The quest for accurate, actionable customer insight can seem endless. Companies survey customers, buy them dinner, even give them free products – all in hopes of gauging an opinion or two. These tactics are fine, but a better way to get customer feedback is to simply ask the call center agents. Agents hear the good and bad about a company, and can offer invaluable insight. Unfortunately, in many organizations, agent skills and value are often under-leveraged, and root cause analysis within the call centers overlooked.
Agents must feel empowered in their role as the "voice of the customer" for a company to realize their full potential. Over the years, I've found three main focus areas to help accomplish this:
- Thorough training
- Clear communications
- Useful, useable technology
- Training
Training is frequently focused on speed and minimizing agent offline time, as opposed to thoroughness. Resist that temptation and invest appropriate time for comprehensive new hire and refresher training. "Appropriate time" depends upon the complexity of customer interactions and the dynamics of business (new product offers, advertising, etc.) Use a mix of training media appropriate for your business. For example, augment in-class time with 15- or 30-minute increments of e-learning or Web-based refreshers or optional lunch and learn sessions.
Provide hands-on, in-depth product/service training. Basic as that sounds, I'm constantly surprised at how often agents are expected to just "figure it out." New hire training should include a grounding in your company, brand, philosophy, desired customer experience and behavioral expectations. This enables the agent to appropriately reflect the "softer" side of your company, a powerful complement to strong product knowledge. The training focus should mirror the business or queue focus. If the queue or organization has a primary focus of first call resolution (FCR), agent training should emphasize that. Post-training, your agents should be knowledgeable enough to solve the customer's issue on the first call, diffuse a potentially negative situation, reinforce your brand messaging and re-sell the customer on the company, its products and services. - Communications
A good rule of thumb is less is better. Don't short agents on what they need to know; simply be cognizant of the time they have to absorb information and use it judiciously. One way is to develop a communications filter based on company or queue priorities. If something doesn't fit within the criteria, it doesn't get disseminated. Establish consistent communications channels appropriate for the environment. Find the method to reach agents most effectively and be consistent so they know when and how they will receive what information. Establish a sound, buttoned-up process for document management, including steps such as updates, edits, approvals, etc.
From a philosophical perspective, ensure your agents know of issues with products or services. Anything less is detrimental to your company and makes the agent feel de-valued. Finally, establish supervisor-specific channels that equip them to be a resource for agents. - Technology
Three key non-financial considerations that should guide decisions for agent-based technology are speed/simplicity of call flow, accuracy of content, and usability. Because they are subjective, the considerations can lead to conflict in organizations where IT or procurement departments use rigid, largely financial-based processes. Engage these partners early in fact-finding and defining user-requirements. Understanding the specific needs of agents makes them more apt to respect their subjective nature. There are a number of systems to assess – CRM, knowledge management, performance management, etc. Assess which application delivers the most value to help you prioritize your spend and implementations. Don't get lost in the sales spin, but understand which applications drive what value. Finally, involve agents in the process. Seasoned agents should "test-drive" systems they will ultimately be required to use.
Contact center agents have the potential to be a company's strongest advocates. Effectively implementing training, communications and technology empowers them to play that role successfully.
By Bryan DiGiorgio, president and CEO of CXO Global Solutions, www.cxoglobalsolutions.com, a Kansas City-based company specializing in customer experience management.
March 24, 1:00 Eastern: Lessons From the Last Recession and How to Avoid Strategic Mistakes. Presented by Bay Bridge Decision Technologies. During a recession, there is a higher potential for companies to make strategic mistakes. In the last recession, most significant contact center service failures were strategic in nature. In times of uncertainty, most new decisions are strategic in nature. Answering strategic questions wrong will lead to huge cost and service issues. In this session, we discuss stories of service failures from 2001 and analytics and business processes that will ensure that this doesn't happen to your company.
March 26, 1:00 Eastern: A Best Practices Blueprint for Remote Agent Success. Presented by LiveOps and Frost & Sullivan. You are continually challenged with promoting future growth, reducing costs, managing productive and happy agents, all while providing outstanding customer service. Join this webcast to learn about successful deployment of remote agent solutions. Learn how to: Optimize training with distance learning; maximize agent desktop security; align compensation with performance; and create a sense of community.
April 7, 1:00 Eastern: Unified Communications in the Contact Center–New Capabilities. Presented by CRMXchange Roundtable. With new capabilities and more experience, there is much more interest in understanding how contact centers can now take advantage of unified communications. This webcast will explore new capabilities; find out how enterprises are taking advantage of them, and what is coming on the horizon. Listen as a panel discusses the opportunities and the challenges of incorporating UC concepts into our centers. What works? What doesn't?
West Plans to Add 300 Workers
Telemarketer West Corp. plans to expand its Universal City call center and to hire 300 new workers by July 1. San Antonio has more than 100 call centers employing an estimated 50,000 people, according to a report from the Professional Teleservice Management Association, a San Antonio-based trade group.
Call Center Employees File Suit against AT&T Subsidiary Michigan Bell Telephone
These Plaintiffs, as well as the similarly situated individuals, were required to log on to numerous computer applications before the beginning of their regularly scheduled shifts as well as perform work during their meal breaks and after their shifts.
Where Was This Service 10 Years Ago?
When you discover a loss, you report it online (toll- free or global collect) to the EZFind call center, where a real, live person (in the U.S.) will answer the call. Once your property has been recovered, EZFind will work to get it to you in the most expeditious manner — usually without any cost to you.
Why Women Who Opted Out Are Opting Back In
While the outsourcer saw record fourth-quarter revenue in 2008, the firm has noticed increasing anxiety among its phone representatives. "They're more hyper-sensitive to changes we make in the schedule. They tend to react and ask a lot of questions if it appears there isn't as much business this weekend as the weekend before. Many agents are now asking for about 10 extra hours of work per month."
Telecom Giant Completes Plan to Bring Back 3,000 Outsourced Jobs
AT&T Corp. has completed an agreement to bring back 3,000 previously outsourced jobs to the Southeastern region – including more than 360 in Birmingham." We thought it was important to repatriate these jobs," said Fred McCallum, president of AT&T Alabama. "We have been in the process of doing that for the last two years."
Unemployment Call Centers in Texas Overwhelmed
The first week of March, almost 100,000 people got through to the Texas Workforce Commission's four call centers, which are scrambling to add workers. Even supervisors help man the phones.
How to Ensure That Your Employees Will Want to Use CRM
As the technologies and demands of the workplace have changed, so too have its workers. Most of your employees are now "information workers" - a new breed of information-dependent, technology-reliant and collaboration-driven professionals. These employees face distinct technology challenges depending on the complexity of their information systems. To ensure the success of your CRM initiative, make sure you're implementing a solution that meets their needs and promotes full user adoption.
eBook: Evaluating CRM: From SaaS to software, choosing the right CRM deployment style
In this eBook, find out how on-demand and SaaS CRM is altering the CRM software landscape and how industry trends are playing into the decision-making process. Find definitions for key terms, and get help understanding the difference between on-demand and SaaS, single-tenancy and multi-tenancy options. Get advice on making the decision about SaaS vs. software, and learn how to find success with CRM, no matter which deployment style you choose.
"If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome."-- Anne Bradstreet
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