In the world of technology and customer
service, Fortune 500 companies are finding that customers still prefer to speak with a real person. After all, high touch
always exceeds high tech when it comes to
influencing customer satisfaction and
retention. Not surprisingly, then, talented
and engaged customer service associates
are in high demand, from retail sales to
tech support. Differentiation through customer service provides the greatest opportunity to impact ROI with customer retention and selling new products and services.
Top management in an organization must
be aware of the pulse of the organization’s
customers. Consequently, call center
employees should be valued for their interaction with customers and encouraged to
give management feedback on customer
concerns.
Smart Business talked with Yvonne
Abel, Division President of Delta Dallas
Call Center Staffing, to gain some insight
into the impact of customer service
staffing today.
What are the skills required for customer
service call center positions?
Call center positions require a blend of
technical proficiency and interpersonal
soft skills. Being detail-oriented with good
written communication skills is also at the
top of the list. Bilingual fluency, especially
in Spanish, is a plus. And, since positions
vary within call centers, each one has to be
profiled to determine the skills required for
that position. Some may require higher-level technical skills for providing tech support and analytical skills for problem solving the customer issues. In other positions,
sales skills are required for upselling.
These positions require people who can
multitask while speaking on the phone and
working on the computer.
How do search firms assess candidates’ skill
levels?
To determine the skill level of candidates,
it is important to use a multitiered interview process that includes a first step of
prescreening the candidate for applicable experience and verbal communication
skills. The second tier is evaluation of computer skills, such as MS Office, data entry
and keyboarding, through a validated
assessment program. Today’s assessments
include customer service soft skills, such
as call etiquette, inbound/outbound sales
and problem solving. Once the candidate’s
skill level is determined, behavioral assessments and interviews are the best predictors for on-the-job performance. Getting to
know the candidate’s interests and experience is key to confirming he or she is the
right person for the job.
How can search firms help companies find
qualified candidates?
By far the biggest recruitment challenge
is having resources to continuously attract
applicants for call center positions. Many
companies use a variety of methods; most
do not understand recruitment and use the
hit-or-miss process of working with job
boards or advertising. These methods can
generate a plethora of candidates. However, the time invested by hiring managers
detracts from the company’s core functions and results in ‘filling a seat’ versus
finding the most qualified and best candidate for the job.
Finding a business partner that specializes in staffing for call centers allows the
hiring manager to interview only pre-screened, qualified candidates, resulting in
a focus on the specific skills and experience needed to service customers. Treating
the recruiting process as a core competency is a necessary step toward meeting and
exceeding call center and organizational
goals.
What can call centers do to retain employees?
In the call center environment, taking the
time to recognize individuals and teams
reinforces the performance desired, especially when it is done by a C-level executive.
Career-pathing shows employees that
future opportunities await them. Without a
clear path for the future, employees will
look elsewhere for their next opportunity.
Ongoing training is an investment that will
provide ROI with enhanced customer satisfaction and retention. The key to employee
retention is developing new skills faster so
they can take on larger opportunities successfully.
How does all of this positively impact a company’s bottom line?
The enterprise call center can get new customers, keep existing customers and grow
profitable customers. Research shows that
far and away the biggest single factor for
customer loss is poor customer service.
Since it costs approximately five times more
to attract new customers than to retain current ones, it is easy to see how important the
customer service role is to a company.
Hiring and retaining the right people
reduces training costs. Statistics show that
it costs one-third of the annual salary to
train a new employee. Retaining employees with knowledge about customers and
products means they can be more creative
in providing customer service that differentiates a company from its competitor,
resulting in customer retention.
YVONNE ABEL, SPHR, is Division President of Delta Dallas
Call Center Staffing. Reach her at [email protected] or (972)
788-2300.