Speed matters. But not at the expense of quality. Knowledgeable, well-trained associates who perform at their best when crises arise are the bedrock of surge support. TTEC is uniquely equipped to respond to emergencies of all kinds because our team is built expressly for this pressure-cooker type of work.

With our tacit knowledge about crisis support and emergency protocols, technology, and empathetic associates in place and on standby 24/7 — all year long — we respond fast to provide citizens the assistance they need.

The challenge

While hurricane season had degrees of predictability years ago, climate developments have since complicated accuracy of forecasting — both timing and severity. When Hurricanes Helene and Milton hit the southeastern United States in late 2024, many were surprised by the scope of the devastation. Catastrophic weather struck again in January 2025, when wildfires roared across southern California, followed by mudslides. Economic losses are estimated at $250 billion, eclipsing the historic Camp Fire of 2018.

TTEC was invited to step up to help both hurricane and wildfire victims apply for assistance, to keep citizens apprised of the status of their applications, and to connect them to resources providing essentials such as food, shelter, medical care, and transportation.

Our solution

Because surge support is our specialty, TTEC is adept at hiring people with the right skills and personal disposition to handle emotionally charged interactions professionally and with compassion. We quickly provided our client a roster of hand-selected associates qualified to handle incoming queries from hurricane victims.

When wildfires broke out on the West Coast four months after the hurricanes, our team quickly pivoted to assist people who suffered property losses, evacuated their homes, and who were under threat of evacuation. We assisted a broad swath of communities, providing assistance wherever it was needed as unpredictable Santa Ana winds changed the path of existing fires and fueled the outbreak of new fires.

We stood up our Rapid Readiness Team, sustained by a pipeline of talent we recruit and nurture all year long, qualified for demanding work and prepared to shift to a new assignment on short notice. We maintained continuous contact with our associates so they were apprised of the latest developments relevant to their assignment and we could mobilize them as soon as the client gave us the green light.

The results

Within four hours of notification, TTEC provided our client a full roster of qualified contact center associates equipped to handle the wide range of queries coming from citizens affected by devastating weather events.

Within 48 hours of our client’s approval to mobilize the team, we validated necessary computer equipment was in place, and we were well under way with activating 625 Rapid Readiness Team associates using a technology solution meeting stringent security and reliability standards.

Our training team was mobilized in three days’ time to ensure associates moved into production as soon as possible.

TTEC continued to support calls with compassion, prepared to handle any emergency while maintaining solid service levels at 95%.

While surge support plays a vital role helping people impacted by natural disasters, we leverage this expertise and agility in nonemergency scenarios, too. In the healthcare sector, for example, companies rely on TTEC to ramp up for annual enrollment, that busy period when contact centers are inundated with calls from consumers choosing their coverage plans for the coming year.