Contact centers long have been plagued by high agent turnover and quality hire retention rates. Add to this a down economy and customers who are even tougher to win over, and the need to improve call center hiring becomes a must.

 

FurstPerson, a company that offers the tools businesses need to find and keep the right hires, provides simulation tools, assessment tests and other resources.

 

Recently, the company released a white paper, “8 Steps to Great Contact Center Hiring,” which offers insight into the necessary steps for successful call center hiring.

 

In an earlier TMCnet article, the first two steps, which include the need to understand and define desired business outcomes, and understand which agent performance metrics tie into achieving those outcomes – were discussed.

 

These steps are critical to the initial hiring process, because once businesses understand how they drive revenue; they can focus on hiring agents with the skills to assist them in continuing to improve their margin, profit and revenue growth.

 

The next step, the company suggests is essential in “Great Contact Center Hiring,” is a clear definition of each job and the worker characteristics needed to succeed in the role.

 

Because all jobs within the contact center are not the same, clearly defining each job role can help guarantee that candidates possessing the necessary skills and know-how are selected.

 

In addition to clearly stating the role and the types of abilities and behaviors necessary, prospects should also meet with subject matter experts to hear first hand what they’ll need to do in the role they’re applying for. 

 

To help companies effectively evaluate candidates at this step in the hiring process, FurstPerson offers a 4 Quadrant model that measures what each candidate “did do”, what they “can do” and what they will offer of benefit for the contact center.
 
Those candidates found to align closely with the contact centers needs will help drive improved business outcomes and improve the once time-consuming and challenging task of proper call center hiring.