10 Ways to Improve Agent Engagement and Reduce Attrition in Call Centers
Introduction:
Call centers are undoubtedly an integral part of the business. On the one hand, for call centers employees, it’s an intense pressure job resulting in a high level of attrition among call agents due to volume of work, work timings, and other factors. This article outlines 10 steps for reducing call center agent attrition.
Customer service agents play a crucial role in ensuring lasting customer experiences at call centers. Your company is at risk of losing revenue, customers, and get a poor reputation when you do not have a strong frontline call center staff. It is common for call centers to focus solely on quantity and measure success only by the number of calls managed in a certain period of time. But it is also essential for them to shift their focus from quantity of calls to quality of interactions by continually analyzing and improving agent performance.
When you continuously strive to improve agent performance, you not only set yourself apart from your competitors, but you also create a loyal customer base and a culture of success that agents are proud to be a part of. Whatever your goals are, it is always beneficial to evaluate your agent’s performance.
Here are some ways how you can make call centers more engaging and reduce employee attrition:
Employ IVR
IVR, or interactive voice response, is a powerful tool that can increase the efficiency of call centers. It gathers information about callers before connecting them to the agent for their needs. Using this information, the agent knows who is on the line and can access the customer’s history without waiting. It simplifies their routine and makes it more pleasurable for customers.
Real-time analytics and reporting
The performance of each agent is unique, and they shouldn’t be treated the same way. It is important for call center managers to provide each agent with personalized feedback. The time managers spend reviewing their performance results and providing feedback shows their agents that they are much more than just a number. This shows that you care about their success, resulting in an agent with a higher level of performance.
Right Technology
A complex system or process will slow down the efficiency and productivity of your agents as well. Investing in the right technology is the right alternative to handle demanding situations. With the right technology, you can reduce the workload of your agents by using cloud telephony and its smart solutions. Additionally, your agents can concentrate on more important tasks while leaving less important ones.
Call Forwarding
As an individual, we don’t appreciate long hold times, so why should your agents? A lack of agents to handle the volume of calls is often responsible for long wait times. A customer service center can fix this error by reviewing its call history and identifying the time and day of the week when an influx of calls occurs. Once you have this data, you can adjust your staff accordingly to reduce the chances of unattended calls through call forwarding to mobile. Hence, your agents will be happier, and you will be able to deliver better service.
Simply Database
Customer information is often managed by call centers through various databases including sales software, and knowledge bases. In this situation, agents are unable to efficiently help customers because they must review multiple locations to get the information they are looking for. By merging these into one database, such as with an analytics solution, the information is more easily accessible for your agents.
Training programs
It is well known that some call center agents need more training than others. A shortening of the training period, however, could leave the agent feeling excluded, insufficient, and disorganized, which can eventually lead to the agent leaving the company. So it is essential that agents become acculturated to the company’s values and cultivate relationships with their colleagues during the same training period. Agents will feel that they are essential members of the team during this training period due to the enhanced team collaboration and bonding.
Embrace their perspective
Agents should be involved in business decisions and informed about the company’s goals and strategies, as well as surveyed about their experience working there. When agents are fully engaged in the process and their voices are heard, they can be a valuable source of new perspectives and drive new changes. By establishing clear communication channels and involving agents in the decision-making process, you will increase their level of empowerment and engagement with your company.
Acknowledge them
An agent’s efforts deserve recognition, and celebrating their successes is a great way to do that. Your recognition of them shows that they matter and are a valuable member of your team. Agents tend to work harder and be open to new ideas when they feel appreciated and hence, continuously seek ways to improve their performance.
Schedule flexibility
A rise in work-from-home opportunities along with flexible schedules can be attributed to an increase in people entering the workforce. In today’s society, people of all ages and backgrounds are busy with multiple activities for themselves, their children, and even their aging parents. Flexibility in schedules allows agents to balance their career and essential life activities.
Hybrid Working
A hybrid work model provides employees with more flexibility in setting up their work schedules to fit their productivity needs. It is true that some people work best early in the morning, while others work best in the evening, so with hybrid working, they can be productive at their best time. Additionally, they can choose to collaborate with coworkers at a local office or work remotely.
Summing Up
When employees are engaged and happy, they will be more productive and efficient. Considering the above points, you as a business owner can improve the commitment, performance, productivity, and overall efficiency of your business. In addition, these productive agents will pursue goals aligned with your business goals.
