Effectively managing agents is not an easy task. A good manager has many challenges ahead of them every day and many obstacles to overcome to keep the operation floor running smoothly. Simple practices can keep workforce management under control and maintain consistent quality scores.
The first thing that you need to focus on as a manager is to know the level of knowledge your team has in order to fight knowledge erosion. Knowledge erosion is the loss of concepts and theory that was imparted in training sessions during the induction process. Knowledge erosion may be the biggest threat to the long-term success of workforce management-it is very important to incorporate regular, continuous training into your call center management practice, paying particular attention to the latest methods and refresher modules that help ensure skill retention.
After the knowledge is assessed, the next step is to analyze if the methods being employed are effective. Workforce management is a business process rather than a technical solution. It would be best if you focused on internal processes and procedures like software functions. All operation processes should be analyzed and updated at least once a year to verify how well they work. It is essential to make sure you constantly monitor the accuracy of data from various sources on a regular basis and make sure it is included in the calibration process-workforce management is best suited as a continuous improvement process.
Another to have are ways to measure and promote your performance to detect improvements replicate them. Understand your compliance and set realistic goals-introduce real-time compliance methods-if applied adequately. This will have a significant impact on staffing efficiency and bring considerable returns on the investment and resources used. It is vital that your team becomes the focal point of your organization and maintains a central position in any core planning decisions. Workforce management provides a benchmark, and the result is a great way to share successes and challenges with the wider organization.
When the performance of the team is under control, the next focus should be growth. To achieve grown you need to monitor your shrinkage. Shrinkage in the operation's floor is when agents continuously leave without being replaced at the same rate. You need to look at historical shrinkage and then make sure you balance this shrinkage correctly into your forecast plan based on actual conditions and then try to achieve your goals. A hundred percent forecast accuracy is an unrealistic dream for most of us-but, please make sure that you execute within a consistent and acceptable tolerance range at an intraday level.
An ally in improving the efficiency of the operation's floor is automation. Creating processes that will automate tedious chores can save time and energy that be used to improve another area. Don't ignore the potential of automating vacation and shift requests: These features are highly valued by agents, which can save a lot of management time and can be deployed more efficiently. Improvement is a daily activity that will bear results if the planning is done thinking of the long-term goals and growth of the company.
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