Developing a quality assurance form for evaluating call center agents
By Donna Fluss, President, DMG Consulting LLC
SearchCRM.com
A second way to get standard QA forms is to ask friends in other call centers. A third way is to check on the Internet for articles that discuss QA evaluation forms. A fourth approach is to ask consultants, like my company, DMG Consulting, who specialize in these activities.
While all of the above resources can provide you with standard templates and sample questions, the catch is that there is no "one size fits all" form. For example, if you run a technical help desk, you need a different QA form from someone who runs a financial services or claims customer service department. Ideally, you should develop your own form.
Here are a few best practices to employ when developing a QA form and program.
Requires Membership to View
To gain access to this and all member only content, please provide the following information:
By joining SearchCRM.com you agree to receive email updates from the TechTarget network of sites, including updates on new content, magazine or event notifications, new site launches and market research surveys. Please verify all information and selections above. You may unsubscribe at any time from one or more of the services you have selected by editing your profile or unsubscribing via email.
TechTarget cares about your privacy. Read our Privacy Policy
- e all levels of your staff – agents, supervisors, trainers and managers – in your QA program.
- Use your QA program to measure how well your staff adheres to internal processes and departmental/enterprise goals. It should measure what your customers feel is important. For example, first contact resolution is an important measure for enterprise effectiveness and cost containment and is also highly valued by customers who have come to expect "one and done" servicing.
- Assign weights to all categories on your QA form that correspond to their importance. Some suggested categories to include on your form are: call greeting/opening, verification, system knowledge/usage, product knowledge and information, resolution skills, hold/transfer, communication or soft skills, and call closing.
- Test and refine your QA form before rolling it out.
- Develop quality monitoring guidelines that document and define expectations for each category on the call evaluation form.
- Conduct training sessions for all staff members on the new form and QA program to develop a clear understanding of what is being measured and how to do it.
Creating a QA form is one of the simpler aspects of developing an effective QA program. More challenging is learning to apply it consistently, calibrating it and then learning how to give positive and negative feedback and coaching to your agents.