NFU Mutual Direct, the National Farmers Union's insurance company, has given call centre operators a leading role in designing the IT systems for its £3.7m operation in Glasgow.

Sharon Watkins, head of direct sales at NFU Mutual Direct, said the organisation's approach requires a highly flexible IT strategy: "It is essential to give agents the right tools to do the job. We need to have a highly flexible IT system that responds to needs quickly. As a result we are still evolving the technology and will continue to do so," Watkins said. As part of the ongoing process, agent feedback on the system will be given to the company's IT department.

A spokesman for the GMB Britain's General Union, which last week launched a campaign to improve call centres across the UK, commented: "This sounds exactly the kind of thing we would like all call centres to do - have the foresight to think of the best working conditions for their staff. There is nothing better for the agent than to feel they are being cared for," he said.

Workers at the call centre have been consulted on the environment, recruitment policy and training, as well as the technology used at the centre. Agents will also attend research days where they learn about the requirements of customers.

Henry McLeish, the Scottish Executive Minister for Enterprise has heralded the centre - which went live late last week - as a model for others to follow. He says getting call centre agents directly involved in the design and implementation process is a technique that should be adopted by all firms.

Anna Lagerkvist