Best practices for world-class call centers
Better benchmarking gets results
World-class call centers are moving to fewer, more meaningful performance measures in the areas of quality, productivity, and time utilization, according to a recent study on "The 21st Century Call Center Rep" from the Houston-based American Productivity & Quality Center (APQC).
"Traditionally, rep activity has been driven by productivity, time utilization measures, and things like absenteeism and tardiness," says Peggy Newton, the APQC project manager for the study. "Now, call center management is recognizing the importance of customer satisfaction and is linking that to quality measures. We expect that in the future, more companies will use their ability to service customers as the thing that differentiates them from their competitors."
Out of 21 participating companies, seven best-practice performers were identified, including Birmingham-based Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Alabama; USAA Inc. of San Antonio, TX; Great Western Bank of Chatsworth, CA; Lucent Technologies of Murray Hill, NJ; PNC Bank of Pittsburgh; and two companies that chose to remain anonymous.
USAA, a property and casualty company that also has banking, discount brokerage, and investment services, has become very focused on the use of its call centers, says Jerry Gass, director of quality programs. "More than 90% of our contact with our members is through that 1-800 number," he says. "USAA is that voice on the phone."
The company is moving away from efficiency indicators such as number of calls handled and now focuses on such measures as percent of time available to take a call, first-call resolution, and answer rates. The answer rate goal is that 80% of calls will be answered in 20 seconds, or by the third ring. Gass says the company also is attentive in the hiring process so the right person is hired in the first place and then provides eight weeks of extensive training before new hires answer their first call. Ongoing training is provided.
At BC/BS, measurement of call center effectiveness focuses more on quality than quantity, a change from the past, says Eric Mann, manager of technical services in the customer service department. "All calls are recorded, and the reps are given the chance to listen to their own calls and grade their own performance," Mann says. "That means they hear the good calls as well as the bad calls. Before, we only talked about what they were doing wrong."
Ten best practices emerged from the APQC study:
The culture is critical in supporting the rep of the future. You have to empower frontline staff through rewarding, recognizing, involving, and compensating them properly, the report says
Upper management support/commitment is essential. Effective employee training may cost more upfront, but in the long run it can lead to improved employee and customer loyalty. BC/BS holds an annual customer service banquet that senior managers as well as frontline employees attend. Senior managers also listen to customer calls once a quarter and are paired with reps to discuss their progress.
Development of the rep’s support organization is critical. Best practices in the report include internal help desks to answer reps’ questions, supervisor support lines to handle escalated calls, service-level desks to manage call volume and service level on a half-hour basis, and transition teams to ease the new hire into proficiency. The banking organization at USAA has schedulers who predict how the actions of different departments will affect call volume. Seasoned reps who have been promoted to other positions help answer calls temporarily if needed.
The technology must support the function. "Companies are learning not to get caught in the technology trap," the report says. "This trap is sprung when technology is designed before the process is fully understood and results in making the rep adapt to the needs of the technology instead of the technology adapting to the needs of the rep." At BC/BS, reps have access to full information systems support 24 hours a day. At USAA, all of the bank’s procedures have been put on line, replacing the wheeled carts full of manuals the reps in training had to use before.
Companies concentrate on engendering employee loyalty. The best-practice companies in the study formally collect information to help them determine the level of employee satisfaction. BC/BS is working to increase the average length of tenure to four years. Reps’ anonymous evaluations of their managers’ performance count for 25% of the managers’ overall performance ratings. At USAA, the call center turnover rate for both positive and negative attrition is less than 8%. Reps are given the chance to review managers. Also, managers literally have open doors, and ombudsmen are available to help reps handle problems.
Linkages must be respected. "These linkages follow a definite path through defining competencies, recruiting/hiring, assessing performance, reward/recognition/compensation, and training (new hire and ongoing)," the report says. One of the best-practice companies that chose to remain anonymous in the study developed a list of competencies of a successful rep: oral communication, customer service orientation, tolerance for stress, sensitivity, teamwork, analysis, high work standards, ability to learn, and resilience.
Coaching is more than feedback; it is structured and focused. At USAA, reps are coached quarterly on the results of call monitoring, and the reps are aware that their calls can be monitored at any time. Peer groups as well as managers monitor calls regularly.
Companies are looking for a few good performance measures. At BC/BS, the reps’ main goals are based on sign-on time, a low amount of idle time, and time on the phone. Managers set goals in areas needing improvement, and reps are rewarded with money or prizes when they meet the goals. At USAA, number of calls answered isn’t important. It’s the quality of the calls that matters, and performance in that area is tied to reps’ pay.
Companies concentrate on engendering staff involvement. Frontline employees are given the responsibility to help make decisions that impact their jobs. At USAA, team goals are set based on corporate initiatives, and reps get together to brainstorm how they are going to accomplish their part. Progress toward the goals is posted quarterly.
Companies recognize and satisfy employee needs. The three main needs of employees identified in the report are: clear expectations, consistent feedback, and the ability to learn and grow. At BC/BS, applicants are given the chance to sit in on phone calls with reps to understand the expectations of the job. They also can question the reps on issues such as job satisfaction and company culture. USAA offers extensive after-hours educational opportunities ranging from company-paid college courses taught at the headquarters to a work force development center that helps employees plan their careers.
[For more information or to purchase the call center study, contact APQC at 123 North Post Oak Lane, 3rd Floor, Houston, TX 77024-7797. Telephone: (800) 776-9676 or (713) 681-4020. Or you can visit the company’s Web site at www.apqc.org.]
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