The management team of a call center is the most important part of the entire operation. The way in which it communicates and even behaves will influence practically everyone involved. This does heavily impact the performance of the call center. Without exceptional leaders, the call center can fail.
Unfortunately, management can make so many mistakes. In fact, if you are running a call center, there is a pretty good possibility you will make one of the mistakes below. The truth is that you can be in charge of the best communication tool possible for call centers and still fail. This is why the following mistakes have to be avoided at all costs.
Inconsistency
The best leader is always consistent in responsibilities and attitudes. Regardless of the situations faced, the management team has to demonstrate a proper attitude. Values and principles need to be held. Also, whenever talking about responsibilities, the management team has to be completely predictable so that everyone knows what will be accomplished.
In order to improve call center management consistency, a focus should be put on the following areas:
- Making sure time is available for the management team to communicate and connect with call center agents. This includes using team meetings and calendars.
- Helping management teams follow through when something is said to be done in the future.
- Committing to all action plans all the way to completion. Goals should never be switched and focus should not be put on something else in the middle of a project.
Self-Awareness Lacks
A major and very common call center mistake is an assumption that nothing can be done wrong by the individual. It is important to realize that there is no person in the world that is perfect. Something new can always be learned and leaders have to always be open to something new.
Improving self-awareness is possible through anonymous feedback systems. This allows employees to offer feedback and managers to see what they might be doing wrong. Formal management review processes should be done every quarter.
Lack Of KPIs And Transparent Goals
The management department is aware of the direction the company is heading towards and the way in which it will get there. But if such KPIs and goals are not shared with agents they have no value. Everything related should be completely fixable to the team. A failure to do this will lead to not understanding what the call center employees work towards. It is practically impossible to meet goals.
Not Giving Credit When It Is Due
It is impossible for managers to be successful without agents. This is why giving credit is a huge part of management. Make your agents feel appreciated and empowered. Some ways in which this can be done include:
- Creating and using performance review systems. Use those to make call centers accountable and reward the best performers.
- Avoid speaking when angry. Something this simple can make a huge difference.
- Instead of criticizing, try to inspire. There is a huge difference between constructive feedback and damaging feedback. You need to offer constructive feedback.