Build talent on front lines

Training and support is crucial for call takers, who can make or break a company's reputation. Photo / Getty Images

Modern contact centres are challenging workplaces with increasingly complex technology but, when managed correctly, can be great places to work and develop a career.

As the storefront for many businesses, these centres can make or break a company's reputation. They can also be a win-win for employers scouting fresh talent and for candidates looking for a foot in the door to an organisation.

Kim-Marie Rixson, general manager for recruitment firm CallCentre People, says there are two distinct types of staff to manage depending on the type of centre you have.

"You either have an inbound contact centre where they're receiving calls from customers or you've got an outbound contact centre where it's telemarketing, essentially," Rixson says.

About 75 per cent of contact centres in New Zealand are inbound. "With an inbound perspective you very much need a problem solver, somebody who takes responsibility, a real people-pleaser and somebody who's generally able to take on quite complex information."

These inbound call takers need to be trained to navigate various databases quickly and juggle between several computer screens while accessing various types of information for the caller.

"They need to have very high levels of motivation and very high levels of resilience."

Managers need to select staff carefully. Often an inbound operator will not perform well as an outbound operator and vice versa. Some positions also require experienced staff while others can be trained up quickly with little or no experience.

"It is a very good entry-level position because they get such a huge amount of training generally and also they get a lot of knowledge about the company in all different aspects. It is a very good grounding for somebody to get into an organisation."

The Contact Centre Institute of New Zealand reports that there are 350 organisations in the country using contact centres with a total of 29,000 workstations. Most centres are in-house, with only 15 per cent being contract centres. Rixson says employers have long viewed their contact centres as a "breeding ground" for future staff. But with the focus on work-life balance, the role is also attracting more mature people and working mothers. "The hours are generally quite flexible. They can work rosters and different hours. Companies have had to get smarter about who they are recruiting and attracting."

Managing a workforce that includes graduates to grey power requires personalised attention. Mature workers generally require more initial training on computer systems. But once they're up to speed, they do the job well and are very reliable. Younger workers might take to the software like they've been using it all their lives but are generally not as reliable, Rixson says.

"Your Generation X and Generation Y tend to have a lot of absenteeism and that is a major issue with contact centres."

Managing absenteeism can be a real challenge for contact centre supervisors and team leaders.

"A lot of businesses have had to get smarter about rostering. How many hours are you rostering for? Make people understand the consequences of absenteeism to the business. Get them to take more responsibility for that. Put in incentives for limiting absenteeism."

The close confines of a contact centre mean that the winter flu can wreak havoc among staff. Headsets, telephones and workstations must be cleaned regularly.

"Encourage people that if they are genuinely sick, they actually do stay away."

But the close proximity of staff also allows people to work in close-knit teams. Team leaders and managers can develop good team spirit by offering incentives and rewards. Staff are encouraged to not only get on with one another but also not let their team members down. This requires quite a bit of motivation, coaching and personal career development.

"Coaching is huge in contact centres, absolutely huge. Every eight to 12 agents will have a team leader. That team leader is tasked with making sure their team objectives are met. A contact centre is probably the most measured job you'll do in your life."

Frontline staff are scrutinised to the nth degree. Everything is measured - time on the phone, time off the phone, time between calls, first call resolution and so on. Management is very hands on with daily coaching and regular review meetings. Management also have to deal with regrettable attrition - people resigning who you don't want to leave.

"A lot of contact centres are 24/7. People can only work rotational rosters for so long."

Regrettable attrition is often due to the wide range of remuneration in the field. Contact centre workers generally make from $15 to $23 an hour.

"You've got good people you've trained up and then all of a sudden another division comes and steals them."

One way of minimising regrettable attrition is to continually challenge workers and help them develop their careers. Ann Mayer, director of training company Telephos, says contact centre staff need continuous coaching and also need to be reminded not to use negative words.

"It's very easy to tell the customer what we can't do rather than what we can do. Take out the words 'can't' and 'don't'. We can always change them to put it positively."

But contact centre workers don't just have to be taught how to speak on the phone. The term "call centre" was replaced with the newer term "contact centre" because workers are now responding to email, online chats and even texts. "Technology is really moving what we're doing."

There is now a NZQA Level 2 and 3 certificate in contact centre operations in New Zealand, which is workplace-assessed.

"People in contact centres can go through a process and get qualifications."

Derek Good, managing director of training company Rapid Results, says staff don't just need to be up to speed with the technology but also with the policy of the organisation.

This is particularly true in public-sector contact centres. But the most important mantra in a public or private centre is customer service.

"If you get the right attitude and somebody already has an inherent understanding of, 'I'm here to service the customer' that can make the biggest difference in the experience the customer has," Good says.

Best practice is not just about answering a phone or email. It's about providing a service the customer needs.

"These people are the shop window of the organisation. If they get that wrong then that organisation is potentially losing a customer and other customers from negative referrals."

Good says contact centre staff should be coached regularly to think of the customer.

"It is a shame that a lot of companies don't invest in these people ... They can spend all this money on marketing, getting people to contact them as an organisation and then don't necessarily put the same effort and expense in making sure that when people get there, that they get the experience that they want them to have."

In managing a contact centre, it's also important that the front-line staff are empowered with the tools they need. Some companies such as banks and phone companies authorise staff to offer credits or refunds up to a certain dollar amount. Managers also have to balance out providing good customer service against limiting the length of calls.

"Companies are investing in training to give their staff good call-control skills to direct the conversation and avoid waffle." Often team leaders coach staff on the desired outcome of a conversation and leave the details up to them.

"We construct a call flow rather than a script. A call flow allows an individual to use their own wording and their own style but still recognising what needs to happen."

Contact David Maida at www.davidmaida.com