Ashok Vairavan
Ashok Vairavan, a 2021 graduate of Robinson's Doctor of Business Administration program, currently serves as chief strategy officer for Chime Solutions. The company, which offers customer contact outsourcing solutions, recently was featured in a Harvard Business School case; Vairavan's dissertation was included in the case's teaching note as recommended reading. Vairavan's research focuses on the impact of diversity on firm performance and stakeholder value. In addition to working at Chime Solutions, Vairavan is an assistant professor in Robinson's Department of Management.
Case Abstract
Just two years after launching an initiative to hire 10,000 employees by 2020, the pandemic hit, forcing CEO Mark Wilson to send nearly all his staff to work from home. His company, Chime Solutions, is a customer contact firm offering call center services to corporate clients. Chime operates on an employee-focused model. In addition to hiring call center agents from underserved communities, Chime offers skill building and life services to staff, resulting in industry-leading retention rates and an overall more committed staff with high levels of expertise. However, after agents were deployed to work from home, Chime struggled to maintain that operating model, causing increased attrition rates. The company also had amassed a large amount of debt from maintaining its facilities in Morrow, Georgia; Dallas, Texas; and Charlotte, North Carolina. At the same time, the company was growing at a record pace, but needed to address its talent and fiscal challenges before realizing the dream of uncovering hidden talent.