Call Center Software | A Few Guidelines for Coaching the Coaches | Envision
Sep 22, 2006

A Few Guidelines for Coaching the Coaches
Posted by: Connie Smith

Here are a few guidelines to add to your coach training. First, teach coaches to identify their own communication style as well as the person that they are delivering the feedback. For instance, a coach that is aggressive in style and is delivering to a passive agent must recognize this and modify his/her delivery to the agent to optimize effectiveness. Remember that small things can make all the difference when coaching. Be sure to sit on the same side of the table and not across from the person that you are communicating with. This will convey that you are working with them and not against them.

In addition, it is important to be honest, clear and specific about what you want to say, and make sure you both have the same understanding of the issue and its importance. Many coaches have a difficult time focusing on behavior rather than the person. An example would be an agent that talks all the time. The supervisor finds this particular agent to be annoying because she never shuts up. Instead, teach the supervisor to emphasize the positive and refer to behavior that can be changed. In this case, less chit chat because it is distracting and disruptive to the workforce. Be sure to be descriptive rather than evaluative and own the feedback by using ‘I’ statements identifying actions that will address the issue effectively. Last but not least, ask for feedback and schedule follow-up meetings if necessary.



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A Few Guidelines for Coaching the Coaches - 3:12 PM | Coaching & Agent Effectiveness | Add Comment (0) |
Sep 20, 2006

Coaching the Coaches
Posted by: Connie Smith

Many of the supervisors in contact centers today do not possess the appropriate skills, nor have they had sufficient training on coaching techniques. We spend a lot of time and effort training our agents, so why aren't we training our supervisors? We make the mistake of promoting our star agents to supervisors and expect them to flawlessly perform but find that many star agents do not automatically make good supervisors, and most do not make good coaches.


So what is the difference between a supervisor and a coach? A supervisor controls, directs and takes charge. A coach teaches tutors and motivates. Best practices tout that 80% of a supervisor’s time should be spent coaching agents. Many world-class contact centers have adopted this philosophy and have removed much of the day-to-day administrative supervisor tasks to allow them to coach.


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Coaching the Coaches - 10:00 AM | Coaching & Agent Effectiveness | Add Comment (0) |
Sep 14, 2006

Identity Protection: It Effects Us All
Posted by: Connie Smith

This week, Envision launched a new solution to help companies protect sensitive data within the contact center. I encourage you to learn more about the solution and let me know what you think. Is this something that your company is grappling with?

 
Identity Protection: It Effects Us All - 10:13 AM | General | Add Comment (0) |
Sep 12, 2006

Shifting to a High Performance Culture
Posted by: Connie Smith

Understanding what makes up culture and what your current culture looks like are the beginning steps to change. Be patient! A shift in culture does not happen overnight—but over time. Here are some things you can do to introduce and reinforce a high performance culture.
 
Use legends. Legends are stories that capture the culture and the acts of certain people that demonstrate commitment to the company’s cultural values. These may be formal or informal stories passed around the company. Whichever they are, they help people understand what the company is about and what they are supposed to do.

Show commitment! The goal is to continuously demonstrate the company’s commitment to its cultural values in a way that makes them come alive for everyone. The single most powerful thing you can do is to show a consistent and unwavering commitment to the values you come up with…in your words and your actions…even when you don't feel like doing so.

Be a role model. Walk the talk long enough and pretty soon your values and your ways of operating and viewing the world just become standard procedure – no longer dependent on you or any single person.   



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Shifting to a High Performance Culture - 4:52 PM | Coaching & Agent Effectiveness | Add Comment (0) |
Sep 08, 2006

High Performance Cultures Don't Happen By Accident
Posted by: Connie Smith

A high performance culture doesn't happen by accident. It is based on guiding principles or values, which have become ingrained throughout the organization. Senior executives, managers, front-line supervisors and support employees live these values every day. High performance company cultures are ones where everyone recognizes the importance of achieving employee satisfaction because there is a direct relationship to higher quality performance and customer satisfaction. There is a commitment to hiring right, performance training and development, empowering employees and providing the workforce with the tools, procedures and resources needed to ensure they are able to provide superior service. Here are some attributes one might find in a high performance culture:
  • Highly respected employees
  • Customer-driven philosophy
  • Goal of exceeding customer expectations
  • Everyone in company lives by the same guiding principles
  • Communication of values
  • Can do attitudes!
  • Embraces change
  • Learning through self discovery
  • Life-long learners
  • Commitment to continuous improvement
  • Imposes single accountability
  • Communicates strategic plans
  • Agents want to be coached and supervisors want to be coaches

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High Performance Cultures Don't Happen By Accident - 1:49 PM | Coaching & Agent Effectiveness | Add Comment (0) |
Sep 07, 2006

Changing Behavior
Posted by: Connie Smith

Can you change behavior? Behavior is not an easy thing to change especially if it is a problem in your entire center. If it is then there is a need to make a cultural change. Quite simply company culture is described as “The way we do things around here.” It’s what happens when no one is watching. It’s the shared beliefs, values, attitudes and behavior patterns that characterize the members of a community or organization. Shared beliefs are what you know to be true. Values are defined as the beliefs or principles that guide your decisions. Attitudes are the way you approach a situation. And behavior patterns are the manner in which you conduct your activities. When these four characteristics are aligned with your initiatives, you can reach a high performance culture—the desired goal.


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Changing Behavior - 11:22 AM | Coaching & Agent Effectiveness | Add Comment (0) |
Sep 05, 2006

High Performance Cultures
Posted by: Connie Smith

I wanted to share some best practices on high performing culture because I believe it is at the center of performance improvement and many organizations struggle with it.
 
Most people would prefer not to change how they work because they are comfortable and confident in their current environment. The keys to changing systems is to identify what gaps the new technology will fill, communicate how this will positively impact all stakeholders including the customers, the business and the CSRs. Make sure you are clear what they will get using the WIFM (what’s in it for me) principle. Get their buy-in and support by communicating with them frequently on how the development and implementation is going. And don’t forget to create some buzz by having celebrations associated with the new system. Also, be sure to have a method for them to report ideas and bug fixes.


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High Performance Cultures - 2:23 PM | Coaching & Agent Effectiveness | Add Comment (0) |