Teleserv mulls appointment system for passport applicants

Pilipinas Teleserv, Inc. is currently exploring the possibility of extending the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) passport direct service to first-time applicants through an appointment system similar to those being used in various foreign embassies for visa applications.

This as Teleserv director for operations Jun Yupitun revealed that the number of transactions at the DFA has dropped by 50 percent as people are now using the telephone to renew their passports.

A locally developed call center technology is making passport renewal more efficient by providing the backbone for an alternative transaction channel.

Dubbed DFA Passport Direct, Teleserv’s service allows applicants to renew their passports by dialing a 24-hour, toll-free hotline (7371000).

"Our technology has significantly reduced the volume of transactions handled by the DFA and allowed the department to focus on other aspects of their service," Yupitun said, adding that passport renewal has become more convenient for the public.

Yupitun explained that what differentiates their call center technology from the others is the customer relationship management (CRM) application developed by senior partner and CRM chief Jeffrey Villanueva. "Our CRM application was specifically tailored to meet the unique requirements demanded by a passport renewal system and improve the quality of interaction between our call center officers and our clients," he said.

Teleserv’s DFA Passport Direct service is the first of its kind in the world, and one of the challenges that their CRM and its related applications had to address was to make the entire process an easy and pleasant experience for the public.

"If we were to position our service as the most convenient alternative, we have to ensure that our technology can help us deliver on our promise," Yupitun emphasized.

Teleserv’s technology has reduced the process of passport renewal to two easy steps. After the applicant calls the toll-free hotline, a courier picks up the passport renewal form and the supporting documents. To emphasize the process’ security, documents and payments made to the courier are insured against loss and promptly replaced. After a week, the renewed passport is delivered to the applicant.

The DFA-related call center service is not new to Yupitun who has handled appointment and information systems for the United States, Canadian, Italian, Belgian, and Netherlands embassies. "It takes experience to run the service and my partners and I are capitalizing on our collective experience as well as individual expertise to deliver a higher level of service and innovation for our clients," he said.

Meanwhile, a recent partnership with their courier service provider, Aboitiz One, allows their clients to avail themselves of the courier company’s E-Trace tracking service which would enable them to track the delivery status of their renewed passports using their mobile phones.