Call Center Quality

Take the 15 Day Trial Today. Learn more about this Call Center VIP membership site now.

When I purchased my first center I stepped in to a cluster.  In fact, there weren't any processes in place that guaranteed everybody understood what our expectations were.  We put this document into place for our QA.  Doing this was a good idea because it provided all the reps with a clear understanding of what we wanted:

Quality Assurance

At ________, we are committed to providing quality, service and value to our customers because they are the most important part of our business.  In order to keep our customers coming back for more, it is our duty to make sure the customer is satisfied.  At ________We always strive to provide the customer with a World Class Customer experience by providing them with the best quality, value, and service.  We must treat our customers with the utmost professionalism and handle our calls with “One Call Resolution”.

______________ expects everyone talking to customers to:

• Be courteous
• Know his or her job and provide accurate information to our customers
• Ask the right questions in a solutions oriented presentation
• Use Saves techniques on calls and use call guide when appropriate.
• Explain things in a way that the customer understands by avoiding Slang, Jargon- Remember, you are the expert!
• Handle Calls with efficiency by listening to the customers concerns, and by using your resources
• Make each customer feel his or her concern is important to you.
• Fully Explain All actions taken
• Remember to be courteous- treat each customer with kindness and respect

In order to ensure these expectations are met, we perform a Quality Assurance function in Customer Service.  The Quality Assurance function allows us to:

• Provide you with the tools you need to effectively do your jobs
• To provide a consistently improving level of Customer Service
• Identify Client or Company trending
• Assess the level of service we are providing our clients customers

Bottom line:  It’s to make you better!

Signature______________________________   Date____________________________

Improving Attendance In The Call Center

Improving Attendance
By: Melanie Hartzell

Of all Call Center performance metrics, the easiest one to improve is attendance. Unfortunately, it is also the one that can do the most harm to customer satisfaction, department morale, and can cost the company a lot of money. There are three basic steps to improving attendance in any Call Center environment. If they are followed, you will be well on your way to developing a successful Call Center, and taking a huge step forward in battling performance metrics.

• Set attendance guidelines
  • Make them clear – use basic terminology, and close loopholes
  • Outline consequences - Examples
    • 1st offense verbal
    • 2nd offense written
    • 3rd  offense termination
  • Communicate them. First on paper, then verbally. Talk about them regularly. Get a signed contract after a verbal discussion. (This is not necessary, but it helps the employee take responsibility for their attendance, and shows that you are serious).
• Be consistent
  • Treat all employees equally. In a Call Center environment, as a supervisor, you are bound to have favored employees. Make sure you treat all employees exactly the same. If you show flexibility to one, you must show the same flexibility to another. This is imperative to improve attendance.
  • Set a clear plan, and follow it consistently with all employees. If your guidelines state: after the second absence you will get a verbal warning, regardless of the reason, stick with it. The first time you waiver, it sends a message to the entire staff it is ok to be absent if your excuse is deemed worthy.
  • Bad things happen to good people, try to be patient, but also understand that all people are not cut out for Call Center work. It is difficult to enforce a policy or guideline when you feel sorry for a person; remind yourself that although you feel sorry for that person, you are typically not the person who has to pick up the work load. It is their peers, and rarely will they understand when they are stuck with a heavier workload.
  • Understand that abusers get themselves into trouble. A policy or guideline just helps you deal with it, so the abuser cannot infect your entire staff.
  • If the employee is a protected class and falls under FMLA, make sure they understand what they need to do to be protected. Know the laws that govern FMLA. This should be the responsibility of anyone who manages people. Understanding the law will protect people with legitimate problems, and it will protect the company financially.
• Know when to terminate
  • You don’t fire people with attendance issues, they fire themselves. Don’t internalize or make excuses for the employee. Hold them accountable for their actions.
  • Be careful not to justify delaying termination of an employee due to being short staffed. This is a very common mistake in the Call Center environment, and it will cause your employees to hold you hostage. Headcount numbers are based on employees who come to work. If the employee does not come to work, they are skewing your numbers and robbing you of valuable headcount.

You cannot make your employees come to work, but you can hold them accountable, and by holding them accountable, you send a message that poor attendance will not be tolerated. Your loyal employees who show up for work everyday will respect you and will work harder for you, because they have a reason to.

Self Discovery Steps for Coaching

Following these steps in a coaching or feedback session creates consistency and builds commitment to change and improvement.  Leading the representative through the process strengthens understanding.

• Purpose of coaching or feedback
  • I’m here to help you improve at (specific area).”
• Ask for CSR’s assessment of
  • “Do you remember this call?”
  • “What did you do well?”
  • “Is there anything you would do differently?”
• Offer feedback
  • “Do you want some feedback?”
• Re-cap
  • “I agree with you on the area you did well.” (Be specific)
  • “I agree with you on the area you could change.” (Be specific)
• Cover vital few
  • “I’d also like to address this.” (Be specific)
• Check for understanding
  • “Can you see why this is important?”
• Get commitment
  • “What are we going to do going forward?”

Using this type of system to allow your reps to be involved in their development will help you achieve greater results.

Call Center In India

Enjoy this video…

Call Center Performance Management

I found this article through Google Alerts.  Call Center Performance Management is a hot topic and one that all call center professionals want to know about.

Enjoy the article but if you get a chance visit our call center games!

by sammiller

Call Centers, or customer services receiving and transmitting multiple requests by telephone, were introduced as offshoots of telecommunications providing streamlined service for consumers of large companies with extensive customer support needs. Normally, a call center is able to handle a considerable volume of calls at the same time, i.e. to screen calls and forward them to skilled support staff, where most issues can be resolved. Organizations starting from mail-order catalog companies and telemarketing companies to computer product help desks use call centers.

Typically, there are two types of calls ? inbound and outbound. The latter suggests the agent's calling potential customers with intentions to sell or service which is amply used in telemarketing. Apart from it inbound calls are made by the customer to get information or ask for help reporting malfunction of the product.

That's where the problem of management performance is acute. Performance measures and benchmarking are indispensable to any well-run call center to eliminate criticism of call centers on common themes such as non-expert operators, poor training of agents incapable to process customers' requests effectively, automated queuing systems resulting in long hold times, operators working from a script, etc. Benchmarking, typically associated with strategic management, presupposes evaluation of business processes in relation to best practice and helps to develop plans with the aim of increasing performance levels. At large benchmarking reforms all the levels of the company ? from the state of mind of the employees to that of top managers, penetrating into the whole hierarchical organization of the organization. The gist of benchmarking is to break the resistance to change by employing methods different from the currently used ones that might be less effective in order to increase certain aspects of performance.

The most conspicuous performance measures include the mean conversation time, or Average Talk Time (ATT), the time of delay a caller may experience waiting while queuing, the mean dealing time, or Average Handling Time (AHT), the number of calls (%) answered within the limited period, or Service Level (SL%), the number of calls per hour the operator handles, the number of calls (%) with the customer's problem completely resolved and others.

A variety of different technologies enables companies to measure and monitor the performance of the workers. The Balanced scorecard, introduced by R.S. Kaplan and D. Norton in 1992, is a concept for measuring a company's activities to make managers focus on the important performance metrics that lead to success. It's not only financial outcomes that are in focus, but the human issues that drive those outcomes. Thus, it is said to balance the financial perspective with customer, process and employee perspectives. Since the time of the original concept the scorecard metrics have been revisited by Kaplan & Norton with regard to more than a decade's experience.

Typically the following processes are on the move when the scorecard is implemented: translating the vision into operational goals, linking the vision to individual performance, business planning, learning and adjusting the strategy according to the feedback. To improve the performance of call centers one should know what metrics are best qualified. The right metrics should be performed on a call center to fulfill the scorecard.

The hallmark of a good call center is the staff's call management skills and that means interactive training can help achieve excellence at different levels ? for the agents, supervisors and managers. It is essential for managers to know how to recruit and train the staff to reach the strategic goals of the company, to manage the key metrics and consequently improve performance.

Different programs are designed to deliver training to call center teams. They might include practice, role-play, feedback and coaching. As keeping customers satisfied is a primary concern of any call center training courses feature quality programs which enhance the performance with respect to one of the most urgent demands ? training skilful professionals. It means they employ different training methods to evaluate current training processes and measure and improve training effectiveness. Fertile training leads to reinforcing the appropriate skills for performance improvement and achieving higher levels of customer loyalty.

About the Author

If you are interested in call center management, check Sam Miller web-site.

Article Source: Content for Reprint

 

 

Technorati Tags: call center, call center training

Performance Management Gone Haywire

By Megan Tough

When you ask employees about their impressions of Performance Management processes, the answer is invariably negative or neutral. It’s not often that the process is positively endorsed by those who use it. So where are we going wrong?

As managers, we know we need a management system of some kind for all the components of performance:

• getting people to work on things that will help the business achieve its goals

• identifying and overcoming obstacles that might prevent success

• understand and checking our progress regularly

• giving people a forum for talking about what they are doing and how it’s going

• providing the appropriate checks and balances

• recognising and rewarding performance

I believe there are 5 fundamental reasons why Performance Management is not viewed positively.

1. Reviewers don’t have the skills or confidence to give feedback appropriately Giving feedback constructively is a learned skill. Unfortunately for their team members, many managers haven’t had any training or support in learning this critical skill. So when it comes to review time, feedback is either:

1. blunt and delivered with no thought for the impact or consequence,

2. not provided at all because the manager wants to avoid disagreement or conflict, or

3. is given in such a wishy washy way that the reviewee actually misses the fact they are being given feedback!

This is one of the most critical capabilities a manager can have, with far-reaching positive or negative consequences. Providing ongoing coaching and support should be part of the approach to managing performance.

2. Employees don’t see Performance Management (PM) as a 2 way street

Is PM something that is ‘done’ to employees, or is it jointly owned with equal responsibility between the reviewer and the reviewee?

Imagine a review session where the employee turns up having evaluated their own performance, provided examples of how and when they achieved each objective, had references from other people about their attitude and behaviour, and already had drafted some challenges they wanted to work on in the next 12 months. When ownership for the process lies with the employee, this is the result.

Getting to this stage takes time. The business needs to consistently communicate expectations and help the manager’s adapt to the new positioning. Instead of PM being viewed a bureaucratic process over which they have no control, employees own their own performance and contribute equally to the discussion about performance levels and results achieved.

3. The annual review is the prime focus

If PM consists only of an annual or bi-annual review, the business is really missing the point. Reviews are useful checkpoints, but PM occurs 365 days a year. When review time comes around there should be no surprises. And I mean none. If there is, the manager is not doing their job effectively. Any performance issues, or comments about achievement, need to be given as they arise, not saved up for discussion 3 months later in a review.

On this basis, the review becomes more of a confirmation of what each party already knows. This shouldn’t take long to go through, leaving plenty of time to discuss development needs and new opportunities (see next point).

4. Not enough attention is given to the future

In many cases the entire review is spent dissecting the previous 12 months. Objectives and goals do need to be valuated and measured - don’t get me wrong – but the real value of a review lies in the discussion about the future.

What skills will the employee need to develop to become even more effective in their job? What work-related challenges can they get involved in that will grow them beyond where they are today? How can the business utilize their strengths in other areas? What gaols do they want to set themselves over the next 12 months? How can the manager help them achieve these things?

It’s this focus on future development and opportunities that energizes people, makes them feel valued and keeps them engaged with the business.

In an ideal world, reviewing past performance and discussing future skills and opportunities will take equal time in a review.

5. There is no follow-up

This is the credibility killer. All throughout the performance year, managers will make commitments to take actions and follow-up. If this doesn’t happen, the whole process loses integrity. Once employees experience this firsthand, it’s a long road back.

Commitments must be upheld, and managers and employees equally need to be accountable for their part in this.

Getting employees to think about Performance Management as a positive process that adds value is the goal. This only happens when the managers have the right skills, the business adopts an ongoing approach that consists of much more than annual reviews, when commitments are made and kept, and when employees own the process equally with managers.

Megan Tough is director of complete potential, a leadership and HR consultancy based in Sydney, Australia.

At complete potential we understand people - what engages them, what encourages them to perform, and what drives them away. With over 20 years experience working on HR issues in business, our job is to help you make the most of your investment in people. To learn more visit www.completepotential.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Megan_Tough
http://EzineArticles.com/?Performance-Management-Gone-Haywire&id=555573

Make An Action Plan To Improve Customer Service

By Kevin Dervin

Customer Service is a critical factor for keeping your clients coming back and ensuring they’ll refer you to others. Growing your business will be a difficult task at best if you don’t perform, meet and exceed your client’s expectations, and provide service that creates customers for life.

Customer service is all about the customer’s perception. You have to do more than just get the job done. You must deliver on all the things (big and small) that affect the relationship with your client. Consider opportunities for improvement in the following areas.

1. Setting/Reviewing Expectations. Do you work with your client to set clear, appropriate, realistic expectations that you can always meet or exceed? Are you clear about the responsibilities (both yours’ and the client’s), timelines, and expectations of results? Are you then willing to go back and review these expectations with the client at key points along the way?

2. Communication. Do you have mechanisms in place to ensure you’re communicating with clients at every stage of the engagement, from the sales process through to completion of the project? Being clear about where you’re at, what’s been completed, what’s coming up next, who’s responsible, what results you can expect, etc.? Has the client ever had to ask you for these things?

3. Organization. Are you organized? Punctual? Reliable? When you show up to work with your clients, have you done the work and are you prepared to make them feel comfortable and taken care of? Even though you’ve done it hundreds, maybe thousands of times before, do you take the time to organize and prepare to make it the best client experience possible?

4. Committing to the Little Things. Don’t ever dismiss the power of all the little things. Together they can make all the difference and really separate you from the competition. Returning calls and emails in a timely manner. Providing useful information to folks on a regular basis. Showing appreciation for your clients through things like thank you notes, exclusive client-only briefings, and open house, etc.

Clearly these are not the only relevant areas for creating great customer service. I’m sure you can think of more. But, pick just one of these areas and create an action plan to improve it in your business today. Make a commitment to continuously improve the level of service you’re providing and see how it pays off. When you’ve done it, pick another area and work on it.

(c) - Kevin Dervin, KPD Marketing

About the Author: Kevin is focused on helping businesses that are ready to grow, but struggle with how to consistently attract more clients. Visit http://www.proven-small-business-marketing-solutions.com for more information you can use to grow your business. Find Kevin's Kansas City based KPD Marketing practice at http://www.ABCDgrowth.com and subscribe to his free ezine.

Source: www.isnare.com

Technorati Tags: customer service

Attack Disengagement

Would you like practical strategies to engage minds and hearts and conquer competition?   Call center leaders need this.

• I Quit, But Forgot to Tell You
• Passionate Performance
• Lessons in Loyalty
• Teamwork Framed Desktop Print
• Escape from Management Land
• Who's in the Driver's Seat?

A $64.95 value for $39.95.  Save $25! 

Learn More By Visitng CornerStone Leadership

Are Your Call Center Metrics Consistent?

When your metrics aren't in line the customer draws conclusions about your company that are not favorable.

Here's a great example.

Recently I found a post titled, Unusually High Call Volume that discussed the company in question with not properly staffing. This is frustrating especially during a time that should be light in call volume.

Unfortunately, call centers are so focused on the bottom-line (and for good reason) that they forecast and staff with a very small margin of error.

If any of the assumptions used to determine required headcount are out of line, i.e higher than planned, then service level will suffer and ultimately the customer will suffer.

What can the call center do to prepare for Murphy's law?

That's a tough question to answer without knowing the specifics. Sometimes things are out of your control in this situation but the management team can do a couple of things that may help.

1. Flexible Scheduling - Offer a slightly higher pay knowing that your schedule is flexible and you may end up being called in;

2. Overstaff - you can always over staff and make adjustments as needed. If it is the weekend and you bring in more people than you end up needing, you can always ask for volunteers to go home.

3. Overstaff knowing that you have back office work.

These are just a couple of ideas. If you know of a good idea, please leave a comment.

Bottom-line the call center management team has to be proactive and know that at times absenteeism may be higher on some days than others and making the adjustments proactively will have a positive effect on your customer;s impression of your service.

Rethink on foreign call centres as customers voice growing concerns

What are your thoughts on this news item?  Leave a comment and let us know.

These games were easy to follow, set up and run. I let my team choose from a group of 5 activities to get them even more involved. They really enjoyed winning and seeing their performance improve.

Read the entire article on the Scotsman.com

Next Page »