Call Center Metrics

Managing call center metrics during recession periods should be given primary importance, because they provide valuable data on which to base decisions on the fly.

Managing call center metrics during recession periods may seem of secondary importance, but in fact, it is extremely necessary in order for a call center to minimize losses. Economic downturns usually trigger companies to go all out and try to cut expenses as much as possible. This is more often than not accomplished via such measures as budget cuts, bonus and salary cuts, employee layoffs, and other equally drastic steps. What companies should realize is that a longer term perspective should still be adopted, even in the face of very turbulent short terms.

Metrics are key parameters that serve to allow managers to get an idea of how particular aspects of a process or organization are performing. In the case of call centers, some metrics include average handling time, or the time that it takes for an agent to wrap up a query, and customer satisfaction ratios. These metrics are important strategic tools, as they allow managers to keep track of employee and department performance accurately. For example, the effects of training, salary raises, and other actions should be reflected eventually in these metrics.

During times of recession, it becomes more important than ever to keep a close eye on call center metrics. One big reason for this is so that management will be able to rein in cost cutting when it begins to have too big an impact on performance. Call center performance relies on a number of different factors, with morale being one of them. Salary cuts and termination of coworkers will presumably have a negative effect on morale, leading eventually to decreased performance. Not to mention the loss of manpower that terminating employees would result in.

All in all, managers should always be aware of the effects of their decisions on call center performance, and even more so during periods of financial recession. Decisions made during recessions tend to involve even more risk than usual, apart from usually having to be made quickly. These represent crucial turning points for the company, during which every bit of data available to base the decision on would help immensely. Call center metrics become much more valuable in crunch times such as recessions, and they should be paid as much attention as possible. Objective data, with the proper analysis, will prove invaluable to managers devising strategies and tactics for coping with financial developments such as recessions.

A complete business plan to weather a downturn in the economy should include, therefore, a comprehensive plan for keeping up the monitoring of performance through metrics. Past and present performance should be used as benchmarks for determining the acceptable extent and percentages of drops expected to be experienced during the recession. Using these estimates, budget cuts and other cost cutting measures should be carefully limited. Managing call center metrics during recession will act as a barometer to help managers ensure that the company’s performance is not suffering too much because of cost-effectiveness measures. This will minimize losses and maximize the chance of making it through.

Managing employees of call center companies can be done successfully in many ways. Paying attention to little details and taking notes about the company will surely help.

A call center is a work environment wherein you will most likely see a lot of different personalities staying at the same place and working together toward the same goal. Lately, the trend of the business process outsourcing companies has been going offshore, more specifically towards countries like the Philippines, India, China, and others. This change does not really adjust or bridge the gap between the time differences of the eastern countries with the western ones. Philippines will always be twelve to sixteen hours ahead of the United States. This makes managing employees of call center companies such a Herculean task.

If the difference in time is that big, this means that call center employees who attend to their American customers will need to be available 24/7, or at least during daytime, American time. In short, call center employees off-shored will have to be awake at night to be able to serve their customers located at the other side of the world. If the stress level is high enough during regular working hours, imagine the stress level present when working a busy graveyard shift. It is unimaginable for those who have not been to the situation yet, but for the others who have worked in a call center, they completely understand how it feels.

The management who is aware of this situation should be able to act right away. They should look after their workers and come up with good solutions to lessen, if not completely deflate, the stress level that balloons each night’s shift. If this is left unattended, it will initiate mass resignations from employees not being able to survive their working conditions.

Letting your employees have fun and enjoy while they are at work can do wonders. It can lower attrition rate significantly. Organize fun schemes like incentives for those who are able to hit company targets. Give freebies, gift certificates, or the like. This helps shift your employees’ mindset from the stressful job they are doing to the fun things you are doing to your office.

Other than making your office a fun workplace, organizing company outings also help remove stress. Announce certain schedules of company outings and post them in strategic areas where it can be easily seen and read. Disseminate this information through email to make sure everybody is aware about your company-organized activities. Specify that the outings will happen if you accomplish certain company-wide goals and commitments with your clients. This allows you to hit two birds with one stone—the first stone being the employees staying in your call center, and the other stone, being able to fulfill your contract with your clients.

No matter how comprehensive your plans are to make your company a fun place to work with, there is no guarantee that you will completely eradicate the possibility of employees leaving your company. Managing employees of call center companies is no easy task; instead of sulking because of the not-so-successful plans you implemented, be happy and content that you were, at least, able to lessen your company’s attrition rate. Get yourself together and think of new schemes to better your plans in retaining employees.