BenchmarkPortal Announces: ARAG Customer Care Achieves Its Eighth Certification as a BenchmarkPortal Center of Excellence

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) August 18, 2014

ARAG® Customer Care call center was certified earlier this year as a Center of Excellence by BenchmarkPortal, a leading contact center research and consulting organization. "Only the top 10 percent of those benchmarked annually achieve this distinction," said BenchmarkPortal CEO Bruce Belfiore. "The Center of Excellence Certification is so prestigious that only 5% of those centers that applied have actually attained certification 5 or more years in a row."

To achieve certification as a Center of Excellence, a company must undergo a rigorous benchmarking process, which compares the organization's operational metrics to those of its peers, using the world's largest database of contact center metrics. During this process, BenchmarkPortal experts audit and verify key data from the contact center applying for certification.

Factors (called key performance indicators) such as first call resolution, cost per call, call waiting time, customer satisfaction, agent satisfaction and utilization of human resources are taken into account. BenchmarkPortal is able to scientifically gauge how the contact center being studied compares to other centers in the same industry, and if the performance of the contact center is superior. Customer satisfaction, which relates to customer loyalty and business growth, is the goal, balanced by financial metrics which show that the center is being operated efficiently.

"This certification attests to the fact that call center leaders have successfully balanced efficiency and effectiveness in their operations, " said Belfiore. "By optimizing their cost components and their ability to satisfy customers, they exemplify best practices in a very important sector. We have validated its metrics and have certified that ARAG is, indeed, among the best in its industry. I congratulate ARAG on a job well done."

"Contact centers that achieve certification are remarkable in their ability to balance a commitment to service excellence with cost effective service strategies," added Belfiore, who has been with the company since 2000.

About BenchmarkPortal
BenchmarkPortal's founders pioneered the first contact center benchmarking study in 1995. Now custodian of the largest database of contact center metrics in the world, BenchmarkPortal is a leader in certification, training, consulting and research for the customer contact industry. Its team of professionals has gained international recognition for expertise and innovation in best practices. BenchmarkPortal's mission is to help management optimize the performance of their center in terms of both cost and quality, encourage customer loyalty and build enterprise value. For more information on BenchmarkPortal, call 1-800-214-8929 or visit http://www.BenchmarkPortal.com.

About ARAG
ARAG® (http://www.ARAGgroup.com) is a leader in legal insurance. It provides people with affordable and reliable legal counsel for everyday life matters. The company has an international premium base of more than $2 billion and protects 15.5 million individuals and their families – worldwide. We give you the freedom and control to embrace life's opportunities.

ARAG's North American headquarters are based in Des Moines, Iowa. We've earned the prestigious Center of Excellence Award for eight consecutive years (2007-2014) and have been named a Top 100 Call Center by BenchmarkPortal for four consecutive years (2011-2014), continuing our track record of industry-leading customer service. ARAG team members voted ARAG a Best Places to Work in Insurance (2009-2013).

For more news and information about ARAG visit ARAGgroup.com.

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