Call centers are slammed with work because of COVID-19 restrictions that encourage people to stay home. As the call volume remains high, call centers have to increase productivity while avoiding burnout. Agents have to field questions about products, refunds, cancelations, COVID safety measures and many other questions all day long.
You may be wondering how you can maintain a healthy workplace with high production levels to handle the most calls possible. You want to ensure reps are pleasant, confident and knowledgeable—solving problems as quickly as they can to keep customers happy and wait times low.
How to Increase the Productivity of Your Call Center
It can be difficult to boost morale during a time of high call volumes and back-to-back customers. Your employees are going to be exhausted, but low spirits will lead to poor output and short tempers. You need professionals that are ready to take on each call with professionalism and problem-solving. Here are six tips for boosting call center productivity.
Provide More Autonomy
When your agents have the freedom to be more flexible, more personable and more responsive, they are better reps. Give your call center agents responsibilities without micromanaging them. This frees up your management team to deal with the issues they are trained to handle. As your agents show they are capable, loosen the reins and encourage growth opportunities to help them handle more calls on their own. Offer flexible scheduling that changes with call volume and consider allowing your top employees the opportunity to fill in from remote areas with our secure EOS Mobile solution.
Encourage Extra Participation
Get your employees involved in collaborative meetings and let them be part of the decision-making process. The more employees buy-in to your company, the more they will care about doing a good job. Hold town-hall-style meetings at various times throughout the year, including all WFH employees, in-office employees and managers.
With current restrictions, you might consider a group call or video chat. Let employees ask questions and try to keep them in the loop with upcoming changes as much as possible so they never feel blindsided. Allow your staff to have a voice without repercussion and encourage employees to share their innovative solutions to any problems they might have solved.
Use Downtime Wisely
When the call volumes drop, have tasks ready to go so your employees are being efficient. Every call center measures idle time as a KPI. Allocate those down-times for agents to complete tasks that will improve productivity for the whole team. You can create a to-do list for agents with idle time, but make sure larger tasks are broken down into small tasks so they are able to get them completed. Since you are expecting full workloads round the clock, make sure you schedule plenty of breaks.
Schedule Active Breaks
The key to productivity is to stay focused. It’s very difficult to focus for long periods of time and studies show the brain can only handle true focus for 45 minutes to an hour. Once the mind is focused for too long on the same task, the attention begins to drift. Schedule other jobs to break up calls and give your employees plenty of short breaks. Encourage them to leave their desks for very short (2-5 minute) breaks throughout the day (ideally, every hour) to stretch their legs, get a drink, use the restroom or get a snack. It is extremely unhealthy for a person to sit in one place for even an hour at a time, so this is good for their long term health as well.
Do Call Checkups
With cloud-based VOIP, you can record and store your calls on the cloud. You won’t need special software or extra space on your device. This enables you to check for quality service. Randomize checking on various calls and reward employees that are efficient, effective, informed and represent the brand well.
Offer Rewards
You can also offer short term goals for rewards that include call productivity, professional development and timeliness. Employees that use their downtime well, for example, should be noticed and encouraged. Gift cards are popular, so are special privileges (like parking spaces) or small pay bonuses. Don’t make it a competition or you could have a lot of conflict and unhealthy rivalries. Encourage individuals with rewarding things that will help the entire team.
Looking for more support for your call center? We have lots of great ideas and the tech to back you up. Call or chat with us today to find out how we can help you boost employee productivity.
