Monday, 20 May 2013
Friday, 17 May 2013
by: Anonymous
Log into your programs, put your headset on and turn on your phone. That first call of the day means so little to you because you take hundreds of calls a week that are exactly like the one you are about to take. The work environment of a call center rep can make this moment worthless or worthwhile and can dictate your overall career with that company.
I work in a fairly large call center (over a hundred reps) that has no workplace morale or culture. I’m not just saying that to be dramatic – we actually received a letter from the president when we started that their job is not to build morale but to provide service for our customers. Truthfully, I didn’t know much about contact center culture until recently when a close friend of mine, a manager in a different call center, began dissecting my work complaints and dictating how I, a lowly tier one rep, should advise our management on changes. Truthfully I haven’t taken much of it to heart because I do not see myself with this company for an extended period of time. And this, as stated by my friend, is where the problem lies… decent and hardworking employees like me leaving companies because they do not empower or appreciate us.
Obviously, my center has a huge turnover rate. Since I was hired 7 months ago, we have taken on somewhere over a hundred new reps, granted to fill new shifts but nonetheless people are rolling in almost daily. Our company boasts strong customer service but honestly, we don’t track it. We don’t have any programs, surveys or data proving that our customers find our service strong. The way we are tracked is by the number of calls we take and the amount of time in “not ready” which includes break time and time doing any work related item that requires us to be off the phone. This alone sets the precedent for a lot of my coworkers as to how they spend their days. Most of them don’t care about call totals or not ready, because it has no impact on us. You don’t get an award for the most calls taken or even a nod from the manager – we are simply “drones” as my peers say.
The point of all this is that if your center is anything like mine, your employees are miserable and constantly looking for another job. They start to hate the customers, the management, and their coworkers. They complain about work all the time and consider becoming servers, retail workers, or even janitors (I have heard this before) to get out of this job. Creating a culture in your center and genuinely caring about your reps will make a huge difference and save your company a ton of money in the process. Hiring new people isn’t cheap and training them is practically a fortune – but if you try to keep the good employees around, they will then garner a positive work environment for the next round of reps (when you finally have to hire again). Simple things can create a sense of pride in their work and a better representative of your company on the phones. You will have stronger service if your reps enjoy coming to work and believe in your company. They may not be making any big decisions, but they are the voice of your company and if they aren’t treated with respect and appreciation, I guarantee they won’t treat your customers with it either. So make the choice to make their first call of the day worthless or worthwhile. If you were the rep, how would you feel about the call?
Today's contribution was made by an anonymous call center employee.
Monday, 13 May 2013
Friday, 10 May 2013
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Thursday, 9 May 2013
by: Sean Hawkins
This past Tuesday, I celebrated my 43rd birthday. Thanks to my wife and kids for making it an awesome day! Having taken the day off, my coworkers texted and tweeted their birthday wishes to me throughout the day. Upon arriving to work the next day, I was surprised to see my desk was festively decorated, I had presents and they had brought in snacks. Everyone sang Happy Birthday and made me feel very special. Not one to lose my composure, I fought back the tears.
For the rest of the day, I was amazingly happy. I realized their act of kindness positively influenced my day. As the work day came to a close, an agent walked up to me and said “because you care about us, we wanted to show you our appreciation.” I offered a heartfelt reply and made my way out of the building. On the way home I began to think about that conversation. So often, call center agents are rushed from one call to the next, evaluated against metrics they don’t understand and berated by upset customers. It is not hard to understand why there is so much turn over in the call center.
I have been fortunate to work with great agents who are great people. Most I know on a personal level having been invited to weddings, BBQs and the like. I’ve always tried to respect them as people first rather than call center agents. Furthermore, I constantly remind myself that people are behind each customer interaction, metric, and decision I make.
As the saying goes, “attitude reflects leadership.” I’ve always felt the best way to show the agent what exceptional customer service looks like, is by practicing it with them. Only then will they pass that on to the customer. Angry staff produces angry customers. When agents are happy and feel their leaders value them, they will produce quality results. Each day, I review no fewer than six reports to determine how the call center is operating. Some days the numbers look amazing while on others, not so good.
Most often, numbers can be explained and adjustments can be made as needed. With several years in the call center under my belt, this is the easy part. To me, the best indicator of how we are performing takes place with the interactions I have with the staff. When morale is high, performance is high. Conversely, when morale is low, so is the overall performance.
A good part of my day consists of walking the floor and interacting with the staff. We joke, tell stories or sometimes I just let them vent. Because of this, we’ve come up with some great initiatives such as Friday Breakfast, Interaction of the Week, and a weekly Morale Raffle. While these may seem trivial to some, to the agent, it’s as significant to them as my birthday surprise was to me.
Sean is a Customer Experience, Contact Center and Help desk manager with over 12 years of experience. He has a terrific pulse on incorporating innovation into the contact center. He's implemented social, outsourcing partners, new technology, and new products, while maintaining an award-winning contact center.
In 2011, his team was awarded the ICMI "Global Call Center of the Year" for Small to Medium-Sized Centers. Follow on Twitter- @SeanBHawkins
In 2011, his team was awarded the ICMI "Global Call Center of the Year" for Small to Medium-Sized Centers. Follow on Twitter- @SeanBHawkins
Tuesday, 7 May 2013
by: Brooks Webb
What happens when a customer dials your Support number? Do they get someone right away or do they go through several minutes of phone menus? I can tell you from experience that the answer to that question can have a huge impact on the customer experience, as well as the customer's attitude.
I recently called a store to determine whether or not they were open. The store is part of a fairly large chain of stores, and it was a holiday, so I wanted to be sure before I headed in that direction. I first get a phone menu which was no big deal. It tells me to select 1 for store hours. I press the number 1, and it takes me back to the beginning of the phone menu. I give them the benefit of the doubt and assume that I made a mistake. So I listen to the phone options again. Again, I press the number 1...and I'm taken back to the beginning of the phone menu again. At this point, I'm getting irritated. Even though it's only taken a minute or so, I am frustrated due to the fact that the menu options aren't working. At that point, I listen to the menu again for the number to speak with a representative. I select the right option and hear a ring on the other end. After what seemed like an eternity, I got my answer. No one was answering, so I assumed the store was closed.
How often does this happen with customers who call your Support line? Do you have an IVR that asks for loads of information? Once they finally reach a Support agent, is that information provided automatically? These are questions to ask yourself and your front-line agents. If you've made the decision to provide multiple menu options, your Support agents can probably tell you how effective they are based on the tone of the customer's voice. If your agents are constantly having to win customers over, you might need to rethink your decision.
Use this as an opportunity to empower your agents by asking a few of them to call the Support number and give you feedback on how the menu options work. The Support agent is going to know better than most whether or not there's room for improvement. This has the ability to make your customers happier, which in turn is going to keep your agents happier.
What happens when a customer dials your Support number? Do they get someone right away or do they go through several minutes of phone menus? I can tell you from experience that the answer to that question can have a huge impact on the customer experience, as well as the customer's attitude.
I recently called a store to determine whether or not they were open. The store is part of a fairly large chain of stores, and it was a holiday, so I wanted to be sure before I headed in that direction. I first get a phone menu which was no big deal. It tells me to select 1 for store hours. I press the number 1, and it takes me back to the beginning of the phone menu. I give them the benefit of the doubt and assume that I made a mistake. So I listen to the phone options again. Again, I press the number 1...and I'm taken back to the beginning of the phone menu again. At this point, I'm getting irritated. Even though it's only taken a minute or so, I am frustrated due to the fact that the menu options aren't working. At that point, I listen to the menu again for the number to speak with a representative. I select the right option and hear a ring on the other end. After what seemed like an eternity, I got my answer. No one was answering, so I assumed the store was closed.
How often does this happen with customers who call your Support line? Do you have an IVR that asks for loads of information? Once they finally reach a Support agent, is that information provided automatically? These are questions to ask yourself and your front-line agents. If you've made the decision to provide multiple menu options, your Support agents can probably tell you how effective they are based on the tone of the customer's voice. If your agents are constantly having to win customers over, you might need to rethink your decision.
Use this as an opportunity to empower your agents by asking a few of them to call the Support number and give you feedback on how the menu options work. The Support agent is going to know better than most whether or not there's room for improvement. This has the ability to make your customers happier, which in turn is going to keep your agents happier.
Brooks Webb is the Manager of the Premier Support team at iContact, where his team handles all second level support inquiries, including Billing Support, Level 2 Technical Support, and Support for all Top Level Managed Accounts. Follow Brooks on Twitter @WBrooksWebb
Thursday, 2 May 2013
by: Sean Hawkins
Customer Service is not as hard as we make it. In its simplest form, it is about treating others with courtesy and respect. Unfortunately, in the business world we often lose sight of that.
When the business of doing business leads to unsatisfied customers, it is time to reevaluate how business is done. Companies are competing for the same customer and if all things are equal, customer service is usually a deciding factor for the consumer.
Exceptional service allows agents to offer immediate solutions without getting bogged down in processes or policy. This leads to happy, loyal customers. Therefore, remove the barriers and processes that prevent exceptional customer service. Your customer will thank you for it.
Customer Service is not as hard as we make it. In its simplest form, it is about treating others with courtesy and respect. Unfortunately, in the business world we often lose sight of that.
When the business of doing business leads to unsatisfied customers, it is time to reevaluate how business is done. Companies are competing for the same customer and if all things are equal, customer service is usually a deciding factor for the consumer.
Exceptional service allows agents to offer immediate solutions without getting bogged down in processes or policy. This leads to happy, loyal customers. Therefore, remove the barriers and processes that prevent exceptional customer service. Your customer will thank you for it.
Sean is a Customer Experience, Contact Center and Help desk manager with over 12 years of experience. He has a terrific pulse on incorporating innovation into the contact center. He's implemented social, outsourcing partners, new technology, and new products, while maintaining an award-winning contact center.
In 2011, his team was awarded the ICMI "Global Call Center of the Year" for Small to Medium-Sized Centers. Follow on Twitter- @SeanBHawkins
In 2011, his team was awarded the ICMI "Global Call Center of the Year" for Small to Medium-Sized Centers. Follow on Twitter- @SeanBHawkins
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