Ansaback News

Ansaback (part of IPPLUS (UK) Ltd) has received The Investors In People accreditation, passing  with flying colours following their 3 year review.

Investors In People (IIP) is a prestigious award, and is gained by companies that can show that they invest in their staff and that the staff are involved in a big way in what the company is trying to achieve. Therefore we are extremely pleased to have been awarded this accreditation for a second consecutive time.

The feedback received by IIP from staff interviewed was extremely positive, with comments such as:

‘This is a great place to work’
‘I could earn more in town but its relaxed here and I prefer that’
‘I just love it here’
‘They try and offer you the hours you want’
‘It’s corny I know but it really does feel like a family’

Individuals confirmed they have the opportunity to develop their skills and strengths, with the company giving the opportunity where possible for them to move into a role they may feel more suited to. This not only retains key skills for the organisation but contributes towards individuals feeling their contribution is valued. Some 87% of promotions are internal, which also ensures that the culture and ethos of the organisation are retained.

The culture and values of our organisation are set and led from the top with a clear understanding about strategies that create a good working environment to make people feel valued.

The calls received within our contact centre and our dedicated desk service are continuously monitored, as a result this is a superb opportunity for us to reward the most hardworking and dedicated agents within our company. 

Each month Ansaback team leaders and supervisors nominate call centre agents for the ‘Call Centre of the Month Award’.

The winner is based on various factors such their overall call quality and performance, best adherence to schedule and generally going above and beyond the call of duty.

The reward gives them well deserved recognition for their extra hard work and the cash prize given shows our gratitude. Junes' winners are Louise Cousins (above) and Karen Pryke (right).

Ansaback call centre have unveiled a brand new addition to their team this week… a new car with a personalised number plate.

Ansaback took the decision to purchase a new company car to replace the much-loved, but very tired Volkswagen Golf nicknamed BOT (due to the last three letters of the number plate), who has sadly been put out to pasture. BOT has travelled to numerous places in his time and has been with us through thick and thin, seeing in various changes of the company name throughout the last twelve years of dedicated service. However it was time for a newer, greener and younger model, so farewell BOT and we all wish you a very happy retirement. 

With this subtle advertising message for our UK contact centre, it is hoped that people will recognise the brand image as we are driving around the country. People have already made comments about it locally and we are hoping this will spread the word further afield about the excellent telephone answering service that we offer.

The new number plate reads: AN54 BAK and once it was spotted by our Financial Director, he thought it was the perfect finishing touch.

Ansaback call centre agent Lora Caie took some time out from call handling to complete the charity cycle ride from London to Paris last month. Lora has so far raised a staggering £1800 with donations still being pledged, and her choice of charity was the Addenbrookes Paediatric Intensive Care Unit. 

The 309 mile event had its up and downs throughout with the worst being the 25% gradient hills, riding parts of it in the dark and the burning thighs!  However the highs certainly outweighed the lows, with fantastic views whilst entering Paris and the immense buzz of passing the finish line. Lora also met lots of people on the bike ride who were riding for various different charities.  

Lora says of the ride, ‘it was an amazing experience and worth every achy muscle.’

What a tremendous achievement, a huge well done to Lora from everyone at the call centre and a massive thank you to everyone who donated to such a worthy cause. 

By utilising our contact centre, we can help you manage your calls during the World Cup period. Scroll down for the 2010 World Cup fixtures list.

Ansaback Head of Sales, Toni Vincent, took part in the Ipswich Midnight Walk on Saturday 22nd May. Dressed as bumblebees, Toni and her sister Melanie completed the walk and raised almost £300 for St Elizabeth's Hospice.

Toni said "The first 4 miles were relatively easy and it was such a great atmosphere. Despite it being past midnight many spectators lined the route handing out sweets and drinks, spurring on the walkers. The last 4 miles proved harder, by the end my feet felt like lead weights, needless to say I was extremely pleased to cross the finish line"

Over 2,200 women completed the 8 mile walk, raising over £250,000 for St Elizabeth's Hospice, which is a fantastic achievement.
They are already organising the event again next year so watch this space!

The calls received within our call centre and our dedicated desk service are continuously monitored, as a result this is a superb opportunity for us to reward the most hardworking and dedicated agents within our company. 

Each month Ansaback team leaders and supervisors nominate call centre agents for the ‘Call Centre of the Month Award’.

The winner is based on various factors such their overall call quality and performance, best adherence to schedule and generally going above

and beyond the call of duty.

The reward gives them well deserved recognition for their extra hard work and the cash prize given shows our gratitude. Aprils' winners are Deborah Cook (above) and Carla Thomas (right).

William Catchpole, Managing Director of IPPlus PLC and Christian Pawsey, Commercial Director of Ipswich call centre, Ansaback, both completed the Woodbridge 10k on Sunday 16th May.

The local race is an annual event for both runners, with Christian competing for the 14th time in row this year and William also having run the race for many years.

Slight forecast showers threatened at the start but both spectators and runners enjoyed a warm and sunny race day, with Aaron Scott breaking the course record in 31 minutes 44 seconds.Both William and Christian were overtaken on the first lap by a man sporting a pink tutu with matching women’s underwear, but managed to complete the run with times of 44:44 for Christian and 53:45 for William, placed 95th and 276th respectively, out of 568 finishers.

Two members of staff competed in this year’s London Marathon, both successfully crossing the finish line in less than 5 hours!

Group Managing Director, William Catchpole, ran his 4th London Marathon and Zonja Bunn, Ansaback Accounts Assistant, running her very first!

William said 'This was my 14th marathon in total and London is always fun with huge numbers of runners and spectators. The start in the rain was not very pleasant but once we got going and the weather improved it was just a question of digging in and getting through the wall which is both mental and physical.  Miles 21 -24 were the tough ones for me and despite numerous people shouting “come on Ipswich you can do it” the legs stubbornly refused to get back into gear. I didn’t see any celebs this time and luckily wasn’t overtaken by panto horses, rhinos or wombles! However I did get overtaken by a giant beer bottle which I later found out had a woman inside. Well done her, it must have been unbelievably hot. I finished in 4 hours and 37 minutes but know I should have been a smidge quicker. My next race is in Norway which I am sure will be much cooler although I suspect not as flat! No doubt a bottle of Grolsch or Heineken will pass me at some point’

 Zonja enjoyed the whole experience, she said 'Before the run I had a couple of sleepless nights due to nerves but they soon disappeared once the marathon started. During the race the atmosphere was fantastic bands playing along the route, people in fancy dress, everyone cheering, kind supporters handing out sweets and pieces of fresh orange. I hit a wall my wall at 22 miles, my body felt like it had turned to jelly, my calves ached but I did not want to stop as I knew I would not be able to start up again, I could not walk as it hurt more than running, and I was not going to give up after getting this far.  So I literally plodded for just over a mile. It was a brilliant day, an amazing experience and one I would definitely like to do again’.

STUART GORDON, Finance Director of Ansaback and IPPlus PLC, has celebrated his tenth anniversary this month working for the Suffolk-based corporation, based on Ransomes Europark.

Stuart joined the organisation in 2000, following a wide-reaching and varied career as a Financial Officer, in and around Suffolk.

He initially joined COUNTYWeb (as IPPlus was then known) to be part of the dot.com “phase”, and felt it would be something historical he could share with his children one day. However, as we all know, the internet was most definitely not a “phase” and ten years on, he’s still here!

COUNTYWeb was an internet-based company whose primary focus was developing online business directories, however it has since evolved into IPPlus with three primary divisions; Ansaback (purchased in 2001), CallScripter and IP3 Telecom.

Following the purchase of Ansaback, Stuart is in fact the member of staff who took the initial sales call that led to the development of our own in-house software, CallScripter. CallScripter is now an internationally-known scripting application with installs in over 20 countries.

Stuart, commenting on his time so far with IPPlus, said: “I have had a thoroughly enjoyable time working within this organisation, and I can’t believe how fast the last ten years have gone by. I have had the pleasure of working alongside a delightful and impressive team, and can’t wait for the next ten!”

William Catchpole, Managing Director of IPPlus, said: “Stuart has been an invaluable asset to our company, and many of the changes and enhancements over the years would not have happened without his support and dedication. Always calm in a crisis, Stuart is unflappable and the source of many pearls of wisdom. I look forward to his continued success.”