Call Center Training Feature

December 14, 2009

Accessible Field Service Professional Training Course, a Response to Growing Demand

The New Year is when the budget taps open slightly, more so now that there are signs that the economy is turning around, releasing more funds for hardware and software. This is also when consumers and small-office/home-office professionals begin to go live with the computer and video gear they bought over the holidays.

At the same time more employers are giving their employees the ultimate cash-free benefit: permission to work from home i.e. telework. According to the Telework Coalition teleworking can save each staffer up to $5,000 per year in commuting-related travel and clothing costs and firms, and department $20,000 per year in facilities expense reductions and productivity gains. This move also has the side benefit of helping to clean the air by avoiding commuting which in most communities and people means driving.

Increased IT investments in workplaces, homes, and home workplaces means there will be increased demand for more and more highly trained field service professionals. For no matter how good the remote diagnostics and repair solutions, many technical problems often have to be fixed the old-fashioned way: with the aid of screwdrivers, disc-based software installation, and power meters, especially when there are wired networks involved.

To enable qualified desk-side support technicians to meet customers’ and users’ satisfaction expectations, the Resource Center for Customer Service Professionals (RCCSP) now offers the online-delivered Certified Field Service Professional Training Course and Certification.

Developed specifically for field service technicians and engineers, the Field Service Professional program offers a self-directed, modular, and interactive e-learning opportunity, with on-the-job tools and a skills reinforcement tool kit for field leaders. This delivery method provides interactive teaching that enables participants to learn valuable service delivery skills, and apply them to real world situations.

Upon registration, students are provided access for 60 consecutive days to complete the course and a reinforcement tool kit is provided for the field leadership team. The course prepares participants to take an online exam and become a Certified Field Service Professional. Instructions on scheduling the exam are provided upon course completion. Training fees include the certification.

The curriculum covers communications fundamentals including how to manage customer perceptions, how to make customer communications successful, and how to listen effectively. Communications is at the top of the list for good reason; high quality service is not about what needs to be fixed so much it is about the person who owns and uses it. The rapport the service rep has with the customers makes the difference between a smooth, quick, successful and less costly job, one that will keep the owners/users and their firms loyal, and one that is the experience from Hades with an angry person in their face and a supervisor down their neck.

The course also teaches the advantages, disadvantages, and challenges of teamwork and proper use of both analytical and interpersonal behaviors in working within teams. It outlines the requirements of an effective team leader and team member, which is invaluable information both on-site and off-site.

The RCCSP training gives lessons on basic organization and productivity, stress management and time management. This is critical information, as field service delivery is also about getting the tasks done well under pressure, for time is literally money.

The per student registration fee for this seminar is $495 and includes the certification exam and certificate. To register, visit http://www.the-resource-center.com/SEMINARS/HD2-7.htm or call (708) 246-0320.

Brendan B. Read is TMCnet’s Senior Contributing Editor. To read more of Brendan’s articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Michael Dinan

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