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Today's call centers feature the latest in technology and software,
enabling those who communicate with customers to handle all types of
interactions more efficiently than ever. As any call center manager can
attest, operating in the fast-paced environment of customer relationship
management (CRM) demands the best tools of the trade.
Sophisticated technologies for computer telephony integration give the
CRM business ever-increasing efficiencies. But when it comes to the
technologies used for training the people on the front line of customer
communications, many call centers seem rooted in the past. Traditional
classroom-style, instructor-led classes -- perhaps supplemented with a
CD-ROM -- still accounts for the bulk of training for customer service
representatives. The instructor shows new agents how to operate the
system, and the agents go off and perform their jobs -- often with no
additional training until the next technology installation or upgrade.
It doesn't have to be this way. With the advent of e-learning, or
Web-based training, call centers have a new option to help employees excel
at their jobs. Companies involved with CRM are beginning to embrace
e-learning, mostly as a supplement to, rather than a replacement for,
existing training efforts. Their results so far indicate that e-learning
will become one of the primary means of delivering learning resources to
workers in the call center environment.
WHY E-LEARNING IS BETTER
When deployed as an integral part of the call center training function,
e-learning offers several distinct advantages over traditional
instructor-led training. There is improved efficiency through anytime,
anywhere learning; greater personalization and interactivity for the
learners; and a better means of managing learning resources for the
trainers. Not every e-learning program is alike, but those designed with
an eye toward solving the problems encountered in traditional training are
most likely to produce the desired outcome -- namely, training that
results in better communications with customers.
Anytime, Anywhere
One of the advantages often cited with e-learning is that its Web-based
architecture enables learning to take place anytime the learner is logged
on to the Internet. This is an especially important consideration in the call center
environment. Traditionally, training requires employees to go to a
classroom to take courses led by an instructor. This method requires
employees to be away from their work stations for extended periods until
the training is complete, which is one reason why call center managers are
sometimes reluctant to invest more than the bare minimum in time and
resources for training.
With e-learning, employees can remain at their work stations and take
training in smaller proportions. Instead of spending an entire day in a
training room, they can devote much smaller blocks of time to learning the
skills necessary to perform their jobs. E-learning programs that make use
of the concept known as "learning objects," or specific pieces
of instruction broken down into manageable sizes, are becoming more common
in CRM-related training because they enable workers to break up their
learning into bite-sized chunks.
Tailored Instruction
Personalization is another key reason why many organizations are making
the move to e-learning. Traditional classroom-style training hinges on
what the instructor wants or needs to teach. This instructor-centric
method often can't accommodate individual learning needs or styles because
everyone in the class receives instruction pretty much the same way --
listening to the instructor.
Successful e-learning initiatives, however, take individual needs into
consideration. For example, a learner who has mastered the first release
of a new software program doesn't need to start from scratch when the
second version comes out. Many e-learning programs are also being designed
with individual learning styles in mind. One learner may gain greater
understanding from text, while another may learn better visually. When
e-learning enables employees to pre-test their skills, the trainers,
course administrators, and employees themselves can then easily select the
instruction best-suited for specific learning needs.
Group Input
E-learning also offers tools that enable everyone involved in delivering
training to employees -- course developers, subject-matter experts, course
administrators, and trainers -- to create and manage learning resources.
An e-learning platform should consist of content composition and
integration tools, a learning management system to deliver and manage
learning, and a system of tagging data so that trainers and administrators
can store and search for the resources they need. This e-learning
framework is especially important in the call center environment, where it
is possible that hundreds of employees are receiving instruction at any
given time. Training administrators need a powerful and manageable
e-learning platform to ensure that the right learning resources are being
delivered and that learners are indeed improving their skills through the
training.
GETTING STARTED
Since e-learning is a relatively new field, organizations considering an
e-learning program often aren't sure where to start. The multitude of
choices in e-learning platforms, off-the-shelf courses, and service
providers involved in e-learning can make the task of getting started seem
bewildering.
Any organization weighing a move to e-learning should begin by
carefully considering what business goals it wants it wants the training
to achieve. When training isn't tied to business objectives, it often
winds up being one of the company's lowest objectives, with no greater
goal than making sure employees know how to use their computers.
Call centers can readily identify several business objectives that a
good training program will help them meet. Better-trained workers, for
instance, are more likely to complete each communication with a customer
in a satisfactory manner. They also are able to handle communications with
greater efficiency. And the oft-cited business goal of reducing staff
turnover is addressed by ensuring employees are well-trained, and thus
less likely to become frustrated and leave. For each of these objectives,
e-learning can help make the difference.
Companies should then evaluate how their existing learning resources
should be used in the e-learning environment. It's not enough to post an
existing course on the Web. The e-learning environment is considerably
different from the traditional classroom setting, and courses must be
tailored to the interactive, anytime, anywhere environment that is the
crux of e-learning. Providers of e-learning platforms can help
organizations make this transition seamless.
Once these key considerations have been weighed, the various e-learning
platforms themselves can be evaluated. Companies should examine a number
of key requirements, including:
- Accessibility (providing access across the company on an anytime,
anywhere basis);
- Scalability (the ability to add users, functions, and courses);
- Interoperability (seamless flow of data across the organization via
the Internet, regardless of systems and locations);
- Reusability (ensuring that learning content can be created, stored,
broken down into components, and reused by others); and
- Flexibility (the ability to create different types of procedures,
concepts, and processes with interactive practice and feedback).
E-learning platforms often differ considerably in their ability to
offer these features.
The use of e-learning to improve workforce skills -- and ensure greater
business efficiency and performance -- has grown markedly in just the past
year. Nowhere is this more true than the call center environment, where
effective training is crucial to business success. By carefully
considering the advantages of e-learning, the business goals it should
achieve, and the methods of implementing an e-learning program before such
a solution is deployed, companies can count on e-learning to provide a
solid framework for more effective customer communications and more
satisfied agents.
Harvi Singh is co-founder and chief learning technologist of MindLever.com,
a provider of e-learning environments. MindLever.com provides an anytime,
anywhere global e-learning environment that enables organizations to
maximize knowledge transfer. Venture capital-backed, the company�s
unique approach to e-learning enables customers to teach, learn,
collaborate, assess, and organize their knowledge assets without the cost
of complex IT infrastructure and support. MindLever.com�s solutions
enable sales organizations, subject matter experts, training
professionals, and others to solve immediate business problems by
improving product and service time-to-market, reducing new employee
learning cycles, and increasing talent retention. The company�s
integrated, component-based platform allows customers to cost-effectively
deploy e-learning capabilities on an as-needed basis, including enabling
quick and easy content development. |
