ICMI's Customer Management Insight - December 2007 - (Page 29) eview RECOMMENDED READING Ideas for Real Contact Center Improvement For a few years now, one of the most popular sessions at ICMI’s call center conferences has been a fun and informative panel session called “60 Ideas in 60 Minutes.” The session features four call center experts who collectively present 60 quick and innovative ideas — in just one hour — on how to enhance the processes, people and technology in your center. (That’s one useful idea per minute!) Due to numerous requests from audience members, who must either hire a stenographer, bootleg the session or simply write really, really fast if they want to take away everything they can from these lighteningfast sessions, we’ve captured that lightening in text form. The following is an excerpt from “60 from 4: 60 Ideas for Real Contact Center Improvement from Four Industry Experts,” which will be available from ICMI later this month. The tips and tactics were offered by a panel of four call center innovators at the ACCE event in San Diego last September. So take your time, and enjoy! REBECCA GIBSON, ICMI CERTIFIED ASSOCIATE MEASURE SATISFACTION WITH YOUR QUALITY MONITORING PROGRAM. Do reps find it motiva- tional? Is the information it reveals useful? Acted on by supervisors? Is it connected to training initiatives? Is it connected to pay raises, bonuses and rewards? If you rely on monitoring to support business initiatives and provide data to your management team, you're leaving valuable opportunities on the table. It’s possible for these programs to be rewarding and motivating to your frontline employees, as well. FOSTER FRIENDSHIPS IN YOUR CALL CENTER. New studies have reinforced what we’ve heard before: One of the top indicators of job satisfaction and sticking with a company is having good friends at work. Make your break room a nice place to hang out — simple things like free coffee, cable and Internet in the break room can keep people from resorting to sitting in their cars or talking on their cell phones during their breaks. Create annual traditions like a softball league, potlucks, a fall picnic for families, scavenger hunts, and charitable drives or events. Give your employees a chance to get to know each other. PROFESSIONALIZE CALL CENTER POSITIONS. Many icmi’s insight managers inside and outside the call center have low expectations about frontline call center employees. It’s not surprising that reps tend to live up to these expectations. When we treat agents like a commodity, they’re less engaged and committed to us. When we treat agents like children and monitor their every move, they act like children and try to get around the rules. When we pay them less than professional salaries and don’t support their career progression, guess what? We don’t get career-oriented employees. It’s like the old adage about “dressing for the job you want” — treat your agents like the employees you want rather than the ones that you (might) have. READ ABOUT AND DO RESEARCH ON MOTIVATION AND REWARDS, THEN ADD YOUR EXPERIENCE to the mix and formulate your own strategy and philosophy regarding these topics. A strong understanding of these topics is a critical item in any manager’s toolbox — and many managers approach them in a disorganized, scattershot way (“let’s try this… oh, that didn’t work, let’s try… this”), alternating between not giving something enough time to work and leaving something that doesn’t work in place. Know where you stand and formulate a solid, consistent approach. www.icmi.com | DECEMBER 2007 29 http://www.icmi.com
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