What Step Change Outsourcing does

Step Change Outsourcing (SCO) is a UK-based specialist BPO and contact centre founded in 2009 and headquartered at 14 Cavendish Road, Stevenage, Hertfordshire. The company delivers fully managed outsourced customer interaction services — customer acquisition, customer service, upsell/cross-sell, retention, and abandoned basket recovery — across voice, live web chat, SMS, and WhatsApp for enterprise and mid-market UK brands. Named clients include EE and BT (14+ year partnership since 2011), DAZN, the TDS Tenancy Deposit Scheme, a vehicle tracking and telematics provider (with which SCO expanded from one to six proactive campaigns), and HOME. SCO operates from a proprietary technology stack centred on a cloud-based Mediatel dialler with onsite backup, Palo Alto firewalls with customer-level network segregation, point-to-point call routing, a Hyper-V high-availability virtualisation environment with diverse-routed lease line fibre, Exponential-e cloud storage, and a proprietary intranet providing real-time reporting, agent performance dashboards, coaching tracking, and digital compliance sign-off.\n\nSCO's commercial model is managed services with an outcome-based performance overlay; clients pay for results (sales conversions, retention, customer acquisition) while SCO handles operations, technology, finance, and people. Selected campaigns — notably DAZN — operate under a 'Risk & Reward' pricing structure that ties SCO's compensation to over/under-performance against targets. The company is ISO 27001 (recertified April 2024 with zero non-conformities), PCI DSS, and FCA accredited, providing the compliance foundation required for regulated-sector and government-linked work. Demand generation is relationship-led via the Client Development Director (Jonathan West), with all client engagements bespoke and contract-based. The company also operates Safe House Insurance Brokers as a wholly-owned trading name, distributing landlord and tenant insurance products through a TDS Group partnership announced in October 2024. SCO is privately held, founder/management-owned with no external funding, and is led by CEO Declan Shilton; in August 2025 it appointed its first CFO (Sanj Shah, fractional).

Name

Step Change Outsourcing

Legal name

Step Change Outsourcing Limited

Website

https://stepchangeoutsourcing.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Step Change Outsourcing is a UK specialist BPO founded in 2009, delivering fully managed sales, customer service, retention, and cross-sell campaigns across voice and digital channels for enterprise and mid-market brands including EE, BT, and DAZN.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contact Centre Outsourcing (BPO Services)

NAICS

Telemarketing Bureaus and Other Contact Centers (561422), Telephone Call Centers (56142)

akta.pro primary industry

Renewals & Retention (Save Desk) (BPAAADAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Business Process-Aligned IT Outsourcing (ITO + BPO Integrated) (BPAEAMAJ)

Keywords

• Contact centre services
• BPO outsourcing
• Customer retention campaigns
• Telesales services
• Customer acquisition outsourcing

Headquarters

HQ city

Stevenage

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Managed BPO / Outsourcing Services: SCO delivers fully managed outsourcing and BPO solutions where clients pay for results and SCO manages the operation, technology, finance and people. Revenue is derived from service fees tied to campaign delivery across sales, retention and customer experience on a contract basis. The company also operates a Risk & Reward / performance model (as demonstrated with DAZN) where fees are tied to over/under-performance against targets, aligning incentives with client outcomes.
2. Performance-Based / Outcome-Based Pricing: SCO operates a results-focused model where clients pay for measurable outcomes (sales conversions, customer retention, customer acquisition). Some campaigns use a 'Risk & Reward' structure where SCO can earn more for overperformance or lose out for underachievement, as seen in the DAZN partnership.
3. Safe House Insurance (Trading Name of SCO): Safe House Insurance Brokers, a trading name of Step Change Outsourcing Limited, provides landlord and tenant insurance products through a panel of insurers (AXA, LV, RSA) offering competitive quotes. Revenue is generated through insurance product distribution and commission on policies sold through the TDS partnership.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Step Change Outsourcing delivers fully managed BPO and contact centre solutions for enterprise and mid-market UK brands, running inbound and outbound sales, customer service, retention, upsell/cross-sell, and abandoned basket recovery campaigns across voice, live web chat, SMS, and WhatsApp. Each campaign is bespoke-designed with dedicated recruitment, brand-specific training, and real-time performance reporting, with clients paying for measurable outcomes while SCO owns the operation, technology, finance, and people. The company also operates Safe House Insurance Brokers, distributing landlord and tenant insurance through TDS Landlord+.

Product overview

Step Change Outsourcing is a specialist outsource contact centre providing fully managed BPO solutions. The company's core offering comprises a unified set of contact centre services delivered across phone (Voice) and digital channels (Live Web Chat, SMS, WhatsApp), including Customer Acquisition Services, Customer Service, Sell Up & Add-On, Customer Retention, and Abandoned Basket Recovery. All services are delivered within robust governance frameworks with brand-specific training. The company also operates Safe House Insurance as a sub-brand offering landlord and tenant insurance products through a partnership with TDS Group.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Customer Acquisition Services Outbound and inbound telesales services that turn enquiries into new customers through follow-up contact via phone and digital channels, using a data-driven approach and brand-specific training for enterprise and mid-market UK clients.
• Customer Service Inbound and outbound customer service delivery across phone and digital channels, acting as an authentic extension of clients' brands with tailored training programmes for each client.
• Sell Up & Add-On Upselling and cross-selling services that identify opportunities to enhance customer experiences by suggesting complementary products or upgrades, delivered by trained agents as an extension of the client's brand.
• Customer Retention Customer retention campaigns that engage at-risk customers to understand their concerns and promote the benefits of remaining as customers, creating loyalty and positive experiences for enterprise clients.
• Abandoned Basket Recovery

Quantifiable outcome

• Exceeded KPIs for unique contacts and account activations for TDS (Tenancy Deposit Scheme) while meeting agreed call quality benchmarks
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature10 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• TDS GroupcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 October 2024Safe House Insurance Brokers (a trading name of Step Change Outsourcing Limited) partnered with TDS Group to offer a range of five-star Defaqto landlord and tenant insurance products through TDS's Landlord+ platform. The products cover property damage, loss of rent for landlords, and liability and contents insurance for tenants, with quotes from panel insurers including AXA, LV, and RSA. The partnership aims to raise standards in the private rented sector and is structured as a co-distribution agreement.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Concentrix: Global customer experience and BPO giant (now merged with Webhelp) operating contact centres across 40+ countries serving enterprise clients across telecom, financial services, and tech. Comparable to SCO on contact centre BPO services but at vastly larger scale and geographic footprint.
• Foundever: Global CX and customer management provider formed from the merger of Sitel and SYKES, serving enterprise clients across telecom, financial services, and digital media. Comparable to SCO on enterprise BPO services and key verticals but at much larger scale.
• Capita: UK-listed large-scale BPO and professional services firm running contact centres and customer operations for government, telecom, and financial services clients. Comparable to SCO on UK BPO services and regulated verticals but at significantly larger scale and public-company scope.
• Serco: UK-listed outsourcing company delivering contact centre, citizen services, and regulated-industry BPO across UK government and enterprise clients. Comparable to SCO on UK-based BPO services and regulated client work but with a much broader portfolio and public-sector focus.
• TTEC: Global customer experience technology and services company offering omnichannel contact centre, sales, and retention BPO across telecom, financial services, and healthcare. Comparable to SCO on enterprise CX and sales/retainment services but as a publicly-listed global incumbent.
• Teleperformance: World's largest outsourced customer experience management company with 400k+ employees across 90+ countries. Directly competes with SCO for enterprise CX contracts in telecom and digital media but at global scale.

Direct peers

• 4Com: UK contact centre and telecoms outsourcer offering inbound customer service, sales, and retention campaigns for UK brands. Comparable to SCO on geography, voice-led delivery, and SMB/mid-market client base.
• Cymphony: UK-based contact centre outsourcer providing inbound customer service, sales, and technical support across voice and digital channels. Comparable to SCO on UK market focus, multi-channel delivery, and outsourced campaign management for enterprise brands.
• Ventrica: UK-based outsourced customer experience partner offering multilingual, multi-channel contact centre services to mid-market and enterprise brands. Closely comparable to SCO in geography, target customer profile (UK enterprise), and omnichannel voice/chat delivery model.
• Moneypenny: UK-headquartered outsourced communications and answering service provider handling inbound calls, live chat, and customer support for SME and enterprise clients. Comparable to SCO on UK mid-market focus, voice-led delivery, and outsourced customer interaction model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/StepChangeOutsourcingStevenage
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stepchangeoutsourcing
• Instagraminstagram.com/stepchangeoutsourcing

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Step Change Outsourcing