Using Psychology to Get Contact Centres Right - CallNorthWest

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The assessment of candidates’ performance on the exercises was often based on very complicated andambiguous rating scales. These scales were open to different interpretations and therefore left theprocess open to high levels of subjectivity and bias.The competency-based face-to-face and telephone interviews used tended to focus on past behaviourand not future potential. Therefore there is a risk of ruling out potentially effective Advisors who havenot had the opportunity to demonstrate their capabilities fully. This is especially pertinent when oneconsiders the high levels of competition when trying to attract Advisors.The methods used did not always appear to be cost effective. For example, many organisations usedcomplex interview-based procedures which assessed around 10 different competencies. Due to thecomplexity of the procedure, a substantial investment in training was required to achieve high interraterreliability.Managing Expectations: Psychological research has shown that job satisfaction and retention arerelated to the impression of the job people form during the recruitment process: i.e. the more realisticthe view of the job an individual has before they join, the more job satisfaction they report and thelonger they stay. The tendency to ‘talk-up’ the job can result in candidates’ expectations beingviolated and contribute to low job satisfaction and a higher risk of quitting.RecommendationsKaisen has the following suggestions for improving selection methods following their research:• ‘Cast the net far and wide’: The recruitment process should attract a wide range of applicantsand select people on the basis of capability, not experience.• Manage agencies carefully: When working with agencies, they should be provided with a verytight brief and the quality of service and candidates supplied should be monitored closely.• Use a ‘staged’ recruitment process: To increase the likelihood of identifying candidates withthe ‘right stuff’, the recruitment process should stimulate a large volume of applications andincorporate a number of stages to ‘filter’ candidates. Use of screening questionnaires is a usefultool for ruling out unsuitable candidates at an early stage.• Assess core skills: The assessment process should be focused on those fundamental qualitieswhich underpin effective job performance but which are difficult for people to develop, such asempathy, motivation and emotional resilience. It is much easier to train people in systems andselling techniques than to train them to empathise with customers.• Look for ‘contact centre qualities’: Select people on the basis of the personal qualities whichspecifically predict contact centre success. In particular, assessing candidates’ ‘motivationalfit’ with the Advisor role and contact centre environment is critical to identifying highperforming employees.• Use work sampling: Using assessment methods which simulate the psychological demands ofthe job will increase the accuracy, objectivity and fairness of recruitment decisions. Forexample, use role-play exercises where candidates need to perform a task while talking to acustomer to assess the ability to empathise with customers and ‘multi-task’.
• Build in validation: Measures should be taken to record data on the recruitment process. Thisdata can then be analysed to ensure the validity and fairness of the process and also identifyareas for improvement.• Manage candidate expectations: Ensure that there is a specific part of the recruitment processdesigned to make sure that candidates understand what the job is really like – ‘warts and all’.For example, include a realistic ‘day in the life’ video or a discussion with an existing Advisor.TrainingKey FindingsInduction Programmes: These varied from two to six weeks in duration, depending on the complexity ofthe IT systems and products. Most of the training was ‘classroom-based’, involving group tuition andcomputer-based training. A smaller proportion of time was spent outlining customer service and salesskills. These sessions were predominantly focused on models and theories, with limited opportunitiesfor individual practice and feedback.Training Design: The typical approach was to break training down into modular form. For example,training was provided separately on using the telephone, operating the system, learning about products,customer service etc. Employees were typically tested at the end of each module to ensure that theymet the required standard of ‘know how’.Comments and ConclusionsLack of focus on ‘critical soft skills’: Training is given a high priority but the focus is technical. It is,however, the soft skills that are recognised to ‘make the difference’. Making the customer feel caredfor has a significantly higher impact on customer satisfaction than an Advisor’s level of adherence to setprocedures. The focus of training is thus disproportionate.Limited opportunity for practise: Unlike product and system knowledge, complex behavioural skillssuch as empathy, the ability to tailor communications to different types of people cannot be effectivelydeveloped through classroom teaching. These emotional skills are only developed through repeatedpractice and feedback over an extended period of time.Overly segmented training design: Modular training does not recognise that skills have to beintegrated, such as talking on the telephone while processing data and using the system. When theselearning processes are not put together, this can lead to errors on the job, especially when faced with adifficult customer. The result is de-motivating, and there is an increase in the time needed for recoverywhen a call goes wrong. People may also perform well on each of the separate units of the training, butare unable to perform them simultaneously.RecommendationsUse integrated training methods: Training should be holistic, that is, developing all of the call handlingskills simultaneously. The most effective approach is to begin with a simple scenario which requires theindividual to talk to the customer, use product information and operate the system at the same time.Then to ‘layer on’ the complexity of customer, product and system as the employee develops theirconfidence and competence.
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Using Psychology to Get Contact Centres Right - CallNorthWest

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