Whether your contact center agents are interacting with customers on the phone or online, incorporating positive words and phrases into the conversation is a sure way to improve those customers’ perception of the level of customer service they are receiving.
And having a list of specific words and phrases available to choose from is a good way to boost the confidence of your agents in their ability to add that spark of positivity to each and every conversation they have.
With that in mind, here are the top 25 positive words and phrases for contact center employees to use with customers, divided into their respective areas of usefulness:
1. Definitely
2. Surely
3. Absolutely
4. Certainly
5. Fantastic
These five positive words should be woven into sentences whenever possible. When customers hear these words they are reassured because the agent sounds confident. From a quick “I absolutely agree” to a longer “I will definitely make sure that,” adding these words does make a difference.
6. Rest assured…
7. I do understand the inconvenience…
8. I will be more than happy to assist you…
9. I completely understand the reason why/your situation…
10. I will ensure that…
11. What I will do for you right away is…
12. I assure you…
13. What I can do for you right now is …
14. I’m sorry for the inconvenience; what I can do for you is …
A key goal of every contact center agent handling customer complaints should be to sympathize with the customer. Callers need to know that you not only hear what they are saying but that you understand their problem and why they are upset. You need to convey that you will definitely do something to help them. Using these phrases will facilitate that understanding between caller and agent. Keep these phrases in mind especially when attempting to diffuse a situation with an angry customer.
15. I would suggest / I recommend…
16. To avoid a similar inconvenience in future I’d request that you…
Especially when handling technical support calls, it can be a tricky balancing act to tell customers what they are doing wrong to help them prevent future problems, without sounding patronizing or condescending. Agents should assume the role of advisor by making suggestions and recommendations and avoid talking down to a customer.
17. All you need to do is…
18. A simple way to change it will be to…
19. As soon as you receive…
When giving instructions it’s important to make them sound easy and straightforward so that customers do not become overwhelmed or confused. Inserting these phrases will help in that effort and keep those callers thinking positive, too.
20. You will ONLY be charged…
21. We have a variety of …
22. It’s a wonderful service where instead of ______, you can ______ …
23. This is the best plan for your needs…
24. For just $_____, you can…
25. For special customers like you…
When trying to make that sale, positive phrases can mean the difference between a yes and a no. Emphasizing the low cost or benefits of a product or service, or the great value your company places on customers, is a great way to add some positive pizzazz to every conversation.
To make the use of these 25 positive words and phrases easy, print out a copy for each employee, so that they can reference it during each call. Then sit back and watch the smiles, as the positivity becomes infectious, spreading from agent to customer and back again.
It’s basic human psychology – everybody wants to be a winner. People are almost always willing to go the extra mile to win a competition, or to get a prize. While candy bars or other simple tokens do have the ability to motivate as prizes, the winner’s pay-off is much greater if the prize is lasting, like a trophy. Not only can the winner keep it forever as a reminder of their success - and a driver to push them to continue doing well - but others can see it, too, which provides another boost to the winner’s satisfaction with a job well done.
When considering how to motivate your contact center workforce to reach higher goals, it’s a great idea to throw trophies into the mix. They can be obtained as inexpensively or as expensively as you wish, depending on materials used, size, personalization, and other factors. And making a trophy the prize makes any competition feel more “real,” more substantial and meaningful, than if the prize were merely a small treat.
Trophies don’t have to be the standard golden cups, however. They can come in all shapes and sizes, so to help you wade through the choices, we’ve put together a list of the top five types of trophies you can use to motivate your contact center workforce.
1. Glass Trophies: Transparent glass trophies are the epitome of style and class. Perfect for a business award, they look great on any desk or bookshelf. They come in a myriad of shapes and sizes, and can be engraved with your contact center’s name, your employee’s name, or something even more basic, like “Excellence!” They can be a bit pricey, though, so these may not be the best choice for an award that is given out frequently.
2. Medals with Neck Ribbons: Nothing, and we mean nothing, is more fun than wearing an Olympic-style medal around your neck for a day because you won an award. Medals can be great motivators, because they stay with the winner wherever they go throughout the day, and can be hung up on the wall or displayed in some other way afterwards. They can be surprisingly cheap, even when personalized, and so are the ideal trophies for a competition in which more than one person can win.
3. Pictures on the Wall: Not only is it a great ego boost to see your own face smiling back at you from the wall, but the fact that an employee’s face is on display for everyone to see encourages other employees to comment and congratulate the winner. As a bonus, whenever upper management comes to call, they’ll be able to see at a glance who the top performers are.
4. Trophy T-shirts: Everybody wants the T-shirt, right? Been there, done that, got the T-shirt! Well, offering a personalized T-shirt as the prize for a competition is another way to boost engagement. Whether it simply names the company and competition, or is actually personalized with the winner’s name and accomplishment, your employee will wear it proudly. As a bonus for you, whenever he or she wears it outside of work, it will serve as advertising for your company, too!
5. VIP Parking Spot: This one might just be the most coveted of all trophies – not only is it highly visible, but it’s also extremely practical. Being able to park in the best spot in the lot will put a spring in the step of any contact center agent. And the best part of all for you? It’s completely free.
No matter which of these motivational tools you choose to reward your contact center workforce with, they’re sure to appreciate the recognition, and strive just as hard to retain their title the next time around.
In a contact center, a lot of time is spent perfecting the art of serving a customer’s needs during a phone call. What do we say? How do we say it? When do we say it? When do we transfer? When can we handle the situation ourselves? In other words—how can we provide great customer service on the phone?
When it comes to serving customers through social media, the way that a customer’s needs are met during an interaction is just as important to your contact center’s performance. Because of the public nature of social media, these interactions can often have the most impact on public perception of your company.
So how can you make sure that the customers who contact you via social media are just as satisfied as the ones who call in? Here are 5 tips for providing great customer service on social media.
Unless you have staff tweeting and answering Facebook comments around the clock, let customers know every morning that you’ll be available to answer tweets and comments until 5 pm (or whenever you stop for the day). Then at 5 pm, send a sign-off tweet, letting people know what time you’ll be back the next day. This will prevent someone from trying to reach you at odd hours and then getting upset when no one responds immediately.
When someone reaches out via social media, it’s important that your first reply come publicly so that others can see that you are responding, and how you plan to handle the issue. But after that initial contact, it’s necessary to point customers to a private encounter, whether via email, direct messages, or a phone call, to get into the details of their needs. Remember to be careful with the wording of your response: If you don’t phrase it just right, what could have been a friendly invitation to continue the discussion in private can sound like you’re trying to silence a customer.
Customers with complaints or issues do not like being on the receiving end of a generic response, as it will come off as impersonal and dismissive. Therefore take the time to personalize your responses to customers on social media. Include names and, especially if you’ve repeatedly given this answer to other customers, change the wording of your note a bit each time. It’ll make your company seem more human as well as show customers that you care enough to take the time to answer each concern individually.
With such a public medium, it’s understandable to want to check every single response before it gets published. But response time is critical, and if customer service representatives are slowed down by having to wait for approval, it can spell disaster in the viral world of social media. Train employees using hypothetical situations and past issues so that they are fully equipped to handle customers quickly themselves. You can also prepare them with a decision tree that will help them determine what action to take for various situations (Such as respond, delete, or ignore).
While social media may seem vastly different from the traditional world of phone calls, every customer interaction should be handled in the same way regardless of medium. Courtesy, respect, and prompt customer service should be the hallmarks of every single interaction between your employees and your customers. Because it is difficult to read emotions online, remember to move the conversation to the phone as soon as possible (email is second best). Now that you can hear them and pick up on tone of voice, you are able to handle the situation more appropriately.
For your staff that responds to social media inquiries, it is crucial that they are familiar with the, for lack of a better word, “territory” that is social media. They should be familiar with slang, jargon, and Internet speak enough to understand what a customer is trying to ask or say. Your representatives should also be familiar with Internet trolls, or individuals who purposely make crude, hateful, and/or off-taste comments in order to elicit a response (backlash, frustration, pain, and/or sadness). How your representatives handle these situations will reflect upon your business’s reputation, so be sure to train them to respond appropriately.
To some, social media is a new frontier, The Wild Wild West of the communication industry. These tips will help make you and your team savvier at handling customer service requests on social media while positively affecting your brand. Happy tweeting!
Ah, the dreaded dress code debate. Everyone, from CEO to temp, seems to have a strong opinion about what is appropriate to wear in the workplace, and what is not. So how do you strike the right balance in your contact center?
Well, it actually depends a lot on your specific company’s culture. If your agents are booking fun-in-the-sun vacations for callers, then a workforce dressed in shorts and flip-flops might be appropriate. But in most call centers, a more formal look is called for.
There are three basic choices, when it comes to dress code: business, casual, or uniforms. And of course, there are pros and cons to each type.
Formal business dress demands that employees look their very best each day. Men wear jackets and ties, while women also wear jackets, with nice slacks or a skirt. Business casual gives employees a little more flexibility in their choice of clothing, but the aim is basically the same – to look professional.
Contact centers that insist that their agents dress to these standards do so to emphasize and reinforce professionalism in the workplace. They realize that every employee of a company, even if they are not seen by the public, is nevertheless a representative of that company, and should always dress as such while at work. They also understand that employees’ behavior usually corresponds with the level of formality in their dress: in other words, when people are dressed up, they naturally, unconsciously, act more professionally.
But in order to get that added professionalism, these contact centers do sacrifice employee comfort. Especially when working late hours, a tie or a pair of heels can cause annoyance and discomfort, rather than professional behavior. And buying a closet full of business clothes can be expensive, too – it can be difficult for those just starting out to afford nice clothing.
Casual dress allows employees to wear what feels comfortable to them. There’s no need for them to spend large amounts of money acquiring a new wardrobe – they can wear what they’ve got in their closets.
Contact centers that allow casual dress recognize the importance of making agents feel comfortable at work. They know that, especially when working evening or weekend shifts, dressing casually can help employee morale.
But one man’s ‘casual’ can easily be another man’s ‘inappropriate.’ No matter how many times dress guidelines are shared and explained, there will always be room for interpretation, which can lead to conflict. And all the time spent discussing guidelines in meetings, putting together posters with examples of appropriate attire, and reprimanding inappropriately dressed agents and then sending them home to change takes up precious time. Studies have also shown that people do tend to speak and act less professionally when dressed casually, which can be a concern for customer service.
Finally, having a uniform requires agents to wear a company-issued outfit every day. There can be no dispute as to its appropriateness, since everyone wears the same thing.
Whether it’s a polo customized with your company’s logo or some other standard-issue items of clothing, it combines comfort with professionalism and a sense of pride in your company. Buying a uniform is not usually as expensive as buying a business casual wardrobe, and sometimes, the company even pays for the clothing.
But uniforms can also make employees feel that their individuality is being curtailed. And what is flattering on one person can look awkward on another, which can make for embarrassment.
So whether you choose business attire, casual dress, or uniforms for your contact center, make sure to weigh the pros and cons of each one first.
It’s a simple fact – the happier your contact center workforce is, the higher your center’s level of customer service will be. A satisfied employee is one who will truly take ownership of their job, and will do what it takes to make customers happy.
So how do you ensure that morale in your contact center is high, and that each and every employee feels a sense of job satisfaction? We’ve assembled 9 tips to help you do just that.
1. Let agents see you on the phones! Employees respect a boss who doesn’t ask them to do anything he wouldn’t do himself. If you jump on the phones every once in a while, it will demonstrate to your agents that you don’t consider their job to be beneath you, as well as promoting a feeling of solidarity with you. It’s also a good way for you to model best practices, or any changes in procedure, to show your workforce how it’s done.
2. Solicit feedback from your agents. They’re the ones in the trenches, who know better than anyone how things work. Before implementing any changes, ask them for insight – not only will they appreciate being asked, but their involvement in the decision-making process will make them more likely to accept the outcome.
3. Keep the workload realistic. As pressured as contact center managers can be to do more with less, it’s important to keep the workload at a level where employees feel it is do-able. Otherwise, customer service will suffer, as agents scrape by doing the bare minimum.
4. Get to know your workforce. Developing personal relationships with each of your employees is a great way to make them feel appreciated as individuals. Make sure you know all their names, and let them know you care about them as people, not simply as employees.
5. Make customer satisfaction your target, rather than length of call. Allowing agents to really focus on each customer rather than on keeping calls short will enable them to connect with customers as people, which will make for happier customers and happier agents.
6. Make sure your technology is up-to-date. There’s nothing worse than being asked to do a job with substandard technology that makes everything harder. Providing employees with the tools they need to do their best shows them you value their time and effort. If you’re in the market for an upgrade, check out KOVA’s Enterprise Workforce Optimization Solutions.
7. Ask for customer reinforcement. The more positive feedback, the better. Have agents ask customers if they are satisfied with the results they’ve gotten at the end of each call. Hearing it from the customers themselves will boost morale.
8. Test new training ideas out temporarily first. Rather than springing a new training or coaching program on employees unannounced, let them test drive it first, and then give you feedback. That way they’ll be more likely to truly engage with the training.
9. Reward agents for good performance. Recognizing employees for a job well done is a vital part of making them feel valued in any organization.
Taking these 9 simple steps can make your contact center a place in which employees feel valued, which goes a long way towards agent satisfaction. And with morale high, your customer service levels are sure to increase, as well.
Ever heard the saying, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy?” Well, that sentiment just as true for adults as it is for children. No matter what line of work we’re in, if there is no element of fun or play in what we do, burnout looms just around the corner.
Of course, different things spell fun for different people. For some, pure enjoyment of their job provides the needed element of fun. For others, working hard becomes a game in itself, as they do their very best in order to scale that corporate ladder, or earn the most money possible. But most people enjoy a little light-hearted fun interspersed throughout their workday, as well, to keep them motivated and boost their morale on a day-to-day basis.
What forms can this everyday fun take? Just about everybody loves a friendly competition. And what better environment for such a contest than a contact center? Goals unify individual agents and the center, and implementing games or fun activities can lighten the atmosphere and strengthen company culture.
Set up a white board or a chalkboard at the front of the room. You can write each agent’s name on it, and leave a space for tally marks beside each one. Or, if you want to get really elaborate, you can decorate a bulletin board to look like a racetrack, and make a horse for each employee.
Then, instruct your agents to raise their hand each time they make a sale. (If your call center does not handle sales, adapt this to your own needs. For example, have employees raise their hand each time they help a caller successfully, without having to transfer the call.) Move the agent’s horse a space ahead, or make tally marks on the board beside his or her name, to mark each success.
After a predetermined amount of time has passed – which can range from the afternoon shift to one full month, or anything in between – reward the employee with the most successful calls. Prizes can be anything, from candy to gift cards – the spirit of competition and the recognition are what really matter.
You’ve heard the old sales encouragement that every ‘no’ just takes you one step closer to a ‘yes.’ Well, show your employees that you believe it by celebrating those hang-ups and no’s. Set up a board or a racetrack as before, but this time, have agents raise their hands when they’ve just been hung up on. Prizes can be awarded as before. If your contact center is a help desk, rather than a sales force, you could turn this game on its head, and celebrate those who turn the angriest customers into satisfied ones by the end of each call.
Raise money for a favorite cause by letting your employees dress down for a day. Charge a certain price to receive a ticket that exempts employees from the standard work dress code. They could be allowed to wear jeans and a T-shirt instead of slacks and a pressed shirt. Take it a step further by fining people who participate in the dress down day without having bought an exemption ticket! You could allow this option any day of the week or just for a specific day, such as Friday. If your work already has a casual Friday, consider having the charity dress down day on Monday or Thursday instead.
Kick it back to the 80s, have Halloween in July, or fast-forward to the future by encouraging your employees to get creative and dress according to a certain theme. Have lunch catered that day and craft it around the theme as well. Make it a potluck! For example, a Hawaiian theme could include a fruit platter shaped like a palm tree, ham (for a pig roast), cucumber salad, shrimp skewers, and fruit punch. Consider having games/contests revolve around the theme (limbo contest or hula dancing) for additional entertainment and teambuilding.
Allow your employees the opportunity for professional growth by hosting developmental courses on-site once every quarter. Courses can range from individual development to teambuilding exercises. Such professional courses benefit the employees by providing an opportunity to enhance or refresh their skillset while boosting employee retention for the employer.
Another option is to take a weekend retreat. Off-site courses allow employees to physically and mentally remove themselves from the office and entirely focus on the coursework at hand. They may also feel less restricted by being in a different location, allowing them to open up more and fully engage with the process.
Show appreciation for your employees by celebrating their milestones. A cake, card, and some balloons can do wonders for overall moral and makes the celebrated person feel that their employer cares about them as an individual. Retirements, birthdays, weddings, and graduations are all important milestones to celebrate. Consider too sending flowers to a sick employee or throwing a goodbye party for an individual moving on to a new company. It does not need to be extravagant: The fact that you are even recognizing them is enough for most.
Rewarding employees with small tokens of appreciation for winning games, will bring a more relaxed, and yet more focused atmosphere to your contact center, as agents compete, all in a spirit of fun.
Meetings can be an efficient way to discuss issues and solve problems as a team – or, if done ineffectively, a colossal waste of everyone’s time. To make sure that your contact center’s meetings are the former and not the latter, it’s important to have a game plan. Whether you’re planning a one-on-one meeting or a company-wide one, the preparation remains the same.
If you start out on a negative note, your employees will follow your lead. If, however, you begin with a positive attitude, your agents’ behavior during the meeting will reflect that, instead. Start off with light chat. Ask everyone to share how his or her weekend was. Don’t immediately dive into the heart of the meeting. Instead, warm them up and allow them to settle into a good mood. If it’s an early morning meeting, show you care about their wellbeing by providing coffee/tea and a light breakfast assortment. Mid-day meeting? Cater lunch or offer some refreshments. Once everyone has had a chance to chat, you can ask everyone to take their seats and get ready to talk about the agenda points.
Nothing is more important than advance planning, when it comes to making sure your meeting is successful. Determine what specific purpose you are meeting for. That step alone will help guide you as far as which employees need to be there, what will be on the agenda, how much time needs to be spent discussing each item, and what methods you will use to come to decisions. Without a game plan, meetings end up as endless, pointless discussions that get nothing accomplished.
Remember that your agenda is your game plan. If an employee brings up a good point but it is off-topic, jot it down and save it for a later time in the meeting where this point can be discussed (such as if its on the agenda already or you set aside time for general Q & A). You are also responsible for keeping everyone on track and on time. Do not let the conversation stray from the current point; if not, it will never get covered and your remaining points will receive no discussion time.
A day or two before the meeting, get in touch with key attendees. Make sure you are all on the same page as to the purpose of the meeting and work out any discrepancies beforehand. That way, when the meeting gets underway, there won’t be any interruptions or surprises.
It is also helpful to send a reminder memo all attendees and encourage them to come prepared as well. Send them the agenda in advance so they will know what is going on in the meeting (no surprises for them, either!). This way they can prepare questions and ask them when appropriate and ask questions about the meeting before it occurs. Remind them they are encouraged to participate in the discussion; make it mandatory to bring items to take notes and suggest that they come prepared with questions, comments, and/or concerns.
There are people in every organization who just seem to have a knack for complaining and creating conflict. Rather than letting these people hijack your meeting, head them off at the pass and address any concerns they may have in private before the meeting. That way, they won’t feel the need to discuss them at length during the meeting – and as a bonus, working with them one-on-one in this way may even help change their attitude!
But managing conflict in advance isn’t just to save your meeting. It’s also important as a way to show that you are serious about the discussion and about their complaints. After all, you are making sure to provide one-on-one time to discuss their issues before the meeting! Because you will be focused on having a successful meeting, you may not give much thought or time to the individual’s concerns. By speaking with them before you are providing them your undivided attention.
Again, make sure that everyone attending has had a chance to see the agenda beforehand, so they’ll be able to pay attention from the very beginning of the meeting, instead of spending that time reading. The agenda should detail not only what you’ll be talking about but how long you’ll spend on each item. That way, if the 10 minutes allotted to a minor point have passed in rambling discussion, you can easily redirect the group to the next item, pointing to the agenda. If the time is up for discussion on a point but someone still has questions, tell them they can bring the point up again at the end of the meeting during general discussion.
Agendas are extremely useful, not only for keeping meetings on track, but also for ensuring that important attendees are aware of when their participation is necessary and when they might be able to leave early to take care of other duties.
One of the greatest benefits of all this advance planning is the morale boost that will follow. Meeting attendees who expect things to drag on uselessly and indefinitely will tend to become more stressful during a meeting than people who know the schedule will be respected, the meeting will end on time and that all agenda items will accomplished.
As the call for PSAPs to accept 911 texts becomes more and more widespread, it appears inevitable that emergency call centers will soon have to deal with this additional method of communication. In order to prepare PSAPs for this likelihood, the National Emergency Number Association (NENA) has released a guide to handling texts to 911, including PSAP management considerations as well as public education recommendations.
NENA’s first suggestion is that managers of emergency call centers perform a call traffic study “to benchmark current call volume to existing staffing levels. This data should then be used to plan for an incremental call volume growth with the introduction of Text-to-9-1-1, and a subsequent need for an increase in staffing. The typical duration for a text message to 9-1-1 may be considerably longer than a voice call to 9-1-1.”
It continues, stating that “in order to provide a comparable service level in regards to answer delay and call processing for text messages, it is important for PSAP managers to begin reviewing their potential staffing needs so that, if necessary, positions can be budgeted and allocated for within a reasonable amount of time of implementing texting to 9-1-1 in their community.”
An employee-training program will then need to be implemented, to ensure that all 911 call center agents are adequately prepared to deal with incoming texts. NENA recommends that employees first be taught common texting lingo, including acronyms and emoticons. Then, procedures for handling more than one text session at once should be set forth. No more than three texting conversations should be held at one time, however. A set of pre-programmed messages should be developed, including a greeting, specialized messages for police, fire, and EMD, and an end-of-call message. And last but not least, employee training should focus on the differences between written and oral communication, and should show agents how to take control of a conversation and situation through the written word.
The public education necessary to the successful implementation of a text to 911 program includes several elements. First, the public should be made aware that voice calls to 911 are always preferable to texts. Texts simply take longer, since they have to be typed, then travel through the system, then be read by a 911 agent, who then has to type a response. And that is the best case scenario. Especially in times of disaster or emergency, text transmission can sometimes be delayed. The length restrictions on a text can also pose a problem, as can the fact that location information is not included in a text transmission, and must be included in the message.
Situations occur in which texting 911 is the only available and/or safe option. These include domestic violence, home invasions, school violence incidents, or situations in which silence helps keep an individual safe. Texting is also beneficial for those who are deaf or who have speech difficulties.
Because these situations are frequent and the traditional form of calling 911 can prove a safety risk, call centers and software developers need to consider texting 911 as a valid and reliable means of requesting help. The issue is attempting to get the same information (location, emergency type, texter identity, etcetera) through texts as through a call with a dispatcher. A system needs to be developed that can automatically pull up a registered name and home address from the number that is sending the text. Being able to ping an exact location from the same number quickly and accurately is another challenge.
As we transition into a more mobile, cordless world, we need to update the technologies to fit those who use them. And with life-threatening situations that require silence, this addition to call centers could see an increase in individuals being safely removed from their drastic situation. Though it is still in the developmental phase, adding this feature to a call center’s arsenal should be highly considered.
There’s an old saying that goes, “Agents don’t leave their call center job – they leave their direct supervisor.” And it makes sense. Supervisors who see their role as that of disciplinarian, or who feel it’s necessary to push their agents relentlessly, will create a much higher turnover rate than those who see themselves as coaches and mentors who lead by example.
But the turnover rate is not the only aspect that is undeniably influenced by the attitude and behavior of the supervisor. Employee engagement is also determined in large part by the atmosphere in a contact center. If it’s one of fear and stress, agents will not be able to reach nearly the same performance heights as they would in a culture of growth and appreciation. And of course, the level of customer service provided directly correlates with the level of employee engagement in evidence. Agents can’t give customers what they don’t receive themselves so treating employees with respect is vital.
With that in mind, here are five qualities to look for in an outstanding contact center supervisor.
Contact center agents look to their supervisors for leadership, coaching, feedback, and assistance. Supervisors have to be able to provide for these needs things in a friendly, respectful way and without sarcasm, condescension, or indifference. A team leader or supervisor should be aware of the fact that he or she sets the tone for the whole team, determining the atmosphere of the work environment through his or her words and actions. The ideal supervisor is also always available to his employees is a presence on the floor, and quickly accessible when needed.
Individuals may have a difficult time confront the supervisor about issues regarding the supervisor’s behavior or performance. Therefore, it is in the supervisor’s best interest to conduct a bi-yearly (or even quarterly) survey to receive employee feedback about their leadership skills, company culture, and overall happiness. The supervisor can then use each previous survey as a benchmark to identify improvement.
All contacts with a customer require quality control management and thus it is imperative that a supervisor can do a good job of monitoring calls and other contacts, determining what needs to be improved, training the agents in specific areas, and then checking to make sure the training was effective. Each of these steps in the process requires a different skill set, however, ranging from data interpretation abilities to tact, from teaching ability to evaluation skills.
To ensure that the supervisor is able to do their job effectively (and, in turn, help their employees), they should take refresher courses on a bi-annual or annual basis, if not more frequently. Such refresher courses could be general professional development, specific courses relating to call quality assurance, or even a review of the company’s policies and procedures. When the supervisor is on top of their game, the rest of the staff will be too.
Another skill set entirely is the ability to fully meet demand in the contact center while still scheduling agents efficiently. This requires a great deal of planning and analysis. At the same time, issues like ensuring schedule adherence and keeping track of administrative details such as payroll are also demanded of a supervisor.
As mentioned previously, a supervisor should highly consider taking professional development courses to refresh their knowledge on these subject areas. It is also necessary to frequently participate in professional development courses because new methodologies are crafted all the time as a means of conducting certain areas of business. To ensure that their call center is in its prime, a supervisor must be aware of all current information/education.
What is the final resort of any angry customer? “I want to speak to a supervisor.” Contact center supervisors must have not only the people skills to deal with angry customers politely but also the problem-solving skills to actually make a difference in diffusing the situation. They hold the keys to the final decision in any customer’s case, and must be sensitive to the company’s needs as well as the customer’s.
A supervisor’s employees should only ask for assistance on a call if a) it is requested by the customer or b) as a last resort. To prevent these situations from occurring, supervisors should utilize their problem-solving skills and instruct the employees on how to best handle various situations. Create a presentation and conduct mock calls to see how the employees will react and provide suggestions for improvement. Each situation is different, but by having the proper tools and an understanding of how to diffuse the situation, contact center employees will be able to more confidently take care of a customer and rely less on a supervisor’s intervention.
To help support your supervisors in their job, take a look at KOVA’s offerings in the realm of workforce management. Our Workforce Optimization solutions, powered by Verint Systems, Inc., give you the ability to assess, train, and evaluate your contact center agents as well as manage scheduling and other administrative tasks. Contact us to find out how we can custom-build a plan around your needs today!
Sometimes when we talk about dreams, it can seem impractical, or even silly. Business is all about cold, hard facts - statistics, strategies, the bottom line – right?
Well, not really. Businesses are made up of people…who spend their days doing things to help other people in some way. And this is especially true in a contact center. Agents have to make that human connection with their callers in order to provide good customer service. And in order for them to be able to do that, they need to be getting some support themselves.
So how can managers provide that necessary support to their call center employees, so that they in turn pass that caring touch on to their callers? There’s a new approach to management gaining in popularity, and it just might be worth a try. It’s called the Dream Manager Program.
Originally outlined in a 2007 book by Matthew Kelly, the dream manager program is basically a way to make helping employees achieve their personal dreams a part of any company’s workforce management strategy.
Why would a business do this? It’s that human factor again. Everyone has dreams. Dreams are what motivate us to get up in the morning, go to work, and do our best on the job. And if a company not only accepts and approves of its employees’ dreams, but even takes steps to help them achieve them, then employee satisfaction, engagement, and loyalty skyrocket, while turnover plummets.
So what exactly can a contact center manager do to help his or her workforce achieve their dreams? One way to approach this program is by hiring a Dream Manager. This person is tasked with meeting with each employee on a regular basis to discuss their personal dreams. These should not be work-related goals, but rather personal dreams that add meaning to an employee’s life. The dream manager should not pass judgment on these aspirations, but instead, give the employee permission to pursue them.
Once the conversation has begun, the dream manager’s job is to provide the employee with the tools he or she needs to start working towards reaching those dreams. Together, they can come up with a step-by-step plan that will slowly lead to the realization of the dream. Or, they can set up a system of accountability, where the employee checks in with someone regularly to share their progress.
Now that things have been set in motion, the dream manager simply checks in with each employee on a regular basis. Goals are set as to how many dreams each person wants to strive for each year. And to demonstrate the level of support the company has for its employees as human beings with dreams and aspirations, a certain amount of funding can be set aside to aid each one in the pursuit of their goals.
Just imagine the loyalty you would feel for your company, if they implemented a program like this, and actually helped you achieve some cherished personal dream. Wouldn’t you redouble your efforts to do your very best, to help that company succeed? And even during the process of working towards a dream, employees will recognize that you care, and appreciate that. As Matthew Kelly himself says, “Fully engaged people believe the future can be bigger than the past, and they believe they can directly influence that bigger future. That’s our No. 1 job as leaders, to convince people of those two things.”
