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June 1999


Using Quality Monitoring To Enhance Performance And Improve Morale

BY RODNEY KUHN, ENVISION TELEPHONY

You train, you coach, you try to create a positive working environment…but you simply can't spare the time or resources to make sure every individual is getting the attention needed to feel motivated and rewarded. You're not alone!

While you can't be all things to all people, your team's effectiveness and morale can get a huge boost with one simple solution: automated quality monitoring software.

As companies everywhere evaluate their processes and search for new ways to improve performance and satisfaction, retaining smart, loyal and service-oriented employees is a top priority. And no wonder  in the call center alone, 26 out of every 100 full-time agents are likely to leave each year.(1)

In other words, if the statistics prove true, more than 25 percent of your call center staff could seek employment elsewhere this year, significantly taxing your budget and your ability to effectively service your customers. Experts say the average cost for recruiting and training a call center representative lies anywhere between $5,000 and $18,000 (2). The cost and the time commitment add up fast.

What's the key to maintaining a team of satisfied employees?
Many quality assurance teams are turning to technologies that make it easy to randomly record calls, combine voice recordings with screen capture and evaluate calls online to ensure measurement quotas are being met. Automating this process, however, is just the start.

Call recording software is designed to allow supervisors, quality control teams and training managers to gather performance data more efficiently. But it is the frequent sharing of these data in a one-to-one environment that may have the most impact on employee satisfaction and growth. Above all, employees stand to benefit from enhanced feedback, better training tools, more consistent monitoring and new performance-based incentive programs. Here's how:

No More "He Said, She Said"
Jerry wrapped up the call, pleased with the way he had handled the situation. Despite the customer's anger over the mix-up, Jerry had remained calm and empathetic. He was sure the customer was satisfied. So when his supervisor called him into a meeting to discuss how he could have better handled the call, Jerry was surprised. He was certain his supervisor was going out of her way to find something negative about his performance.

Perception or reality?
On one hand, it can be very difficult for a supervisor to accurately capture feedback when trying to simultaneously listen to an agent, monitor the script and company guidelines and hastily scribble notes. How can a manager ensure he or she has monitored employees completely and equally, when trying to balance the physical act of monitoring with the more qualitative process of guiding and responding to the individual's performance?

On the other hand, it can be difficult for employees to realize how they sound. Often it's only when they hear their own calls that they understand the feedback they're receiving and value a supervisor's suggestions for improvement. Add a screen recording and the resulting visual, audible and written evaluation can be both educational and motivating for an employee. Go one step further to combine sample calls with sample screen recordings and evaluations, and you have proactively instructed an employee in how to change and improve performance.

With automated quality monitoring, managers are able to capture objective samples of calls recorded over consistent periods of time for each employee. Today's software will allow a supervisor to send agents those recordings, along with feedback, as frequently as needed. Agents are able to evaluate responses for themselves and can more objectively assess call content, tone, customer reactions, etc. Not only can these employees review supervisor feedback more knowledgeably, with personality differences in check, they can come to training and review meetings with a better understanding of their overall performance. You may even find they come with more proactive requests and/or suggestions for improvement.

Thoughtful Feedback, Effective Training
Despite several training meetings and script revisions, Tina's agents were struggling to communicate the details of the new sales promotion. Then Tina heard a recording of Pat's customer call; she knew this employee had nailed it. With a click of her mouse, Tina sent an audio file of Pat's message to the whole staff so they could hear a great example of how to handle the pitch. Within days, sales were up by 40 percent.

Digital recording can open a new realm of training possibilities. With automated quality monitoring software, it becomes extremely simple to share calls with others either on an individual basis or with an entire group. It's as simple as sending an e-mail message.

Supervisors can send an agent's call along with detailed feedback, either written notes corresponding with the call or actual verbal comments embedded into the recorded call. The agents can then play the recording on their desktops at their convenience. In some cases, agents can even record and forward a response to their supervisors, actively participating in problem resolution. Plus, agents can also record calls on demand  for self-evaluation or sharing  simply by clicking an icon on their PCs.

What's more, key calls can be saved for demonstration in staff training environments. By bringing agents into a classroom or manager's office and demonstrating call resolution, even going so far as to illustrate screen navigation and the effective use of an agent's desktop, managers can more efficiently address issues, resolve problems and create new solutions that result in greater productivity. Imagine training your support staff on a new product feature or how to handle a difficult call simply by demonstrating an actual customer interaction.

Performance Reporting Made Simple
One of the country's premier retailers has discovered that by offering an incentive program that lets star performers choose their own work schedule, quality and productivity figures have improved significantly. Best of all, the figures are tracked automatically, requiring no additional time or energy on the part of management or staff.

Why monitor quality if you can't use the results to enhance performance?

Automated call monitoring tools allow you to determine performance criteria and then publish the results on an individual, team and group basis.

Supervisors who use customized online evaluation forms, and standardize them for their operations, can identify and respond to problems before they escalate. With automation, supervisors can run a variety of reports on performance and productivity to quickly and easily identify areas of possible improvement, as well as those agents deserving of praise. Reports compare individual and group activity so managers may develop timely quality improvement programs that make sense for the department and/or individual.

New software capabilities give managers the ability to publish this information to browser-enabled screens, automatically customized for each employee based on log-in or other specified access. With some products, employees get personalized browser views of call evaluations and performance ratings and can individually assess their contribution to the rest of the department. Proactive managers and HR personnel may use this publishing application to sponsor rewards, drive training programs, congratulate top achievers and communicate news and updates.

Even groups outside of the call center, such as marketing and product development, can access performance data and other critical department information, customized to meet their needs. These new tools provide valuable feedback for enhancing the customer experience and company performance.

Taking The Plunge
Employees answer hundreds of calls a day in an environment where there is often little time for evaluation, coaching or praise. If you are seeking a way to enhance satisfaction and performance, there are great solutions available that increase performance by improving training and evaluating processes and eliminating inefficient resources. With simple installation, easy-to-use interfaces and return on investment incentives, it's worth the time to evaluate an automated quality monitoring suite. Talk with your colleagues to see what they are using. Invite companies to evaluate your situation and provide a return on investment analysis. Then, take the plunge. You only have satisfied employees to gain.

(1)Call Center Benchmark Report, Purdue University Center for Customer Driven Quality, 1999.
(2)Dr. Jon Anton, Benchmarking Study, 1998.

Rodney Kuhn is president and founder of Envision Telephony . Under Kuhn's leadership, Envision Telephony recently launched a product to publish call center quality monitoring results to browser-enabled screens, giving employees personalized, easily accessible browser views of call evaluations and performance ratings. Envision Telephony's integrated call center suite supports Windows NT and integrates CTI with quality monitoring.







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