Anyone who has ever worked in a contact center knows the quiet feeling of dread when the supervisor walks over and plugs in their headset, in the middle of a call. The employee starts thinking of the worst possible outcomes, and immediately becomes acutely aware of what they’re saying and how they’re saying it. But it really doesn’t have to – nor should it – be this way.
In a recent blog post, Yvette Renda – VP of People Development & Training at BPA Quality, a world leader in providing quality solutions for contact centers – pointed out the differences between what supervisors think their job is, and what the employees think those same supervisors look for.
Renda said that common responses from supervisors believe their job is to “mentor, lead, motivate, encourage and guide.” Yet when contact center agents were asked the same question, their responses were markedly different. They believed their supervisors felt their job was to “correct adherence, provide stats, shorten AHT, produce reports and point out errors.” Talk about a disconnect!
But as a supervisor, Renda has some suggested solutions.
“What should we do? How can we fix this, if this is the case?” she asks. The answer can be boiled down to the following items, including:
Focus feedback on behaviors that truly impact our customers and the company. “Determine what behaviors ensure that the customer knows he/she is willing to go the extra mile to resolve the problem as quickly as possible as well as showing care/concern for the customer,” she suggests.
Focus feedback on facts and not opinions. “Once we do this we can be confident our feedback is fair, objective and actionable,” Renda believes.
Understand the personality of the person you are coaching. “Do they like facts and figures, or do they need a more supportive approach?” she asks. “Understanding this last component will greatly assist the first two in being successful.”
Renda concludes by offering supervisors a simple test. “The next time you provide feedback, pause and ask yourself, ‘Am I being fair and objective? Will I truly motivate, encourage and mentor this Team Member?’” She believes that if you confidently answer “yes,” you know you will achieve your Goals.