CASE STUDY
Automating tasks with ServiceNow
helps Virgin Trains agents resolve
customer issues faster
The next phase of transformation is currently
underway with the implementation of
ServiceNow Customer Service Management.
“Customer Service Management will help
us automate common customer service
tasks and save both agents and customers
a lot of time,” said Sullivan. “We get
thousands of inquiries, suggestions and
requests each year. With Customer Service
Management we can issue reference
numbers, track cases more easily and get
important data about our customers that
will drive future improvements.”
“We’ve automated tasks and simplified
processes, for example, making it easier and
faster to get needed approvals for changes,”
said Underwood. “In some cases, what used
to take a month now takes a day.”
The modernisation effort was accelerated
by the ease of implementation of the Now
Platform. “The core functionality is all built
in – it’s relatively easy to activate the specific
modules and functionality you require,” said
Underwood. “And the platform is cloud-
based, so scale-up is not an issue.”
Better employee support translates
to higher customer satisfaction for
Virgin Trains, with NPS rising from
the mid-20s to over 70
Modernisation brought radical improvements
to the quality of IT service delivery at Virgin
Trains. But that’s just the beginning of the
transformation journey for the company.
“Richard Branson has a saying, ‘if we look after
our staff, they will look after our customers’,”
said Sullivan. “Thus, a key part of our
transformation journey is constantly improving
the service we provide to employees.”
To that end, Virgin Trains began tracking
customer satisfaction (CSAT) scores
internally. According to Sullivan, Net
Promoter Scores (NPS) were initially in the
mid-20s range, but today they average
between 70 and 80.
“We saw a 44% improvement in the first
eight weeks with ServiceNow, just from
improved hiring processes,” Sullivan said. “To
us, that score is a measure of how much lost
time we’re giving back to employees and
how much more they’re able to focus on
what matters most – constantly improving
the customer experience.”
Sullivan said CSAT increases were attributable
to many factors, but the acceleration of
processes enabled by ServiceNow was critical.
“Employees don’t always analyse why service
seems better – they just perceive that they’re
getting what they need faster.”
WE’RE MOVING TOWARDS A DIGITISED,
AUTOMATED, PERSONALISED RAIL
EXPERIENCE THAT PUTS CUSTOMER
SATISFACTION FIRST.
60
INTELLIGENTCIO
In addition, Virgin Trains will use Customer
Service Management to connect
departments internally and further expedite
customer service. With Customer Service
Management, work can be routed from
customer service to field service, engineering,
operations, finance, legal and other
departments, so customer inquiries can be
addressed quickly by appropriate staff.
Virgin Trains extends ServiceNow
efficiencies to suppliers, creating an
end-to-end service value chain
Recognising that the overall customer
experience also depends on partners, Virgin
Trains launched an initiative to create an
end-to-end service value chain that extends
to its base of suppliers.
“We’re on track to save 20% of our
operating budget and we want to invest
some of those savings into our supply chain,”
said Sullivan.
More specifically, Virgin Trains is
restructuring its RFP process to motivate
suppliers to use the Now Platform for their
own service management processes.
Innovating with ServiceNow helps
Virgin Trains deliver a fantastic rail
experience for its customers
Virgin Trains is looking at innovative ways to
deliver the rail experience of the future. “We
want to provide digital entertainment, easy
access to up-to-date schedule information,
simplified booking and payment capabilities,
www.intelligentcio.com