Contact Center Solutions Featured Article

In the call center environment, much conflict exists due to the disparity in the agent’s reality and the manager’s perception of that reality. Yesterday we explored this concept in the form of the agent-manager disconnect in terms of what things motivate an individual to do their job well and remain loyal to the organization. We looked at a study completed by Prosci Research comparing agents and managers in the call center and where the differences are most prominent.

 

Case in point, managers put a significant amount of focus on incentives as a motivator for their employees. When listing the top five things that motivated them the most, agents did not even mention incentives.

 

As important as it is to understand what things motivate an individual, it is just as important to understand what things will de-motivate an agent for an adverse impact on their job performance. When surveyed, agents listed the following as their top five de-motivating job factors: poor leadership skills of supervisors; inadequate tools and equipment; poor work environment; inadequate or no benefits; and irrelevant incentives.

 

Managers and supervisors were also surveyed on what they viewed as the top five things that were de-motivating for their agents. Their list included: inflexible scheduling; irregular or no feedback from agents; poor work environment; minimal or absent workplace culture; and no incentives.

 

Here again we can see that when it comes to de-motivating job factors, agents have different priorities than what managers and supervisors believe that they have. The result of such a disconnect can be an overall de-motivated workforce, which does not foster longevity and loyalty in its employees. The impact is that the average employee can be considered a flight risk and loyalty may be viewed as something that can be purchased instead of earned.

 

This type of environment can be changed, however. The key is to look for a process that will create motivation over time. If “quick fixes” are implemented, the result is often that most of your agents will be provided with incentives that they do not value, adding to the de-motivating cycle.

 

Research has shown that a motivating call center is created by a proactive approach from management that focuses on things that are relevant and specific. It is important for management to listen to and value the input of their agents so that their effort can be targeted to things that actually motivate these individuals. As a result, agents will find value in them and management will be able to realize both short-term and long-term returns on their investments.

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