279348
Mar-14
112074
183719
3010
3611
361213
Apr-14
97601
161642
2591
2818
364762
May-14 90948
166937
2886
3009
289372
Jun-14
96842
157654
3433
3415
282052
Jul-14
97286
176274
3146
3341
417515
Aug-14 88883
151161
3311
4691
401254
Sep-14
95632
157310
3679
3909
413943
Oct-14
104309
190576
4661
4661
562370
Nov-14 98117
146487
3571
7483
606488
Dec-14
91219
178794
3879
6103
536368
Jan-15
130898
198366
4713
8792
859281
Feb-15
96383
169611
3751
7737
493876
Mar-15
101717
189723
3925
7327
649982
Apr-15
88049
179966
3734
7530
528260
May-15 87331
182409
3442
8316
540869
Jun-15
111173
164360
6435
10117
470572
Jul-15
89173
162994
4019
14308
581804
Aug-15 80115
178106
3571
8326
550698
Sep-15
89881
178186
3765
7038
555416
Oct-15
102459
160970
29
5955
642854
Nov-15 104039
178255
2829
6303
853448
Dec-15
86682
179624
2952
4724
858007
Jan-16
96757
158163
3795
7554
803280
Feb-16
90594
181398
2896
5119
576519
Mar-16
88399
153352
3300
6641
715534
Apr-16
89484
164384
2870
4634
805197
May-16 84246
159916
2554
4859
656825
Jun-16
77766
165655
2433
5125
925784
Jul-16
74056
150320
2833
4260
1101371
Aug-16 81261
168709
3214
6378
1033464
Sep-16
81148
157277
2211
5411
949579
Contact volumes
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 34 of 46
Appendix 2
Inbound Calls Handled
Inbound calls handled
140000
120000
100000
80000
Inbound calls handled
60000
40000
20000
0
ar-14
ar-15
ar-16
Jan-14
ov-14
ov-15
M
ay-14 Jul-14 ep-14
ay-15 Jul-15 ep-15
ay-16 Jul-16 ep-16
M
S
N
Jan-15M
M
S
N
Jan-16M
M
S
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 35 of 46
Appendix 3
Outbound Calls Handled
Outbound contacts
250000
200000
150000
Outbound contacts
100000
50000
0
ar-14
ar-15
ar-16
Jan-14
ov-14
ov-15
M
ay-14 Jul-14 ep-14
ay-15 Jul-15 ep-15
ay-16 Jul-16 ep-16
M
S
N
Jan-15M
M
S
N
Jan-16M
M
S
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 36 of 46
Appendix 4
Web Tasks Handled
Web tasks
7000
6000
5000
4000
Web tasks
3000
2000
Issue with
1000
webforms
0
ar-14
ar-15
ar-16
Jan-14
ov-14
ov-15
M
ay-14 Jul-14 ep-14
ay-15 Jul-15 ep-15
ay-16 Jul-16 ep-16
M
S
N
Jan-15 M
M
S
N
Jan-16 M
M
S
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 37 of 46
Appendix 5
Social Media Responses
Social Media Responses
16000
14000
Missing Types
12000
Campaign
10000
8000
Social Media Responses
6000
4000
2000
0
ar-14
ar-15
ar-16
Jan-14
ov-14
ov-15
M
ay-14 Jul-14 ep-14
ay-15 Jul-15 ep-15
ay-16 Jul-16 ep-16
M
S
N
Jan-15M
M
S
N
Jan-16M
M
S
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 38 of 46
Appendix 6
SMS sent
SMS sent
1200000
1000000
800000
600000
SMS sent
400000
200000
0
ar-14
ar-15
ar-16
Jan-14
ov-14
ov-15
M
ay-14 Jul-14 ep-14
ay-15 Jul-15 ep-15
ay-16 Jul-16 ep-16
M
S
N
Jan-15 M
M
S
N
Jan-16 M
M
S
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 39 of 46
Appendix 7
Inbound Call Profiles
Inbound Call Profiles
140
120
100
Monday
d
Tuesday
re
80
Wednesday
ffe
O
Thursday
lls
60
a
Friday
C
Saturday
40
Sunday
20
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
:0
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
0
1
2
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
Interval
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 40 of 46
Appendix 8
Customer Satisfaction Surveys
Telephone Questions
1. Please tell us, based on your recent experience, how likely you are to
recommend NHSBT to a friend or colleague. Press nine for extremely likely
through to zero for not at all likely.
2. Could you please tell us how satisfied you are with the way our advisor
handled your enquiry? Press nine for very satisfied through to zero for very
dissatisfied.
3. Was your query answered first time? Press one for yes or two for no.
4. If you have donated recently was organ donation discussed with you? Press
one for yes, two for no or zero for not applicable.
Website Questions
1. The response was pleasant and polite
2. You were provided with clear and concise information or advice?
3. Your query or concerns were addressed completely?
4. How likely are you to recommend this service to others?
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 41 of 46
Appendix 9
KPIs
Primary
Contractor GoS Inbound: The aim is to measure the Contractor performance at
handling all calls received by their Network from callers calling 0300 123 23 23.
Therefore this is the GoS (calls answered by a person within 20 seconds) taken from
the ACD figures.
(85%)
This is a monthly measure using the total calls answered within 20 seconds divided
by the total calls offered minus calls abandoned in less than 10 seconds.
Where the overall monthly forecast variance is equal to 10% then this target is not
applicable and will be on best endeavours basis.
Days during any month where the forecast variance is equal to or greater than 10%
will also be excluded from any monthly GoS total.
Should the Contractor GoS Inbound fall below 85% this will invoke liquidated
damages of 1% of the relevant months invoice in respect to Inbound call minute
charges. This will be deducted from the following months invoice.
Contact Rate Out-bound: The aim is to measure the proportion of targeted people
contacted in person or, shown as a sub-measure, via answering services of the
overall number of people that are required to be contacted.
The target outbound
contact rate will be
65%. Answer Machine contacts is targeted at 17.5% per month of
all targeted people, and forms part of the overall 65% contact rate.
Caller Satisfaction (IVR): The aim is to measure, the instant the call is over, what
the caller perceives their satisfaction is of the way the call was handled. Using a 10
point scale the reporting measure is the number of overall scores which are 10 out of
10, i.e. Top box.
(85%)
Donor advocacy (IVR): The aim is to measure, the instant the call is over, based
on the callers recent experience, how likely they are to recommend NHSBT to a
friend or colleague Using a 10 point scale the reporting measure is the % of
promoters (9s and 10s) minus the % of detractors (1s to 6s). Scores of 7 and 8 are
seen as neutral.
(80%)
Web User Satisfaction: The aim is to measure the satisfaction of the web user to
the response they receive and the timeliness of the response.
(70%)
Call Duration - Inbound: This, industry standard, KPI is significant in enabling the
financial situation to be managed.
(Monthly average 195 seconds Blood donor
call and 275 seconds for Organ donor).
Dependent upon NHSBT needs this target is subject to change by agreement.
Call Duration - Outbound: This KPI is significant in enabling the financial situation
to be managed.
(Monthly average 60 seconds).
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 42 of 46
Dependent upon NHSBT needs this target is subject to change by agreement.
First Contact Resolution: The intention is to ensure that at least
97.5% of all
contacts result in the donor receiving all the relevant information they need without
further contact(s) being required from the donor. This is calculated by taking the total
monthly quantity of contacts that were transferred to second line support from the
total volume of contacts handled and then dividing this by the total volume of calls
handled. This is then shown as a %.
Social Media: The following targets will be in place:
Resolves within 2 hours
85%
Replies within 2 hours
90%
Resolves within 4 hours
90%
Replies within 4 hours
95%
Definitions:
Resolve - where a mention has been reviewed but no donor response
required; it will be tagged and closed within the social media handling tool.
E.g. donors showing support of a national campaign by using the appropriate
#.
Reply - where the successful contractor has deemed a reply to the donor is
necessary. E.g. a medical query is asked.
Exceptions:
Volume – Due to the fluctuations in volume in social media, NHSBT will permit
the successful contractor to exclude from the service level calculation any day
where volume exceeds +25% of the average volume for the month in
question. This will be based on the number of mentions per day as recorded
in the successful contractor’s social media handling tool.
Service level calculation excludes cases where are not permitted to respond.
Subsidiary
Average Time to Answer: This is measured from the ACD and should be between
12 – 18 seconds.
Total Calls Answered: The number of calls answered by a person should exceed
98%.
Waiting Time: The proportion of calls answered by a person within 10 minutes
should exceed
99.5%.
“Lost” Calls: Any call not answered by a person is a Lost call. Therefore there are
several parts to this measure. Lost calls which never reach the ACD (possibly a
PSTN failure) and Lost calls that have reached the ACD but are not answered by a
person should be shown. Also to be reported are the network lost calls which have
received a network message informing the caller that it has not been possible to
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 43 of 46
connect the call for any reason and RTNR (within duration bands). Finally the ACD
measure of calls answered by IVR and any not answered (e.g. RTNR) should also
be shown. It is likely that RTNR where the duration is less than 10 seconds will be
discounted but they should still be reported. Overall “Lost” Calls should not exceed
1.0%.
Inbound Call Forecast: In order to fully understand performance at meeting the
main KPIs, forecasting is required to be within
+ /– 10% of actual.
Days where forecast variance is equal to 10% will be discounted from overall
monthly performance figures. For months where the overall inbound call forecast
exceeds 10% in total then service level attainment will be on a best endeavours
basis.
Data Collection: Accuracy of data collection is vital to the systems used within the
NHSBT. Numerical and alpha accuracy should exceed
99.5% as measured by
NHSBT from input by the contractor. Quality monitoring demonstrating this will need
to be provided on a monthly basis.
Web Response: 100% Website enquiries should be processed within 6 working
hours. For days where the daily volume increases by 50% of forecasted volumes
processing will be on a best endeavours basis.
Issues Management: 100% of complaints reported should be acknowledged within
24 hours and ‘closed’ within 18 working days.
Complaints: Complaints upheld against the NCC should not exceed
0.1% of
transactions.
Query Handling: 95% of issues not classified as complaints by NHSBT should be
handled within two working days.
Queries: Queries which, on investigation, are shown to result from the Contractor’s
performance and procedures should not exceed
0.15% of all transactions.
Call sampling: Error rates must not exceed 0.1% of the total calls checked
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 44 of 46
Appendix 10
Donor Feedback Handling – 2015/16 figures
Volume
1400
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
Apr-15
May-15
Jun-15
Jul-15
Aug-15
Sep-15
Oct-15
Nov-15
Dec-15
Jan-16
Feb-16
Mar-16
FOIs
Exec
Complainants (Events)
Other Feedback (Events)
Compliments
• 25,789 total events
• 10,949 complaints (8844 complainants)
• 7,621 other events (feedback)
• 6,755 compliments
• 139 FOI requests
• 93 Exec complaints
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 45 of 46
WilliamRichardSpecification Final RC Feb RedactedRpy.doc
Page 46 of 46
