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December 23 - Do you ever wonder why some of your employees come out of a training program and just simply don’t seem to get it?  Do some of the trainees seem to assimilate all the information just fine, but others seem like they were never even in the class? The problem may not be in the intelligence levels or the classroom efforts of the trainees, but in the way the training is designed and presented.  It’s important that your training programs are designed to engage and stimulate all types of students and learning styles. An important consideration in developing call center training programs is to understand how adults learn.  The concept of adult learning theory suggests that we learn differently as adults than we did as children in school.  Some characteristics of adult learners are: Adults need to be able to integrate new ideas with what they already know. Adults [...]

December 16 - One of the simplest things to do in motivating staff to perform is to demonstrate in an active way that you care about them. The best way to do this is to spend time with each person just listening. If your team members feel heard, understood, and valued, they will work harder to produce better results and make you proud. One of the keys to providing great customer service is to listen carefully to what the customer needs. You can teach frontline staff how to do this by simply being a role model and a good listener yourself during your interactions with them.  Be aware of common listening problems and take care you don’t make these common listening mistakes. The Interrupter. This person finishes other people’s sentences or breaks in to share thoughts before the other person is finished. If you do this, your employees will lose patience [...]

  December 9 - Audits where an agent hasn't done anything wrong can often be hard discussions to have. Especially if the agent is consistently getting 100% audits. Some of the issues or concerns coaches come across in situations like this are: I don't want to give "cookie cutter" feedback about a "cookie cutter" call. (I want the praise to be genuine) I don't want to repeat the same feedback each week. (Praising an agent for correctly verifying a customer EVERY week feels ineffective, meaningless, and will lose its impact over time) I don't want the conversation to be short and weak. (I want to feel like I have coached them in the end and helped them to grow) It's really easy when talking about a 100% audit to sit down and say, "Whelp, you got 100% on this call. AGAIN. You did a great job verifying with the customer what [...]

December 2 - If you have ever been on a backpacking trip, then you know that a backpacker has to deal with competing goals when packing. The only way to successfully complete the trip is to balance the competing requirements of what you will need vs. what you can actually carry. Many times when we are preparing to on-board new employees we begin gathering information about everything they will need to know and then put it in a PowerPoint deck. The resulting training is rarely successful. Attendees either tune out or they are overwhelmed, furiously taking notes on everything that is being said. A teacher that only focuses on the list of requirements, but doesn’t consider the limitations of what their employees can understand, absorb, remember and apply, is like a backpacker who is trying to overstuff their pack. One of my favorite books is “Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less” [...]

November 18 - Chasing improvement in every direction is a recipe for frustration. When we spread our focus too thin, we lose momentum, struggle to see real results, and end up treating symptoms instead of fixing what’s broken. It’s time to cut through the noise and get strategic. Enter Value Force Multipliers (VFMs): focused, high-impact improvements that tackle core challenges across teams. VFMs aren’t just quick fixes. They’re “connective moments” that strengthen customer relationships and streamline internal collaboration, creating results that stick. With VFMs, you’re addressing the root issues, not putting out fires. How to Get Started with VFMs Identify a High-Impact Pain Point that Crosses Departments Look for a recurring issue that impacts multiple teams and drains resources. This could be a frequent customer complaint or an internal misalignment that causes delays and friction. Bring together QA, Training, and Support to isolate the root cause—ask, “Where are we spending too much [...]

November 11 - When filling out an evaluation form for an agent, we always strive to provide useful and actionable feedback, that much is true. But the HOW is as important as the WHAT, especially during these times where keeping agents engaged and reducing turnover is a major issue for all contact centers that aim to improve. This being said, I have found that many of our QA folks shape their feedback process to point toward the person, and not the subject to improve on. For example: "You did not provide your full name during your greeting" "The agent lacked empathy during the call" "You forgot to ask for a previous incident number" See the problem? The error is attributed specifically to the person, and this can make agents feel targeted.  Especially if we have a QM ecosystem that allows them to see the evaluations (and feedback) before a coaching event [...]

November 4 - We typically ask departing agents why they are leaving, but do you ever ask your current staff why they stay?  That might seem like a loaded question.  In many organizations the exit interview is used as a gauge of what is working well and what is not.  But our experience suggests that departing employees are not all that forthcoming about their reasons for leaving especially when it is driven by dissatisfaction with their manager or the general culture of the center. We really need to understand what motivates agents to stay so we can do more of it.  Is it the fun atmosphere, good pay and benefits, reasonable workload, good training, great manager, reliable tools or something we would never think of that makes them want to come in every day?  Whatever it is, let’s be sure to identify it and ensure that it continues and grows. Focus [...]

October 28 - While they may be a part of it, new hire orientation and new hire training are not the only things that make up the onboarding process.  Onboarding is the total process of integrating newly hired employees into a company and goes far beyond the people, process, products, and technology.  There is a lot of take in during the first couple of weeks in a new job! Being remote or in person will make a difference on the specifics, but consider logistics that we often overlook having been in our positions for a long time. As an example, our company has a 14-floor parking garage located in the busy downtown area.  On their first day, all new hires are treated with the luxury of getting to park on the ground level near the entrance.  But on day 2, they have to start parking in their assigned section on one [...]

October 4 - Our knowledge management strategy in the contact center will become an even more critical function with recent evolutions. How are you helping to morph your agents from ticket takers to subject matter experts and knowledge curators? By helping your talent to make this leap, you are positioning them for future success in our ever-changing space. I've had great success in having front line customer service workers take ownership of a category of knowledge. Giving this type of autonomy can not only unlock valuable skills for them individually, but it can positively change the collaborative culture of the service department. It also gives people a sense of pride in what they do and fosters a curiosity to learn new things. Service workers will be better equipped to handle customer interactions, and your digital tools will function far better having a greatly improved source of information to feed into it. Reach out anytime if [...]

October 14 - How effectively do you measure the ROI of your training efforts?  Sure, most of us ask the students if they liked it and thought it was useful, but do we check to see if they actually apply that learning on the job?  This is being asked of more and more training departments when they go to senior management for more money. One process that we have seen that helps to demonstrate the value is to have the students do projects at the end of training that apply what they have learned in the day-to-day operation.  They can be individual or group projects but they need to be relevant and useful and the student’s manager needs to sign off on it to be sure they will be given the time needed to complete it.  And the trainer needs to make time available to assist the students as they run [...]

October 7 - Imagine a contact center orchestra. WFM sets the tempo, ensuring smooth agent staffing and scheduling. Quality plays the melody, identifying areas for improvement and tracking delivery efficacy trends. Training harmonizes the sound, equipping agents with the skills to excel. Disjointed? Not a chance! In the customer experience (CX) and employee experience (EX) landscape of 2024, these three teams are more like a symphony, each playing a vital role in workforce optimization. Here's how this collaboration works: The WFM Conductor: WFM analyzes customer call volume and agent skills to create efficient schedules. The capacity plans produced let everyone know when new or up skilled agents are needed. This ensures agents are available when customers need them, reducing wait times and boosting CX. The Quality Composer: The QA team listens to calls, identifies coaching opportunities, and tracks key performance indicators (KPIs). This valuable feedback helps pinpoint areas where training is needed. The Training Virtuoso: Trainers take the quality team's insights and craft targeted programs to [...]

September 30 - The lines are blurring between traditional office work and remote setups. This "work-from-anywhere" trend, encompassing both hybrid and fully remote models, presents exciting opportunities for organizations focused on customer experience (CX) and employee experience (EX). While it offers employees flexibility and potentially wider talent pools, it can also impact agent performance, team cohesion, and ultimately, customer satisfaction. How can we ensure both CX and EX thrive in this new environment? Optimizing the Work-From-Anywhere Workforce: Technology as the Bridge: Invest in collaboration tools that bridge the gap between on-site, hybrid, and fully remote agents. Real-time chat, video conferencing, and knowledge-sharing platforms are crucial for maintaining team spirit, information flow, and a sense of belonging. Data-Driven Scheduling: Leverage WFM solutions to analyze historical data and predict peak call times. This allows for strategic scheduling that balances on-site, hybrid, and fully remote agent availability, ensuring optimal staffing levels across all locations. Empathy Amplification: Recognize the unique challenges of hybrid and fully remote work. Offer flexible schedules, provide clear expectations, and actively address concerns about isolation. Regular [...]

September 23 - In last week’s tip, I shared two frameworks available to guide your coaching conversations. Here is another model that you can consider depending on the situation and the employee’s needs. Each alternative comes with its own set of pros and cons, which can be weighed to determine the most effective approach. The DESC Model (Describe, Express, Specify, Consequences) Pros: The DESC model is excellent for addressing interpersonal issues or behaviors that affect team dynamics. It allows you (the coach) to express your feelings about the behavior, specify what you would like to see change, and discuss the potential consequences of continued behavior. This model is strong in situations requiring assertive communication. Cons: The DESC model can be perceived as confrontational if not used carefully. It requires a delicate balance of assertiveness and empathy, which may be challenging in emotionally charged situations. How to use it: Start by Describing [...]

September 16 - In last week’s tip, I shared how to use the SBI framework to improve your coaching conversations. But it’s not the only coaching model available to you. In fact, there are many good frameworks available to guide your coaching conversations. Here are two alternative models that you can consider depending on the situation and the employee’s needs. Each alternative comes with its own set of pros and cons, which can be weighed to determine the most effective approach. The GROW Model (Goal, Reality, Options, Will)  Pros: The GROW model is ideal for developmental feedback and coaching conversations where the focus is on future improvement. It encourages employees to set their own goals and think critically about how to achieve them. This model fosters self-reflection and ownership of the improvement process. Cons: The GROW model can be time-consuming, as it involves in-depth discussions about goals and options. It may [...]

September 9 - The SBI (Situation, Behavior, Impact) model is a powerful tool for providing clear and constructive feedback during coaching conversations. By breaking down feedback into these three components, you can ensure that their message is specific, objective, and focused on improvement. Situation: Begin by describing the specific situation where the behavior occurred. This sets the context and helps the employee understand the exact moment you’re referring to. For example, “During your interaction with the customer yesterday afternoon…” Behavior: Next, focus on the observable behavior, not on assumptions or interpretations. Clearly describe what the employee did or didn’t do without attaching any judgment or emotion. For example, “You interrupted the customer several times while they were explaining their issue.” Impact: Finally, explain the impact that the behavior had on the customer, the team, or the overall service. This helps the employee understand the consequences of their actions and why change [...]

September 2 - It is really important to include the “why” behind procedural requirements when you are talking to your agents. Knowing the reason why specific steps have to be completed helps agents retain the information and ensure procedural accuracy moving forward. Here are a couple of examples: TheACH payment was submitted without verifying the member’s contact details, like phone number, email, and mailing address. Doing so is essential to ensure the member receives the payment confirmation email/letter. The purpose of theBefore the Application checklist is to complete these steps before opening Lending Center. This allows you to make any necessary changes prior to opening Lending Center, as these changes will not be reflected in the application if they are made after the application has been started. Making sure your agents know “why” they must do certain steps helps them understand the importance of what they are being asked to do. Note: [...]

August 19 - Teaching by example is probably the best way to communicate your point during coaching sessions with as little effort as possible. You could spend countless hours talking about the issues in service quality and end up finding that little has changed. The other, more practical route is to demonstrate relevant examples to your team from real recordings of customer conversations. This approach enables you to highlight the issues in a clearer way and improve the agent’s performance. You can then test your agents by playing other recordings and asking them to point out what went wrong or could’ve been handled more effectively. Further, you can make your agents learn how to handle customers in complex situations by allowing them to listen to conversations conducted by top performers at your company. Note: This tip is provided by Chris Kontes of Balto. He may be reached at chris@balto.ai.  For more [...]

August 12 - Preparing for your coaching sessions beforehand is important to maximize their benefits. Your agents probably don’t want to waste their time attending coaching sessions that barely bring anything new to the table. In fact, preparing for your coaching sessions should constitute around 70% of the time you dedicate to them, while only 30% is dedicated to actual teaching. Before you inform your agents about the upcoming training session, make sure that you set measurable and achievable goals for the session to put you on track. It’s also important to develop a detailed structure for the session and incorporate a mix of theory and practice, as well as activities that encourage collaboration, such as team workshops. Consider each agent’s performance over the most recent period and tailor your training materials accordingly. Use data and insights collected from sentiment and conversational analytics platforms to identify patterns and trends and place more emphasis [...]

August 5 - What’s happening with contact center workload? Is the work handled by agents declining as AI capabilities become more robust and prevalent? Are calls being supplanted by digital channels and self-service? These are important questions—the answers will impact your budgets, hiring, workforce plans, investments, really everything. Let’s get right to it. Workloads are increasing Many industry experts are predicting that self-service and AI-fueled capabilities will reduce the workload requiring human agents. But for now surveys (e.g., from ICMI, McKinsey, and others) reveal that a sizable majority of contact center leaders expect workloads to increase over at least the next couple of years. What to do now? My overall advice to customer service and customer experience leaders is twofold. First, use your customer access strategy to define work you’re getting, how it’s evolving, and where and how you can harness new capabilities such as AI. (A customer access strategy defines the ten [...]

July 29 - I am currently in the process of developing a 30-, 60-, 90-day program for my contact center.  I thought it would be helpful to share my insight on the importance of this program with the hopes of having others share theirs! With guidance from my leadership team, I understood that the purpose of a 30-, 60-, 90-day program in a Sales contact center is to ensure that new hires are effectively onboarded and understand expectations within their new roles. Creating 30-, 60-, and 90-day Goals and Milestones ensures that New Hires become familiar with the company culture, and develop into effective and confident Team Members. Here’s what I’ve used to help me get started: Skill Development within the first 30 days - Progressively builds the necessary skills and knowledge required for their role. We start by focusing on training and learning the products and systems, and then implement [...]

 July 22 - Every day in organizations throughout the world, promises are being made to customers. How do you ensure customers are receiving the right treatment, being provided with the correct information, and that we are keeping the promises we make? This is an essential function of the Quality Assurance (QA) Team. The QA Team is responsible for (and should be directed to ensure while they are evaluating contacts that Agents are: Reviewing and addressing account notes Paying attention to whether this is the customers first contact and escalating appropriately when they have reached out multiple times Connecting customers with products and services of value and benefit Informing customers of self-enablement opportunities as well as walking them through the process These business rules should be integrated into the QA process and adapted to the goals established for measuring the progress and performance for both Agents and the QA Team. For this [...]

July 15 - Does your quality monitoring team work effectively with your training team in your center on quality score issues? Sometimes there is a problem that is coming up on a significant percentage of calls monitored, either for a single agent or for the population as a whole.  When it is a single agent issue, then coaching is the appropriate remedy.  But if it is coming up on multiple agents, then it is probably a training issue that needs to be addressed across the center. Can you tell if you have a systemic problem easily?  How is it communicated from QA to training?  A review of these processes can help to focus the right fix on problems that show up in quality scoring.

July 8 Some companies spend a significant amount of money to do benchmarking studies against their competition’s call centers.  But you may be looking in the wrong places to determine if you’re meeting the customer’s service expectations. Unless they’ve been doing some comparison shopping, your customer has probably not talked to your competition recently.  If you’re a cellular provider, chances are your customer hasn’t talked to the competition in the past week.  And if you’re a utility call center, how likely do you think it is that the caller on the line is actually comparing your service to that of another utility? The fact is that most of your customers are comparing the service they receive from you to what they encountered in their last, best service experience.  It may have been while making a hotel reservation, ordering from their favorite catalog, or getting a problem with their printer solved. So [...]

July 1 - If you’re considering the purchase of a new technology or just switching to another vendor for your current system, make sure you cast a large net as you fish for information. Invite all qualified vendors to present their products. Insist on a detailed demonstration and ask lots of questions about how the package would work in meeting your center’s specific mode of operation.  Remember you’re looking both for full range of functionality in addition to ease of use. You should plan to see and hear what each has to offer since features and functionality change rapidly.  And be sure to match up against your specific needs, taking care not to be overly impressed by features that you may not need now or in the future. Once you narrow your field to two or three vendors, plan to settle in and spend some quality time with them seeing a [...]

June 24 - Coaching involves helping individuals to identify new ways of improving their performance, achieving their objectives and finding solutions to workplace challenges. Coaching is very different to managing, and it is important to know what the key skills and behaviors of a good coach are before getting started. Here are some tips to help you get started: Build rapport and trust -- For coaching to be successful, it is vital for there to be trust and rapport between you and your coachee from the outset of your relationship. Be a great listener -- To be a good coach, it is essential to be a great listener. Listening carefully during a coaching session will give you a clearer understanding of the issues affecting your coachee. Ask challenging questions -- You should ask questions that prompt your coachee to engage in some genuine self-reflection. This should help them to achieve greater [...]

June 17 - Here’s a bit of a math refresher to ensure your quality monitoring process is working effectively. Remember that call calibration is really about working towards consistency. Consistency translates into fairness and even trust as it is experienced by the agents you monitor. And to your customers, consistency gives them confidence and trust in your service. The best way to measure calibration is by tracking the standard deviation of calibration evaluation scores. This will give you a numerical value that represents how consistently you apply your performance standards. Gathering the Scores To get the most comprehensive data sample, everyone involved in call monitoring, evaluation and coaching needs to complete an evaluation form and submit their scores on pre-selected calls. Therefore, you need to circulate the calibration call to all the supervisors, quality monitoring specialists and possibly team leads if quality monitoring is one of their job responsibilities. Once you [...]

June 10 - Looking to climb the ladder in contact center QA? Mastering your craft is essential, but there's more to it. Here are key skills to cultivate for your next career move: Contact Center Savvy: Dive deep into the unique challenges of contact centers and how they function. Understand call routing, performance metrics, and customer experience best practices. Communication Ace: Sharpen your written and verbal communication. Clearly document call evaluations, collaborate effectively with agents and supervisors, and provide constructive feedback. Data Master: Build, use, and build further your analytical skills. Become able to Identify trends in call quality data, pinpoint root causes of issues, and recommend improvements to enhance the customer experience - in either process or practice. Learning Machine: Embrace continuous learning. Explore new QA focused technology specific to contact centers, attend webinars, conferences, and do everything to stay up to date on best practices. Coaching Champion: Develop your coaching skills. Provide agents with clear and actionable feedback, guide them towards improvement, and help them reach their [...]

June 3 - Businesses are social organizations, full stop.  In-person gatherings, whether they be one-to-one or formal/informal meetings with a few or many attendees, hold tremendous value.  Most people have a burning desire (on varying levels) to look others in the eyes and express themselves both verbally and through body language.   Imparting energy, expressing joy or disappointment, entertaining and having fun, are all components of the business of social interactions. Leaders who are implementing the same sorts of social exchanges on the virtual front are avoiding the risks of disengagement, and they are actually experiencing a cultural and commitment boost.  A productive social system is shaped by leadership - not by location. Is it possible for leaders to create strong social capital without being co-located in an office?  The answer is yes, many leaders (including me) have been doing it for decades.   And for a scaled Work From Home program to [...]

May 27 - Are your training programs hitting the mark? Focused audits, based on Kirkpatrick's four-level training evaluation model, can provide sharp insights. This is a powerful approach: Level 1: Reaction: Audits assess trainees' immediate reaction to the training. Did they find it engaging? Clear? Level 2: Learning: We delve deeper to see if knowledge and skills were gained. Can trainees now apply what they learned? Level 3: Behavior: Focused audits go beyond the classroom. Did the training translate to positive changes in on-the-job behavior? Level 4: Results: We track the ultimate impact. Did the training lead to improved performance metrics relevant to your call center? By focusing audits on these levels, you gain a multi-dimensional view of training effectiveness. This allows you to identify areas for improvement and ensure your programs deliver the results you need. Remember, focused audits are like a magnifying glass for training excellence! Bonus Tip: Pre- and Post-training Assessments:  To truly measure learning, consider using pre- and post-training assessments. This allows you to see the tangible knowledge gain achieved through your training programs. With focused [...]

May 6 - One of the keys to time management for call center supervisors is to identify what tasks can be delegated to others to free up more time for the supervisor's most important activity — one-on-one coaching. Here are a few things to consider when deciding what can be delegated to other members on the team. Time.Analyze how you spend your day. Are you doing some things over and over that someone else on your team could do just as easily and perhaps even enjoy the added variety and responsibility? Use delegation to free yourself up so you can concentrate your efforts on activities that take your team members forward. Business processes.You need to establish concrete procedures and processes as your team develops. When you find yourself directing every activity (or trying to and failing), it’s time to start documenting important practices so your workforce doesn’t have to depend on [...]

 April 29 -  A common problem in training classes is that you have some “advanced learners” who are way ahead of the rest of the class.  There always seems to be one or two people who learn quickly and are ready to move on while the rest of the class is still struggling through the material. You don't want them bored, so it's important to keep them engaged. One way is to pair them with some of the folks that are taking a little longer to learn — this works especially well if they're learning the computer system and a more advanced person can help others along by providing some one-on-one assistance. You can also ask them to help out by writing some review questions for the material just covered. You may also want to keep some additional review materials or readings they can do if finished earlier than everyone else. [...]

April 22 - As a follow up to last week’s tip on investigating attrition, you may want to include an evaluation of the attrition in your center specific to front line supervisors or team leaders. Compare attrition numbers for each supervisor team.  It may be an issue at the supervisor level.   All too often, a great agent will be promoted to a supervisor based on agent skills.  Some do well but others fail miserably, not due to lack of technical skills but more around soft skills like the abilities to coach, teach, and just talk to team members from a supervisory perspective.  This can lead to attrition issues and you may not realize the cause. When you promote a new supervisor, ensure they get training to develop leadership skills.  They need to learn when, how and where to have discussions with their team members.  Teach them how to conduct meetings, counsel agents, and just be [...]

April 15 - Attrition is a crucial measurement to managers interested in keeping costs down and customer satisfaction high.  Customer satisfaction suffers when a steady stream of inexperienced CSRs handle calls, and the cost of replacing an agent can approach 150 percent of the employee’s annual salary.  Other costs associated with attrition take the form of call escalations, repeat calls, and, potentially, customer attrition. Employee morale can be difficult to quantify but attrition can be used as a good indicator.  Poor morale has consequences for customer service levels, productivity, and overall performance.  It can also lead to higher attrition rates. Attrition measurements depend on the contact center’s location, industry, and objectives.  In order to measure attrition so that a contact center can properly plan replacements for those who leave and identify the cause of controllable attrition, the following should be considered: State the percentage of the workforce that has left in [...]

April 8 - Today’s call center systems including ACDs, WFM, QM, and IVR, have so many capabilities that most of us are only using a very small percentage of the possibilities.  We may not even know what is possible and the folks in IT are often so busy it is up to us to figure it out. So designate a person on your team to learn all they can about one of your systems.  That person then needs to do a mini-training at your team meeting or write a short email to everyone on the team explaining what that feature or function is, what it does, why it might be useful, and how to use it.  The next week, the team reports back on how they tested out the new feature or what their ideas are for how to implement it in your operation and another feature is covered. After a [...]

April 1 - Leveraging Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) in the training environment is a valuable strategy to ensure the training programs are accurate, effective, and relevant. Here are some tips on how to utilize SMEs in your training process. Identify individuals within the organization with expertise in the subject matter to be covered during training.  This could be specialists or experienced employees. Involve them in the development of the curriculum.  Working together to outline the objectives, content, and the order in which the topics should be covered. Collaborate with the SMEs to create training materials, including presentations, online learning modules, and assessments.  The SMEs are here to provide real-world examples to make the content more relevant. Make sure that the SMEs review and validate all training materials for accuracy and relevance.  They can also verify that the content aligns with the company’s best practices. Their involvement can enhance the learning experience [...]

March 25 - Creating a rewards system with little to no budget is possible by using creative, non-monetary incentives and recognition.  This can be highly effective in motivating and engaging employees without a significant financial investment from the company. Ways to implement a no-budget or low-budget rewards system: Praise and Recognition:  Offer sincere verbal or written praise for a job well done.  Publicly acknowledge achievements in team meetings and emails. Certificates and Awards:  Design certificates or awards to recognize achievements or milestones. Additional Responsibilities:  Offer opportunities for employees to take on new responsibilities or lead a project.  This recognition shows trust and appreciation. Flexible work arrangements:  Allow flexible work hours, remote work options, or compressed work weeks Professional Development:  Offer opportunities for professional development, such as attending workshops, webinars, or conferences, to help grow in their roles. Extra Time Off:  Grant extra paid or unpaid time off. Peer-to-Peer Recognition:  Implement a system where [...]

March 18 - Collaboration is a critical link between Quality and Training in any organization. Just a few ways they are interconnected: Alignment of Standards: Collaboration between the Quality and Training departments ensures that the training content aligns with the quality standards and expectations of the organization.  Our QA partners provide input on quality, and training is designed to meet those standards. Continuous Improvement:  Collaboration between the quality and training teams facilitates in identifying the areas that require improvement.  Gathering feedback from our QA partners on quality issues can lead to developing targeted training programs to address the issues. Feedback Loop:  Quality teams have insight into areas where the employees struggle to maintain quality.  This feedback loop can inform the design of additional or modified training programs to address specific challenges. Quality Metrics:  Quality and training teams collaborate on defining tracking, and analyzing quality metrics.  Training plays a role in helping employees [...]

March 11 - When it comes to theories and models of design, we all know that well-crafted learning objectives that are aligned to the desired outcomes is key. The objectives impact the learning experience design and the length of programming based on the level of thinking skills required. One of my personal favorite tools to build the bases of objectives and the learning experience is Bloom’s Taxonomy. Benjamin Bloom and his colleagues released the taxonomy in the 1950s and it was later revised by one of its original co-authors and a former student of Bloom. The model builds out 6 levels of behavior with the lower three being associated with lower order thinking skills and the top three associated with higher order thinking skills. Please feel free to click the link below to see an excellent explanation of the Taxonomy with the additional twist of our digital age! Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy [...]

March 4 - Keeping virtual training engaging is crucial to ensure participants remain attentive and get the most out of the learning experience. Below are strategies to make virtual training sessions more engaging: Interactive Content Use a variety of content formats, including videos, interactive quizzes, and polls to break up the monotony of slide presentations. Engaging Visuals Make sure your slides are visually appealing, but not cluttered.  Incorporate images and graphics to illustrate key points. Gamification Integrate game elements such as quizzes, challenges, or leaderboards to make training more fun and competitive Chat and Discussion Encourage everyone to use the chat or discussion feature to ask questions, share ideas, and interact with each other. Breakout Rooms Divide participants into smaller groups for discussions, or group exercises.  This will foster collaboration and active participation. Engaging Speakers Select trainers who are enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and skilled in engaging virtual audiences. Shorter Sessions Break the [...]

February 26 - The ever-evolving workforce landscape means understanding how to engage and develop the next generation of talent is crucial. Gen Z, characterized by their tech-savviness, desire for personalization, and focus on purpose, presents unique opportunities and challenges in quality and training. Let's bridge the gap and empower them to excel! Understanding Gen Z Learners: Ditch the lecture, embrace interactivity: Gen Z craves active learning. Move beyond passive lectures and embrace gamified simulations, microlearning modules, and collaborative workshops. Let them learn by doing, interacting, and competing. Tech is their teacher:Leverage technology platforms they already use. Design mobile-first training programs accessible on-the-go.  Utilize video content, social learning features, and AR/VR simulations to create an engaging and immersive experience. Personalization is key:One-size-fits-all training won't cut it. Utilize data and feedback to personalize learning paths based on individual needs, learning styles, and career aspirations. Offer micro-credentials and badges to recognize progress and achievements. Engaging Gen Z Quality Champions: Make it meaningful:Connect quality initiatives to their [...]

February 19 - A few years back, I was commuting every week from my home on the East Coast to Indiana, where I was working.  My parents lived in Indiana and I was crashing at their house during the work week.  It was very nice.  One day, my mom called me up at my office to say that “all her passwords were stolen and could I help?”  I told her that we would fix them when I got home to her place that evening. Sure enough, her passwords to her accounts were all compromised.  So, I called her banks, Amazon, and her other online accounts, and I was able to change her passwords, with no problem.  Except her cable provider.  It took me seven calls, three chats, and four hours before the last agent told me the right way to change my password.  I wondered, does this company know that most [...]

February 12 - According to evaluagent’s recent research, voice still reigns as the primary channel for contact centers, making up about 65% of inbound interactions. Here are some ways evaluagent recommends keeping customers happy on the phone: Always introduce yourself. A friendly way to open a conversation, formally introducing yourself is professional, polite and personable, allowing you to start a rapport almost immediately. Don’t interrupt! If a customer is spending longer than expected explaining their issue, listen patiently. Interrupting is a sure-fire way to making someone uncomfortable or worse, upset. Ask permission to put someone on hold. This takes any element of surprise away – you should also offer a rough estimate of how long they should expect to wait. This week's tip is provided by Chris Mounce of evaluagent. He can be reached at chris.mounce@evaluagent.com.   About evaluagent At evaluagent, we believe that Every Conversation Counts. For over 10 years, we’ve [...]

February 5 - What format do you follow when creating training programs?  If you follow the traditional instructor-led format and you’re looking for something new and engaging, consider the flipped learning format. Flipped learning simply refers to flipping the traditional format and allow learners to be introduced to, study, and learn material outside of the classroom setting as opposed to inside the classroom setting. Once the initial learning takes place outside of the classroom, the classroom setting is used as a forum to ask questions in order to solidify your understanding and a time to collaborate on related projects and activities in order to reinforce the learning. Flipped learning has benefits such as increased flexibility for the learner and the facilitator. The flexibility to learn at your own pace can be extremely beneficial for those with different learning abilities. If you learn quickly, you have the opportunity to go back and [...]

January 29 - Knowing there’s a problem means you’re halfway to solving it! That’s why it’s absolutely vital to analyze complaints when they happen. Pinpointing problems within your business, or contact center, means you can take corrective action to reverse the impact. Our advice? Set up an automated alert system. Make sure you never miss a complaint by setting up a flag that highlights critical issues Enlist generative AI. Generative AI can help tag trigger words and make suggestions – saving you time and giving you more coverage Pass on findings. Transparency makes for a better customer and employee experience – keep your organization in the loop so they’re able to handle known issues consistently. Watch as your insights improve and your team grows in confidence! This week's tip is provided by Chris Mounce of evaluagent. He can be reached at chris.mounce@evaluagent.com.   About evaluagent At evaluagent, we believe that Every Conversation [...]

January 22 - Training programs, barring any outside influences, will generally prove to be successful if you employ the following: Plan – Always have a plan in place that outlines the path you’ll follow from the start of the class to the end, including plans that call for collaboration with business partners. The most common tool for outlining this plan in a training program is a class agenda. Having a robust class agenda not only ensures you’re covering all required topics with your current class, but it ensures you cover the same required topics with all classes. Consistency is vital and minimizes risk in a training environment. Prepare – Once you have your agenda created, take the time to properly prepare for each topic listed in the agenda. Adequate preparation increases your comfort level allowing you to focus more on your learner while facilitating. Keep in mind, your learner’s focus will [...]

January 15 - Empathy is a huge part of the customer service industry – and yet, it can still be undervalued.  But getting this wrong is high risk, with as many as 28% of people abandoning companies altogether due to poor service, according to evaluagent’s latest research with ContactBabel. Train your agents to demonstrably show empathy by: Not always reading from a script. Scripts can be helpful, but knowing when to deviate from one is also a skill – provide training on what these triggers look like. Using the customer’s name. A personalized experience is usually a much better experience. Show your customer they’re not just a call in a queue by engaging with them on a personal level. Apologizing for issues and/or wait times. If a customer is unhappily contacting you, or has had to wait some time to get through, show empathy by apologizing for the inconveniences. Listening properly. [...]

January 8 - As training professionals, it is important to understand there are various ways the brain of any given learner will accept and retain information. Below are some tips to help increase your chances of engaging each learner: Design learning materials that offer information in bite sized, digestible portions. For example, when presenting information using slides, cover one point per slide or two to three points per slide when the information is less complex. Include clear, simplified visuals on your slides that offer a connection to what the learner is hearing from the facilitator. Be careful not to clutter any one slide and be careful not to include visuals that are difficult to interpret or relate to what is being heard. Doing so can potentially cause the learner to become distracted while they shift their focus to making the connection between what they are seeing versus what they are hearing. [...]

January 1 - When was the last time you checked the reading grade levels of your training materials and online courses?  The training experience does not need to feel as though you enrolled in a doctoral program.  The Plain Writing Act of 2010 requires US federal agencies to use clear government communication that the public can understand and use.  (Check out https://www.plainlanguage.gov/guidelines/ for more information and guidelines). While it may not be the law for most of us, we can do the same.  Gone are the days of reaching for the thesaurus.  Today we should use language that is accessible and does not get in the way of learning.  Don’t make your training materials difficult just for difficulty’s sake.  Even if your organization requires a college degree for a specific position, it does not mean new hire training must be writing on a college reading level or higher. Not sure where to [...]

 December 25 - Agent retention is a big part of contact center performance, and that means keeping them engaged and motivated. While salary will always be a top priority for employees, a Gallup study found that employee experience was tightly intertwined with retention. Researchers found that engaged employees needed a 31% pay increase to leave their company, while disengaged employees only needed a 22% increase to jump ship. The experience you create in your work culture plays a key role in retaining agents. When agents feel valued and recognized for their efforts, they’re more likely to stay and grow with your company. Agents who become more seasoned deliver outstanding customer experience your contact center strives for. Tip #1: Identify Your Best-Performing Agents  Understand who the top and bottom performers are with the right KPIs. Identifying your best and worst agents will help you figure out how best to engage and motivate [...]

December 18 - Having a call library is not a new or unique concept, but when was the last time you gave it some attention?  When was the last time you updated it or thought about how you use it?  Change is a constant in life and in a contact center, so when was the last time you went through your call library to make sure the calls represent the current environment? Calls in the library should be updated any time there is a new process, system, or technology implemented that would make the current library out-of-date.  Similarly, if your quality form has seen major change, the calls should be reviewed to make sure they represent what the new form includes. In our contact center, we implemented a One-Time Password technology to help verify callers in approximately 70% of our inbound calls.  Since it was brand new to us, our call [...]

December 11 - A happier team of agents will stick with you longer and give your customers better service — and that’s a recipe for true contact center success. But how do you achieve it, especially in a remote or hybrid environment? Transparency, Autonomy, and Flexibility. Create A Culture Of Transparency And Open Communication Part of building a happier, more trusting environment in your contact center is through better communication. When you’re clear with your agents about goals and expectations — and how they relate to the business overall — agents feel more connected to the organization. Measure what matters most to your business. If it is speed, Average Handle Time is an appropriate metric. However, if limiting repeat interactions is critical, First Contact Resolution is a better focus. Meaningful feedback boosted engagement four times more than spending time in the office did. The most impactful feedback sessions will be one-on-one, [...]