How to Employ the service of Far better Contact Heart Agents - Every single Time!
Lower Turnover o Raise ? more info Productivity o Decrease Absenteeism
An average Get in touch with Centre employs 3 Several types of Call Middle Brokers:
one. Top rated Carrying out Agents - "Grade A" Agents along with the "Right Stuff" that pushes them to Thrive, and also the seemingly Normal Compatibility along with the Responsibilities of the Situation. You most likely have got a couple within your Phone Center Operation now and need which you could duplicate them.
2. Suitable Agents - "Grade B" Agents who Carry out their Obligations Sufficiently Sufficient "to get by" - but No Better.
three. Marginal Agents - "Grade C" Brokers who have a High Level of Absenteeism, Low Efficiency, Weak Efficiency & Lousy Customer Satisfaction Ratings and which have a Negative Impact on Agent Team Morale.
We ask for a lot from today's Get in touch with Centre Agent: Handle More Customers & Calls, Order Taking, Cross-Selling/UpSelling, Being Proficient with Computer & Support Systems, Being Non-Confrontational & Good-Humored, Work Well in a Team Environment, etc., etc.
As a Connect with Heart Hiring Manager, your Challenge is Twofold:
1st - How Do You Find a Sufficient Quantity of Quality Applicants for your Call Center Agent Positions?
Many North American Labor Markets have reached the Saturation Point for Call Centre Agent Applicants in the Local Labor Pool. In fact, 64% of all North American Contact Centers now find it a "Major Struggle" or "Somewhat of a Challenge" to Find Quality Applicants for Call Middle Agent Positions. And 37% of Get in touch with Centre Employers are now Reporting "Severe" Competition for Get in touch with Heart Brokers by Other Employers.
2nd - How Do You Weed Out the Job Candidates Who Will Burn Out Fast Because They Aren't Suited For The Work, and Identify the People With all the Skills, Motivation, and Work Ethic to be Your Top rated Get in touch with Center Brokers?
While Almost Everyone can Use a Telephone, Not Everyone is Cut Out to Work Successfully as a Phone Centre Agent.
Hiring the Wrong Get in touch with Heart Agent is the Root Cause of Turnover and Absenteeism, and is a Significant Drain on your Bottom Line, on Customer Satisfaction, and on your overall Contact Centre Agent Team Morale.
Today, the Average Annual Turnover Rate of Full-Time Connect with Heart Brokers is over 30%. The Turnover Rate for Part-Time Simply call Centre Agents is Worse (84% - with 15 Month Avg. Job Tenure). And, the Average Cost to Recruit/Hire/Train a Replacement Contact Heart Agent ranges from US$2,600 - US$15,000 (depending on the type of Agent Place).
Each and every Failed Employ Causes You to Throw Precious Budget Dollars Down the Drain Retraining Recruits for the Same Posture. Not to Mention the Lost Sales & Service Opportunities, Weak Customer Satisfaction Ratings, Lowered Productivity and Higher Absences associated with a Very poor Job Fit.
There are a Series of Best Practices Steps you can take to address these Two Issues in order to Recruit More Prime Carrying out Phone Heart Agents:
STEP one: Create an Agent Success Profile - What are the Core Competencies, Personality Traits, Skill Set(s) and Demographics of your Optimal Doing Brokers?
Who are your Prime Accomplishing Brokers?
You should be Profiling your Top Carrying out Agents for their Gender, Diversity, Economics and Education.
Across all Connect with Center Industry Segments (except OutBound TeleSales and Technical Support/Help Desk), over 75% of all Top rated Performing Brokers are Female and 66% of them are Working Mothers. Only 5% have College Degrees, and 30% of them participated in "Welfare-to-Work", Unemployment Insurance or Public Assistance within 6 months prior to their Hiring.
Is there Specific "Must Have" Skills/Knowledge that your Major Executing Brokers need?
How do your Top Carrying out Agents Profile in Terms of Typing Speed/Accuracy, Computer Literacy, Specific Industry Knowledge/Experience, etc.?
What are the Key Personality Traits of your Top Performing Brokers?
Are you looking for an InBound Agent? (A Persuasive Communicator Motivated by Security, Work Environment, Coworkers / Team, Service and Recognition).
Are you looking for an Inside Sales Agent? (A Persuasive & Persistent Communicator who is Service Oriented, yet Motivated by Sales Opportunity).
Or are you looking for an OutBound Sales Agent (An Assertive & Persistent Closer who is Motivated by Income and Conquering Challenges and who Initiates Customer Interactions).
STEP two: Create a Recruiting Strategy - Create a Recruiting Communications Plan that Identifies & Targets the Job Seekers that Meet your Agent Success Profile Criteria.
Your Recruiting Communications Plan should include:
Personal Referrals
Print Advertisements
Elementary & Superior Schools (Part-Time Job Opportunities for Working Mothers of Students).
Colleges, Universities, & Technical Training Programs (Part-Time Job Opportunities for Students).
Minority Organizations (Native Americans/First Nations, Gay/Lesbian, New Immigrant Support)
Online Job Postings
Virtual Communities
Job Fairs
Outplacement Programs (Transferable Skills: i.e. Laid-Off Customer Service/Sales Staff).
Unemployment Offices
Welfare-to-Work Programs
STEP 3: Deploy an In-Depth Telephone Screening Process - All of your Recruiting Advertising should use as the Call-to-Action a 24x7 Automated "Employment Information Line"/Phone Screen which is then followed by a Structured Telephone Interview.
A 24x7 Automated "Employment Information Line"/Phone Screen Can Be As Simple As An Extension on your Current Voice Mail System:
"Hello ... and Thanks for Calling ... you've reached the 24 Hr. Employment Information Line for the ABCXYZ Company.
At ABCXYZ Company you will have the Opportunity to Have Fun ... Make Good Money ... and provide a Service that Our Customers Really Appreciate.
You'll Earn a Guaranteed Base Wage of $__/Hr ... Bonuses ... Get Training ... and All the Support you'll need to Realize success.
We're Conveniently located Downtown ... with Easy Public Transit Access ... and there's Plenty of Parking nearby.
To Do well ... You'll need to be Confident ... Professional ... and have an Excellent Telephone Communication Style.
To Take The Next Step in Our Hiring Process ... at the Sound of your Tone ... Please Tell Us Your Name ... and Please Spell Your Last Name.
Also ... Please Give Us Your Telephone Number ... as well as the Best Time to Phone You Back.
And finally ... Please Read Back to Us the Ad you are Responding to ... and Remember ... this is a Telephone Audition ... So give it Your Best Shot!
Here Comes the Beep ... So Give Us Your Name ... Your Telephone Number ... and Read Back the Ad.
Good Luck with your Job Hunt ...
Thanks for Calling."
A 24x7 Automated "Employment Information Line"/Phone Screen can also be as Sophisticated as an Interactive IVR System:
"This Posture requires you to Read ... Speak ... and understand English. Are you able to do so?"
"Press 1 for YES ... Press two for NO"
"This Place will require you to work Non-Traditional Hours ... including Evenings ... Weekends ... and Holidays. Do you wish to continue this Process?"
"Press one for YES ... Press two for NO"
"This Posture is Fast-Paced ... Structured ... and Requires that you just have the Ability to Multi-Task. For the Majority of your Shift ... you will Remain at your Workstation ... while Assisting Callers and Customers by Telephone. Your Functionality will be Monitored and Measured ... to Ensure the Highest Levels of Customer Service. Do you want to continue this Process?"
"Press one for YES ... Press 2 for NO"
You will Save Time and Money using a 24 Hr. "Employment Information Line"/"/Phone Screen by:
o Reaching More Applicants Faster.
o Recruiting Major Candidates Before Your Competition.
o Building a Bigger Applicant Pool.
o Ensuring that Applicants have a Clear Understanding of Important Job Requirements.
o Assessing Applicant's Ability to Follow Basic Instructions.
o Conducting "Voice Auditions" to assess an Applicant's "Telephone Personality".
o Reducing time spent with Unqualified Candidates.
o Maximizing Applicant Buy-In and Participation in the Hiring Process.
o Part of a Legally Defensible Hiring Process.
The Job Candidates who pass through your 24 Hr. "Employment Information Line"/"/Phone Screen should then be promptly followed up with using a Structured Telephone Interview.
A Structured Telephone Interview is:
o Used to Further "Sell The Job Opportunity".
o Used as 2nd Screen of Candidates for "Must Have" Skills & Attributes (Start Date, Shift Availability, Wage Rate, Typing Speed, Specific Product Knowledge, Sales Ability, Security Clearances, etc.)
o Used to Further Evaluate a Candidate's "Telephone Personality".
o Where Appropriate, Used to Schedule a Candidate Visit at your Office for Going Forward with Hiring Process.
Delivered consistently, a Structured Telephone Interview is part of a Legally Defensible Hiring Process - as all Candidates are asked for the same information in a uniform and consistent fashion.
STEP 4: Deploying Pre-Employment Assessment Testing - to Confirm Personality Traits/Job Fit and Skill Set(s).
Candidates for Contact Heart Agent Positions need to possess a Unique Constellation of Traits - and Specific Amounts of those Traits - in order to Successfully Complete the Job Requirements.
A Get in touch with Heart Agent's Success Depends Much More Upon Personality/Job Fit Factors than Product Knowledge, Past Experience or Skill Set.
Merely knowing the best way to react in a Customer Service Situation is Far Various from Actually Engaging in the Necessary Appropriate Behavior - Consistently - and for the Long-Term.
This is what Contact Heart Agent Personality/Job Fit Testing Measures.
SPAS - Service Personnel Appraisal System - is CD-Rom based Phone Middle Agent Pre-Employment Screening Software, which is Easy to Deploy, Very Cost-Effective and Highly Predictive of an Individual's Suitability for a particular Simply call Centre Agent Position.
SPAS Weeds Out Job Candidates Who Burn Out Fast Because They Aren't Suited For The Work, and Identifies The People Using the Skills, Motivation, and Work Ethic to be Top rated Contact Middle Brokers.
There are Specific Versions with the SPAS Simply call Centre Agent Pre-Employment Testing Software Validated to Test for Simply call Centre Agent Positions such as:
o InBound Customer Service
o OutBound Telephone Sales (B2B) Business-to-Business
o OutBound Telephone Sales (B2C) Business-to-Consumer
o Inside Sales Agent
o Tier one Technical Support/Help Desk Agent
o Central Station Monitoring Operator
o Telephone Collections
o Telephone Answering Service Operator
o Reservations/Guest Service Agent
o Government Information & Referral Operator
o Tele-Counselor
o Mystery Shopper
Whatever Call Middle Agent Personality Testing Instrument you Deploy - make sure it is Validated for the Specific Connect with Centre Agent Position you are looking to fill - and Use it Consistently - at the Same Point inside your Hiring Process - and with All Candidates.
You should also perform a Skills Test on your Job Candidates. Skills Tests are designed to Identify a Candidate's Skill Level in Specific Areas such as Keyboarding, Software Literacy, Spelling, Telephone Etiquette, Listening, etc.
STEP 5: Using a Structured Face-to-Face Interview - based on Core Competencies, Personality Traits and Skill Set(s).
This Style of Interview has Great Value in Get in touch with Centers because it allows you to Identify Candidates' Past Behaviors and Use Them as Good Indicators of Future Functionality and Behavior.
Before you conduct a Structured Face-to-Face Interview, you need to go back to your Original Success Profile and Core Requirements Document. Identify the Most Appropriate Core Competencies for the Position and Build your Questions around these Competencies.
They should be Very Specific Questions Designed to Determine How Candidates Behaved and Thought during Certain Situations.
Structured Interview Questions could include:
"Tell Me About a Time When You Went Far Beyond What Could Normally Be Expected In Order To Satisfy a Customer?"
The Target Behavior you are looking to uncover is Customer Focus. Can this Candidate Demonstrate that they can go "Above & Beyond The Get in touch with of Duty" to ensure that Customer Requests are Handled Effectively - and with a Customer Service Orientation?
STEP 6: Having Your Candidates Experience a Job Preview - Depicting Day-to-Day Activities, Responsibilities along with the Environment with the Connect with Centre.
The Goal of a Get in touch with Heart Job Preview is a Final Attempt to Sell the Candidate "In or Out" with the Job.
You need to Paint a Realistic Picture on the Company, Simply call Center Environment, Hours, Flexibility, Management Style, General performance Expectations, etc.
This can be done as easily as having Candidates Sit in the Contact Heart for a Period of Time to Form Their Own Opinion before Accepting or Declining the Job Offer (**Check Your Local Labor Laws to See If Candidate Time Spent in a Call Heart Preview by "Sitting In The Call Center" Qualifies as "Paid Time".)
There are also Software-Based Contact Middle Simulators that are available to give a Candidate the Ability to Accurately Experience Simply call Centre Work - such as Referencing and Cross-Referencing Data and Dealing with a Variety of Callers and Customer Service Scenarios. (**Used as part of a Pre-Employment Process, Software-Based Phone Middle Simulators are Not Subject to Local Labor Law Interpretation as "Paid Time".)
During the Phone Center Job Preview Time, the Candidate should also be Encouraged to Speak "Off the Record" with Supervisors/Team Leaders and Potential Coworkers.
Done correctly, this Step will Help You Attract People who Genuinely Want to Work inside your Contact Heart.
STEP 7: Reference Verification - (also Security Clearances / Drug Testing if required).
These Best Practices Hiring Steps are Easy to Deploy, Very Cost-Effective and Highly Predictive of an Individual's Suitability for your Get in touch with Center Agent Positions. They will allow you to Recruit, Select and Employ the service of New Contact Heart Agents who fit your Employment Needs Much better and Stay On The Job Longer - leading to a Phone Middle Agent Workgroup that has More Experience and is More Productive.
Your Individual Call Centre Agent Productivity Will Go Up - Along With Your Customer Satisfaction Ratings - and Your Turnover Costs Will Go Down.
