Best Practices for Managing Agents in Multi-Channel Contact Centers

Transcription

1 Best Practices for Managing Agents in Multi-Channel Contact Centers November 2013 Sponsored by: DMG Consulting LLC

2 Table of Contents Introduction... 1 What is a multi-channel contact center?... 1 Deciding which channels to support... 2 The dos and don ts of multi-channel contact centers... 2 What makes a good multi-channel contact center agent?... 4 Millennials in contact centers... 5 Hiring practices for multi-channel contact centers... 5 Final Thoughts... 7 About Intradiem... 8 About DMG Consulting i - DMG Consulting LLC

3 Introduction The important concept of multi-channel contact centers has been discussed in the industry since While most companies agree that this is the best way to support their customers, few are doing it right. To the majority of companies, a multi-channel contact center is an operating environment that uses different teams to support different channels. They may have a phone group, team, SMS support, and even a few people (typically in marketing) handling social media. These organizations are trying to do the right thing; however, in their attempt to keep their costs low and retain time-honored practices, they are adding tremendous complexity and cost to their operating environment. But all is not lost. Most of the existing infrastructure and best practices can be used and incorporated into a true multi-channel servicing environment. This white paper defines the multi-channel contact center and addresses the people-related challenges in staffing and managing these environments. What is a multi-channel contact center? A multi-channel contact center is a servicing organization that can receive, address and respond to inquiries and transactions in a variety of communications channels. In this environment, it is standard practice to centrally queue, route, handle and record all interactions, regardless of the channel in which they arrive. See Figure 1. Figure 1: Multi-Channel Contact Center Source: DMG Consulting LLC, November DMG Consulting LLC

4 Deciding which channels to support The primary servicing channels today are: phone, , chat, SMS, social media (Facebook and Twitter) and fax. This list will evolve over time, and managers should re-evaluate their roster of channels continuously. Customers expect to interact with organizations in their channel of choice. The complication is that their preferences vary based on who they are, what they are doing, and where they are. Someone driving a car is, hopefully, speaking to you on a hands-free device and not typing a text message. On the other hand, when someone is standing on the side of the road with a flat tire, a text message seems to be an ideal form of communication. In the era of smart phones, the reasons for selecting among various communication media vary, including availability, convenience, preference, safety, privacy and, of course, habit. Therefore, organizations that want to be considered preferred providers in their niche need to proactively identify their customers and prospects preferences. Failure to support customers or prospects channels of choice does not mean that they are going to abandon a company immediately, but they will be less loyal, and if when something more convenient comes along, they will be open to a new offer. The dos and don ts of multi-channel contact centers The number-one mistake that many companies make when adding channels is setting up a different group or team to handle each new interaction channel. Even worse, they may use a different pay scale, even though agents are basically doing exactly the same job in each channel. For example, in some companies the agents are paid more than phone agents, while in others they are paid less. A further complication is that too many organizations use different, non-integrated servicing applications to support each communications channel, so agents lack a holistic view of customers and what is being done to help them. This is a mistake that negatively impacts customers and is very costly for enterprises, as it results in miscommunications, additional work, and often hurts the customer experience. Figure 2 reviews the top 11 do s and don ts for multi-channel contact centers DMG Consulting LLC

5 Figure 2: Management Tips for Multi-Channel Contact Centers Practices Don t Do Hiring Require additional education for , SMS or social media agents Use the same educational standards for all channels Staffing Assume that all agents can handle all channels Hire employees who can handle multiple channels, and try to retrain agents who were previously dedicated solely to the phone Compensation Have different pay scales for each channel and underpay phone agents Use one pay scale; pay all agents fairly and competitively based on their knowledge, experience and competency Performance goals Apply phone KPIs to other channels Create a new set of metrics and KPIs for each channel; start with easily attainable goals and make them progressively more challenging as the staff becomes more experienced Quality assurance evaluations Training Coaching Policies and procedures Organization structure Servicing/CRM application Knowledge base Source: DMG Consulting LLC, November 2013 Use the same quality evaluation criteria for all channels Update the training program just by referring to additional channels Use traditional coaching and training approaches that delay feedback Give priority to social media interactions simply because the communication arrives in a public medium Set up channel silos where the teams are separate, not cross-trained, and do not interact Use different servicing/crm systems to support each channel Create different knowledge base articles for different channels Create customized quality evaluation forms for each channel; however, the criteria for product knowledge should be the same in each evaluation form Rethink and revamp the training program based on the unique requirements of each channel Provide feedback on a timely or realtime basis Have standard resolution policies that are used by agents in all channels; take into consideration the immediacy of each channel, to ensure that customers receive the service they expect on a timely basis Create a single organization that supports multiple channels, even if different agents handle the various channels Have one servicing/crm application that supports all channels Ensure that all servicing staff has immediate access to all content and knowledge DMG Consulting LLC

6 The ideal approach is to use multi-skilled agents who can handle any type of inquiry or interaction. The interactions should be delivered on a first come/first served basis, or whatever criteria are established by your organization. The characteristics of each channel should be taken into consideration when setting up routing rules. Agents should record their actions in a central servicing or customer relationship management solution that supports all channels. What makes a good multi-channel contact center agent? The characteristics of a good contact center agent are really pretty simple. A good contact center agent is someone who likes people, enjoys helping customers/prospects, communicates effectively (verbally and in writing), is a good troubleshooter and problem-solver, is flexible, patient, unflappable, can multi-task (use servicing system while speaking), and enjoys the job. Outstanding phone agents have traditionally been effective at writing notes in their servicing application, so extending this skill to s or SMS should not be particularly daunting. Of course, training is essential, and this is often the missing link. Here are steps to convert phone agents to multi-skilled phone/ /chat/sms agents. (Social media requires a different set of skills, although being in marketing should not be one of them.) 1. Create a job description for multi-channel agents that specify all job responsibilities. 2. Ask current phone agents if they are willing to be trained to handle additional channels. 3. Have HR administer a test to determine if current phone agents have the right skills to handle alternative channels. 4. Create a training program to teach the staff (agents and new hires) how to handle the alternative channels. 5. Create new performance goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) to use in evaluating multi-channel agent performance. 6. Review and update the compensation plan to encourage phone agents to take on additional responsibilities and channels. 7. Update the quality assurance process and evaluation forms to include the new channels, and retrain agents and supervisors. 8. Work with HR to update the semi-annual and annual evaluation forms to address the new responsibilities. 9. Update all departmental policies and procedures to incorporate the handling of the new channels DMG Consulting LLC

7 Millennials in contact centers The Millennial generation, people born between 1980 and 2000, is now entering the workforce. A great deal has been written about this generation s work ethic. (See blog post on Millennials.) The top complaints about Millennials are that they have an inflated view of their worth and that they are not willing to work hard. While there are challenges that come with all employees, and whether or not these generalizations are accurate, this workforce is in place, and managers have to learn how to deal with them. Millennials bring many skills that contact centers need. This is a generation that grew up with technology, and multi-tasking is second nature to them. While they may not be willing to put in extra time for the good of the company, they are typically willing to work hard during the hours they are on the clock, as long as they are interested in the work. Multi-channel contact centers are an environment where this generation can thrive, provided that they are managed fairly and properly. This means that contact centers that want to rapidly absorb Millennials into their workforce should: 1. Assign appropriate managers people who understand the mindset of this generation. 2. Revamp training programs this is not a generation that has to be taught to use computers, and they quickly pick up the use of new applications. 3. Use pay-for-performance Millennials are wired for this type of motivation. A few extra dollars can make a major difference. 4. Invite suggestions just because they are young doesn t mean that they are worthless; the world has changed, and they bring a new perspective to the job. 5. Provide flexible jobs modify responsibilities to take advantage of the multitasking skills of this generation; train them to handle multiple channels so that they don t get bored. Hiring practices for multi-channel contact centers Hiring remains the most important and often the most challenging task for contact centers. Everything works better with the right people. While it s fine to intensively train new employees, it s a lot easier if they come in with the right attitude and aptitude. Contact center managers should work with human resources to create detailed job descriptions (JDs) that specify daily responsibilities, educational background and prior experience. They should also develop a two-step interview process. The first phase is to interview people using the channels in which they are going to be working. If you re hiring people who are going to be asked to handle phone, , chat and SMS, create a process that tests their skills DMG Consulting LLC

8 interacting in each of these channels. If they pass the initial screening, invite them in for an interview. If they are virtual agents, conduct the in-person portion using Skype, WebEx or another video-type product. It is important for the candidate to be personable, professional and clearly interested in the job. For recruitment effort to be successful, contact center managers and HR should create an interview process that incorporates an initial test, a channel interview and an in-person follow-up. If designed properly, one person can handle all aspects of the interview instead of involving many managers, which is less effective and more time-intensive. The hiring criteria vary depending on the nature of the job, but should address the following: 1. Capability seeing if the person has the aptitude to succeed in a particular operating environment 2. Communication skills ensuring that candidates can communicate clearly and concisely in each channel (speaking and/or writing) 3. Typing/keyboard ensuring that they can get the job done in a timely and accurate manner 4. Math making sure that people can look at numbers and make sense of them; agents can use calculators, but they should know the basics 5. Multi-tasking abilities seeing how easily the person moves from one activity to another 6. Decision-making and troubleshooting assessing each candidate s ability to evaluate information, draw appropriate conclusions, and handle tough situations The hardest criterion to evaluate is whether candidates are service-oriented and wired for helping people. We suggest that enterprises use behavior-based questions to assess whether or not candidates are likely to go out of their way to help customers. A list of questions should be created to ask candidates about how they would handle a variety of tough customer or interpersonal challenges. Interviewers should be able to choose questions from the list, as necessary, depending upon the candidate and the job for which they are interviewing DMG Consulting LLC

9 Final Thoughts Companies are still discussing the need for multi-channel contact centers, a debate that has been answered by their customers. Now the question is how to successfully transition from an existing operating environment, which is likely a collection of non-integrated channels, to a more cost-effective, fully integrated servicing environment that delivers a better customer experience. The first step is to rethink the routing of calls, s, chats, SMS and social media interactions. Most contact center solutions already offer a universal queue that allows businesses to seamlessly integrate the handling of interactions, regardless of the channel in which they arrive. The technology is available; the primary challenges are staffing, management and the willingness to give it a try. The entrance of Millennials into contact centers is starting to force the issue of evolving to a multichannel environment. Companies that are not providing support in multiple channels are missing a great opportunity to improve the customer journey, enhance loyalty and reduce their operating costs DMG Consulting LLC

10 About Intradiem Intradiem, formerly Knowlagent, is the leader in intraday workforce management solutions for multi-channel contact centers. Intradiem helps customers both improve productivity and the customer experience while lowering costs. Intradiem s solutions automate manual processes such as intraday task management, intraday staffing, reskilling, channel balancing, and real-time alerts to enable companies to create an agile workforce and improve business performance by over 20 percent. More than 450,000 contact center, field service, retail, bank branch, and back office employees around the world use Intradiem s solution every day. For more information, call or visit About DMG Consulting DMG Consulting LLC is an independent research, advisory and consulting firm that provides strategic and tactical advice to enterprise and contact center managers, vendors and the financial community. Our mission is to help clients build world-class contact center and back-office environments by leveraging technology, processes and people. We provide insight and guidance to assist management in optimizing performance by increasing operational efficiency, providing an outstanding customer experience, enhancing loyalty, and increasing sales and profits. DMG devotes more than 10,000 hours annually to researching various segments of the contact center, analytics and back-office markets, including vendors, technologies, best practices, solutions and their benefits and ROI. More information about DMG Consulting can be found at DMG Consulting LLC

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