management_matters

Articles on Management Matters:

How The P.R.I.D.E. Team Changed My Call Centre?

Several years ago I took an assignment as a Manager in an outsourcing Call Center. Shortly after I started it became clear that several areas within the department needed improvement; absenteeism was high (19%), call takers lacked the enthusiasm about the programs to deliver quality customer service and seemed unconnected to the goals and metrics.

With the overall morale of the center in a less than pleasant state the management team weighed our options. We determined that any new rules rolled out by management may be perceived as “us vs. them” by the call taking teams. Rather than try to manage down with force we decided to get the people who were doing the work involved in the improvements.

It was clear, in order to make positive changes the call takers had to embrace the existing goals and embrace any changes we tried to make. What better way to do that then to include them in the process of making the changes. From this idea the P.R.I.D.E. team was formed.

People Really Involved in Developing Excellence
The first step was to roll out the concept of the P.R.I.D.E. team to the supervisors. I explained how the team would work and what we hoped to accomplish with it. The supervisors then rolled out the concept in their team meetings.

Basic Roll out:
Each team on the floor votes for a representative from their team to attend the P.R.I.D.E. meetings. P.R.I.D.E representatives gather issues, concerns and ideas from their teams and present them at the P.R.I.D.E meetings. The P.R.ID.E. Team will take action for improvement based on the ideas and discussions from each meeting. Meeting minutes will be distributed to the floor.

Once the roll out was complete and the teams elected representatives, the first meeting was called to order. We congratulated the new P.R.I.D.E. team representatives for being voted in by their teams and broke the ice by getting to know each other.

The group agreed on some ground rules and established time limits for discussion. I reiterated that the meetings will not be a gripe session; we will focus on improvement. We began discussing the issues challenging the center.

The high rate of Absenteeism (19%) was the issue we chose to bring to the table first. We asked the group why absenteeism was so high and asked what we as the management team could do to help. The representative’s answers provided insight and ideas to improve attendance. Suggestions ranged from things as simple as being welcomed to work in the morning, to more challenging tasks such as supervisors building better relationships with their team members.

The ideas and thoughts we tapped into gave us direction to improve this metric. Instead of pushing an elephant up the stairs, we were following the lead to reach our destination.

After listening to and acting on the P.R.I.D.E. Team’s suggestions we started to see some very impressive changes. Over a three month period Absenteeism dropped to 3%! People were more excited about doing their jobs and finding ways to improve. There was a general buzz around the center.

Communication was one of the keys to our success. In addition to the P.R.I.D.E. Team members discussing the meetings with their team members and other co-workers, we documented the conversations from the meeting then distributed them to the floor to ensure no “behind closed door” perceptions. If time allowed supervisors would bring the P.R.I.D.E meeting notes to team meetings for discussions as well.

The meetings evolved. The more meetings we ran the more root causes we discovered. We listened to every issue big and small. We created subgroups to focus on large issues. Sometimes there were issues we could not do anything about, but we always provided an explanation on why action could not be taken. Listening to the representatives’ ideas and making changes based on them created buy in for change. The call takers were more apt to make the ideas work because they came from them.

After the P.R.I.D.E. program was well in place, I turned it over to the senior supervisors to run. It was a great development opportunity and helped build relationships throughout the group.

Overall the P.R.I.D.E Team created a paradigm shift in the center. The existence and actions of the team sent a message that everyone in the center was part of the same team. The representatives realized their importance. There was only “us” instead of “us and them”. The program created involvement, strengthened commitment to the company and opened communication gateways.

Greg Meares
02 June 2007

Greg Meares is the author of P.R.I.D.E. Teams and the President of Interactive Quality Solutions, Inc. If you are interested in reading more about PRIDE Teams then I recommend you visit: http://www.prideteams.com If you are a call center professional you will enjoy http://www.callcentercafe.com

Supervisor Training - Helpful Tips To Lead Your Pack

A new supervisor is hired to anchor a gardening project that has fallen apart. The last supervisor walked out on the job because he was overwhelmed with the high expectations of the project. The new supervisor is in charge of ten teenage workers, five young women and five young men, all of whom are not thrilled to be working on a summer day. As the new replacement, the supervisor is in charge of landscaping the lawn and garden areas that garnish a business complex. The complex manager has informed the supervisor that he has a three hour time limit to mow and trim the lawn areas, weed out the old plants and dead greenery, and replace them with a fresh array of tulip bulbs. By the day’s end, the supervisor has a $20 food budget to feed the 10 workers on their lunch break. The summer heat is burning, and the teenagers would rather be out by the pool. Instead, they are required to sacrifice this day at work. The supervisor is overwhelmed with the task, but motivated to assist with all the responsibilities of his ten employees for the next three hours.

What is this supervisor to do with limited time, resources, and not to mention, controlling ten wild teenagers who are not thrilled to be working while their peers are at play? Good training will assist him in completing his duties as supervisor of the project.

Supervisor training involves motivation. Attitude, incentives and goal-setting will lighten up any burdensome task, and during the hot afternoon, the crew will need the motivation to work.

Attitude - It is important that the supervisor is optimistic, especially in light of an arduous task. If the supervisor reflects an optimistic attitude, his workers will be easily influenced.

Incentives - Rewards do not have to be tangible; pats on the back and encouraging words are just as enticing. When the atmosphere is uplifting and when authority is not threatening, workers are more inclined to conform to their surroundings.

Goal Setting - Making goals will help the supervisor’s crew envision what they need to accomplish in order to be successful. When the supervisor paints a picture of what needs to be done, the goals are specific, and thus, easier to follow.

Supervisor training involves delegation. Delegation converts deadweight into useful energy. From a personal account, I previously worked under a great supervisor who delegated work responsibilities equally and fairly among his workers. He efficiently distributed the work among his resources and that alleviated him from carrying the entire workload. He would make assignments and follow up with everyone to make sure that all tasks have been properly completed.

A supervisor who utilizes delegation will provide positive outcomes for his workers. As workers, their roles are enhanced with responsibilities and they know that their contributions are needed and valued. For example, the supervisor of this gardening project would group individuals to cover different regions of the lawn and would follow up on their progression. This style of supervising allows teams to focus on their assigned area and helps the supervisor to keep track of the equal distribution of work duties.

Supervisor training involves resource management. The supervisor will use the limited resources he has to make this project tolerable. For example, the supervisor knows he will be working with anxious teenagers that have lived up to the motto of no work, all play. That explanation could make him nervous in itself. However, he brainstormed an idea of mixing work with play and encouraged his workers to wear their swimsuits while working. With the sprinkler system turned on, the crew will be able to cool off while working in the heat.

Feeding the hungry teenagers after work will be a challenge with $20 to spend. Depending on what degree of fine dining he wants to go, or how picky or how healthy conscious his workers are or aren’t, starving appetites after a hard working day might override all eating preferences. The supervisor settles in on ordering four large pizzas for $5 each at a local pizza place. The business complex offers employees complimentary beverages and paper goods, so the supervisor takes advantage of that resource to keep morale high.

By the end of the day, the supervisor left with a sense of success and his young workers went home with a full stomach and pride of beautifying the gardens of the business complex. With these supervising training tips in mind, you can turn any laborious task into an enjoyable and learning experience.

Stephanie Tuia
05 June 2007

Stephanie Tuia specializes in internet marketing for CMOE.
If you would like to learn more about supervisor training and how it can assist you or your organization, please contact CMOE at (801) 569-3444.