BenchmarkPortal (News - Alert) CallTalk, a monthly online radio show, is a step away from the traditional educational platform, characterized by a more entertaining style and guided by the topics that listeners ask for. The radio show, hosted by Bruce Belfiore, CEO and senior research executive of BenchmarkPortal, and author of “Benchmarking at Its Best for Contact Centers”, a manual for best practices benchmarking, recently had one of its best CallTalk Episode’s so far, titled “CallTalk Caramels: Employee Morale.”
The show focused on the idea of creating a successful call center through leadership and encouragement. For those listeners who missed the episode, BenchmarkPortal compiled a list of ways that organizations can take Belfiore’s advice and apply it to their call centers.
- Copy success: Leaders should recall actions implemented by their former leaders that created a positive influence on them, and try to emulate those qualities, attributes and actions.
- Get help through mentorship: Good leaders are not afraid to seek help. Identify another leader (either from within or external to your organization, from perhaps a networking group, etc.) and ask them to mentor you. Once a manger seeks help, they must also be willing to follow the guidance of your mentor.
- Listen: Listening to the voice of the agent is one of the best ways to create a symbiotic relationship between the employer and their employees. Managers should be humble and find out from their perspective what methods are working and those that need improvement.
- Keep others informed: Managers should let team members, and even subordinates, know that they are trying to correct problems and should ask for feedback along the way.
- Be caring: When leaders stop caring, followers stop caring. Show compassion and a true sense of engagement with others. Address the personal needs of the people within the contact center, not just those of corporate superiors.
Along with implementing these pieces of advice from Belfiore, call center managers can also benefit greatly from one of BenchmarkPortal’s onsite management training courses. Not only does it provide managers with the tools needed to increase productivity and performance levels in the center, it also shows them how to do so in a hands-on method. This three-day course consists of teaching managers a variety of coaching methods that include how to understand the corporate business model, screen applicants, motivate their agents, ensure quality assurance and how to define caller satisfaction.
This CallTalk Caramel was compiled and edited by Bruce Belfiore and Kamal Webb. It was drawn from a CallTalk episode with Kirk Weisler entitled “Employee Morale: Ideas & Insights to Create an Outrageously Cool Culture.” To listen to the entire episode please visit CallTalk Employee Morale.
Edited by Blaise McNamee