|
|
Self-assurance - An Optimum Requirement For Any Employee |
PDF
|
| Print |
|
E-mail
|
 It goes without saying that your best front-line staff are the ones with the strongest mettle. Creating a culture of confidence is hard work, but the results are amazing.
Excellent service delivery can only be achieved by "the people" that customers interact with, so improving confidence and enthusiasm for the company and products/services they are an ambassador for, is fundamental.
Implementing confidence can be achieved by using a balanced mix of training, team co-operation and feedback and using technological tools that compliment your existing organization's framework.
Recording, performance analytics and e-learning technologies have a role to play in helping call centres to improve their operations. But challenging and improving product or service awareness and confidence in staff is also important.
Staff need to be challenged, be able to use their brains and be tested. Customers today demand a personal experience. Take the example of Nike or Apple. Both have taken the traditional notion of a shop and transformed the space into areas where customers experience the lifestyle associated with the brand. Staff get involved in the same emotional experience that customers do and as a result, are happy and driven in what they do.
The overall benefits experienced by companies that mange to enage their staff so well are far reaching. Staff who feel valued as individuals, are trained and developed to perform to the best of their ability, and are recognised and rewarded for their contribution to the business, will be prepared to 'go the extra mile' to meet the needs of the business. Sickness and attrition can be significantly reduced and there is a greater sense of teamwork and higher staff satisfaction scores will result. Open communication channels also enable staff to discuss issues that might be preventing them from performing to their best.
If you can't be motivated by the thought of creating happy call centre agents and reaping the benefits of reduced costs and improved customer satisfaction, the health implications of running a highly-regulated call centre should spur you into action.
A study by trade union Unison into the call centre market found three-quarters of staff feel constantly stressed. The survey also reported that 82 per cent suffer headaches, 78 per cent respiratory problems, and 61 per cent have pains in their hands, arms or back. Given this level of suffering, it is staggering that the average staff attrition rate, according to the Call Centre Association, is as low as 17 per cent. Even if we forget the cost of lost days that result from such an embarrassment of health problems, how can we expect people working in this way to perform well?
Patricia Southworth is clinical director at The Robens Centre, which is a unit of the University of Surrey that helps organisations deal with their occupational health needs. Southworth says the bulk of interest from the call centre market is about ensuring compliance to safety regulations and how to avoid litigation cases. Very rare is the enquiry on how to improve the health and wellbeing of staff so that they excel in work.
"I describe occupational health as being a slow accident," she says. "Companies are interested in ways that they can reduce their risks to financial burden. You can minimise the risk to people greatly by thinking about this issue at the design stage. Most call centres were not built to house so many people at once and often the lighting, heating, rest areas and furniture are highly unsuited."
Overall, according to Southworth, the call centre market must recognise the acute connection between health and confidence. "Physical complaints are rarely isolated from mental wellbeing," she explains.
Once you have addressed the major issues concerning environment, health and treatment of staff, then you can begin to focus on the smaller details to help your agents sound and feel confident.
Clothes reflect how people feel about themselves and send out signals to clients and colleagues. Looking good makes us feel more confident and it encourages others to respond to us in a positive way, allowing us to be more influential in our interactions.
Another effective way of impacting the quality of the phone call, is voice coaching. Encourage agents to concentrate on how the message comes across, altering tone and pitch depending on the situation. When a person knows how to use their voice and feels confident, this will help tremendously in improving the service delivered.
For further details on Recording, performance analytics and e-learning technologies, as well as consultancy services and other suggestions for performance improvement, please contact ComputerTel Ltd. You can either call us on 01474 561111, email us at info@computertel.co.uk, or visit our website at www.computertel.co.uk.
|
|
|
Newsletter |
|
Register here for your FREE copy of The Grapevine. Full of product info, case studies and industry news.
|
|
News 
