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It’s no secret that better coaching creates more effective agents and better overall customer interactions. Why then do so many call centers struggle to convert coaching into real, measurable results? The problem comes down to a lack of coaching quality and on-the-floor facetime.
Research shows that agent retention rates were nearly double the average when coaches spent 60 percent or more of their time on the call center floor.‡ Given agents’ historically high attrition rate—and its impact on call center budgets—the benefit of engaged, in-person coaching translates to significant cost savings.
Did you know?of customers churn after a bad experience*
of agents state they more helpful tool to handle complex customer interactions†
of contact centers find it harder to train agents effectively*
Effective coaching not only keeps agents from walking out, it also makes them better customer service providers.
Many call center leaders become “metric myopic” when coaching—zeroing in on one or two KPIs during a call. While numbers, like Average Handle Time (AHT), are convenient units of measurement, they make poor coaching tools, offering little actionable advice and alienating agents who feel they’re being “set up to fail.” Instead of counting demerits, how can you help your team leaders maintain a holistic view of the operation as well as the learning and development of each agent?
Customers expect to be treated with empathy and respect on a call. However, when agents are trained to over-optimize for metrics, like AHT, customer service often suffers. Instead of feeling valued and understood, callers feel like “just another number.” And it only takes one negative interaction to lose a customer forever.
Feedback can always seem random from the agent’s perspective, as in most call centers, feedback is random—it’s based on a much smaller set of interactions that the supervisor may have reviewed. As a result, the feedback provided may completely miss the point or may not be taken seriously even when it is spot on.
Instead of recycling sampled, manual feedback post call, empower your agents with real-time coaching during the call. Armed with targeted, actionable feedback, agents can make smarter choices on the spot—saving difficult interactions and preventing customer churn.
Rather than coaching Savannah on what to do about awkward silences, why not eliminate the awkwardness by automating the task that took too long to complete. If only Savannah had a bot that could process the payment quickly, there wouldn’t have been an awkward silence. That’s how the right automation can replace coaching moments with moments of effortless agent and customer experience.
By preventing the mistakes they might otherwise make using AI and automation, you can provide your agents with not only a real-time coach but also a player-coach—a digital assistant that can direct, coach and assist them in areas they might need help.
Uniphore’s U-Assist can put you on the right path. By giving your staff technology that works for, not against, them, you can eliminate costly “on-hold” moments, cut onboarding times and guide agents through their interaction, not through their keyboard. The result: higher satisfaction scores, better agent retention rates, and lower customer churn.
* Call Centre Helper Fall 2020 Survey
† The Health of the Contact Center, Calabrio
‡ Source: McKinsey.com
Agent assistance can put you on the right path. By giving your staff technology that works for, not against, them, you can…
