Do you cringe when you have to call an 800 number for “customer service?” Cable companies, online retailers, airlines and thousands of companies from all industry segments rely on call centers to handle every conceivable type of interaction with the general public, and most importantly, paying customers.

Companies like eLoyalty, a publicly traded customer relationship management (CRM) consulting firm, take the phrase “this call may be monitored for quality assurance” to a new level. eLoyalty makes a program called Behavioral Analytics. In a nutshell, this recently launched software evaluates millions of calls and generates qualitative feedback that leads to a better understanding of the customer and provides a basis for evaluating and improving the performance of call center employees. Protecting and licensing this technology is mission critical for eLoyalty, which puts the three attorney legal team front and center.

Steve Shapiro, general counsel for Lake Forest, Il.-based eLoyalty, joined the company in 2006 after serving as the top lawyer for First Midwest Bancorp. Handling deals, contracts and securities matters came naturally to Shapiro. Moving to a Silicon Valley style corporate culture took a little time, but now he is accustomed to Blackberry missives at all hours from his CEO, customers and sales reps throughout the world. The company is a dot-com survivor that has navigated boom and bust cycles leading to an environment that prizes innovation over bureaucracy. So, eLoyalty's attorneys are challenged to find ways to get deals done without compromising the company's intellectual property or violating privacy laws.

To succeed in a consulting environment, attorneys must appreciate the life of the consultants on the ground. He says attorneys at consulting firms need to win the confidence of the consultants by being available, flexible and able to solve problems on the fly. Shapiro suggests this approach may be a shock to the system for attorneys who are accustomed to a lot of policy and process.

To make sure eLoyalty chooses attorneys with the best chance to succeed, the company engages in behavioral interviewing, personality testing and intelligence testing. “We want attorneys who are fully formed,” he says, emphasizing the importance of business maturity.

A great example of this kind of hire is a former partner at Winston & Strawn who was hired as eLoyalty's first chair on privacy issues. Call centers are subject to 50 different state privacy laws and rules in this area continue to evolve in response to new technology. To secure such top of market talent Shapiro embraced eLoyalty's flexibility and met the new hire's request to telecommute two days per week.

A candidate who interviews with eLoyalty will see more than a consultancy that helps its customers change–he or she will find a company that embraces change internally. Leading by example is a general counsel who successfully transitioned from a suit and tie banking culture to a business casual environment where entrepreneurialism is “in,” and banking hours are “out.”

Do you cringe when you have to call an 800 number for “customer service?” Cable companies, online retailers, airlines and thousands of companies from all industry segments rely on call centers to handle every conceivable type of interaction with the general public, and most importantly, paying customers.

Companies like eLoyalty, a publicly traded customer relationship management (CRM) consulting firm, take the phrase “this call may be monitored for quality assurance” to a new level. eLoyalty makes a program called Behavioral Analytics. In a nutshell, this recently launched software evaluates millions of calls and generates qualitative feedback that leads to a better understanding of the customer and provides a basis for evaluating and improving the performance of call center employees. Protecting and licensing this technology is mission critical for eLoyalty, which puts the three attorney legal team front and center.

Steve Shapiro, general counsel for Lake Forest, Il.-based eLoyalty, joined the company in 2006 after serving as the top lawyer for First Midwest Bancorp. Handling deals, contracts and securities matters came naturally to Shapiro. Moving to a Silicon Valley style corporate culture took a little time, but now he is accustomed to Blackberry missives at all hours from his CEO, customers and sales reps throughout the world. The company is a dot-com survivor that has navigated boom and bust cycles leading to an environment that prizes innovation over bureaucracy. So, eLoyalty's attorneys are challenged to find ways to get deals done without compromising the company's intellectual property or violating privacy laws.

To succeed in a consulting environment, attorneys must appreciate the life of the consultants on the ground. He says attorneys at consulting firms need to win the confidence of the consultants by being available, flexible and able to solve problems on the fly. Shapiro suggests this approach may be a shock to the system for attorneys who are accustomed to a lot of policy and process.

To make sure eLoyalty chooses attorneys with the best chance to succeed, the company engages in behavioral interviewing, personality testing and intelligence testing. “We want attorneys who are fully formed,” he says, emphasizing the importance of business maturity.

A great example of this kind of hire is a former partner at Winston & Strawn who was hired as eLoyalty's first chair on privacy issues. Call centers are subject to 50 different state privacy laws and rules in this area continue to evolve in response to new technology. To secure such top of market talent Shapiro embraced eLoyalty's flexibility and met the new hire's request to telecommute two days per week.

A candidate who interviews with eLoyalty will see more than a consultancy that helps its customers change–he or she will find a company that embraces change internally. Leading by example is a general counsel who successfully transitioned from a suit and tie banking culture to a business casual environment where entrepreneurialism is “in,” and banking hours are “out.”