Call Center Performance Management Learning Guide

Performance management is an integral part of managing the call center. It incorporates many management aspects, including call center planning, developing agent skills, rating agents based on metrics and rewarding agents based on performance. According to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, performance management includes:

• Developing agent objectives and setting expectations
  
• Continually monitoring call center agent performance
  
• Training agents on a regular basis and developing customer service skills
  
• Rating agent performance in a summary fashion
  
• Rewarding exceptional performance

  In this guide, you'll find articles, advice, chapter downloads and other resources to help you through each of these steps, resulting in effective call center management. This is your best resource for performance management information. Drop us an email to let us know what you think of this guide and what other learning guides you'd like to see on SearchCRM.com.

   

   

  TABLE OF CONTENTS Performance management terms to know Vendor news Management strategy Tracking agent performance Training call center agents Metrics-based performance management Agent recognition and rewards Agent retention More learning tools

   

  Performance management spotlight	Table of Contents
  2007 Contact Center Performance Management Market Report This report by DMG Consulting provides an in-depth analysis of all aspects of this market, including vendors, product functionality and technology, customer satisfaction, market trends and challenges, benefits and return on investment, market share, adoption rates, growth projections, and pricing.

  
  
  

  Performance management terms to know

  Table of Contents

  The following definitions are presented by SearchCRM.com, powered by Whatis.com.

  • Occupancy>Definition
    
  • Incremental Revenue (Value) Analysis>Definition
    
  • Average handle time>Definition
  • Trouble ticket>Definition
  • Virtual agent>Definition
  • First call resolution>Definition
  • Level of support>Definition
  • Web self-service>Definition
  • Real-time analytics>Definition

   

  Vendor news

  Table of Contents

   

  • Contact center WFO market mature but growing, report says>Article (12/13/07)
  • Verint hopes to optimize the call center, closes Witness deal (5/30/07)
  • Microsoft to buy TellMe's speech technology>Article (3/14/07)
  • Call center consolidation continues as Verint buys Witness >Article (2/12/07)
  • Call center brings it together with WFO>Article (8/31/06)
  • Call center market consolidation tricky for buyers>Article (8/15/06)
  • Verint buys into call center with Mercom acquisition>Article (7/14/06)
  • NICE buys IEX, Performix>Article (4/28/06)
  • Aspect records quality monitoring buy>Article (4/5/06)
  • Speech analytics: Invest now or wait?>Article (3/24/06)
  • Blue Cross makes healthy call with speech-enabled IVR>Article (3/14/06)
  • Witness, Aspect advance call center integration>Article (9/27/05)
  • Workforce management, quality monitoring continue to converge>Article (4/25/05)

   

  Management strategy

  Table of Contents

  Call center planning means setting performance expectations and goals for groups of agents and individual agents to channel their efforts toward achieving the overall objectives for the call center and the organization. It's a good idea to get agents involved in the planning process early, to help them understand the goals of the organization, what needs to be done, why it needs to be done, and how well it should be done.

   

  • Voice-of-the-customer program begins with performance management at call center>Article
  • How can our call center balance call volume and off-phone requests?>Ask the Expert
  • Personalizing the contact center>Article
  • The contact center performance management market is on the rise>Column
  • New call center agents -- top 10 pitfalls>Ask the Expert
  • Motivate call center agents: Eight tips for success>Ask the Expert
  • Call center at Virgin Mobile gets personal>Article
  • Using call center metrics to evaluate outsourcing>Ask the Expert
  • Virtual assistants make real call center impact>Article
  • Quality management as a call center industry standard>Ask the Expert
  • Building a business case for remote call center agents>CRM ROI series
  • Building a business case for contact center technology>Ask the Expert
  • Hosted call centers: pros and cons>Ask the Expert
  • Tips for managing remote agents>Ask the Expert
  • Evaluating quality monitoring vendors>Ask the Expert
  • Best practices in managing customer data>Article
  • Number of at-home agents to skyrocket>Article
  • Pulling a call center 'Houdini'>Article
  • Contact centers hung up on quality metrics>Article
  • Speech being heard in the contact center>Article
  • Reinventing Your Contact Center>Chapter download
  • Call center management and planning basics>Chapter download

   

  Tracking agent performance

  Table of Contents

  Monitoring performance is imperative to not only determine the agents who are excelling in the call center, but to encourage correct processes and reinforce valuable customer service behavior. To be effective in monitoring, call center managers should provide ongoing feedback to employees and share progress with groups of agents as well as identify methods for reaching their goals.

   

  • Tips for ensuring high quality and productivity without burning out call center agents>Ask the Expert
  • Analyze call center agent performance to lower average handle time (AHT)>Ask the Expert
  • Quality monitoring: How to get started>Ask the Expert
  • Customer satisfaction falls despite call center efforts>Article
  • Developing a quality assurance form for evaluating call center agents>Ask the Expert
  • Customers: The best judge of agent performance>Article
  • The power of real-time customer surveys>Article
  • Workforce management provides winning formula for Bell Canada>Article
  • Quality management can help analyze average talk time>Ask the Expert
  • Train call center agents on using case numbers>Ask the Expert
  • Absenteeism in the call center>Ask the Expert
  • Is AHT a good CSR performance metric?>Ask the Expert
  • The promise of performance optimization>Ask the Expert
  • Reducing call center hold time>Ask the Expert

   

  Training call center agents

  Table of Contents

  In the call center environment, it is just as important to train inexperienced agents as it is to develop skills of experienced agents through continuous training. Call center managers should provide agents with all the skills they need to do their job effectively, through training as well as giving assignments that introduce new skills or higher levels of responsibility. By providing training and encouraging skill development of call center agents, managers strengthen competency and help agents keep up with changes or the introduction of new technology.

   

  • Lowering average handle time for the help desk>Ask the Expert
  • Training for quality assurance analysts: What topics should we cover?>Ask the Expert
  • How can we motivate our call center agents to up-sell?>Ask the Expert
  • Improving the customer experience: Call centers making an emotional connection>Article
  • Call center training for communication skills in sensitive customer situations>Ask the Expert
  • Call center training budget>Ask the Expert
  • Middleware to help call center agents learn all applications>Ask the Expert
  • Call center agent grouping best practices>Ask the Expert
  • The best call center certification programs>Ask the Expert
  • Call center training: Best methods for sharing knowledge, part 1>Chapter download
  • Call center training: Best methods for sharing knowledge, part 2>Chapter download

   

  Metrics-based performance management

  Table of Contents

  As any call center manager knows, it is important to identify the best performers in the organization. To accomplish this, managers often look at performance over time and and compare performance among various call center agents. When it comes time for formal appraisals, managers should evaluate individual agent or group performance by comparing performance metrics against the agent's original goals to then assign a summary rating.

   

  • Pay-for-performance for call center agents>Ask the Expert
  • Is your call center team leader ready for a management position? Ten ways to tell>Ask the Expert
  • Call center agent occupancy vs. agent adherence>Ask the Expert
  • The Executive Guide to Call Center Metrics >Chapter download
  • Performance management for help desk agents>Ask the Expert
  • FCR for an individual call center agent?>Ask the Expert
  • Call center quality control>Ask the Expert
  • Quick tricks for lowering agents' average handle time>Ask the Expert
  • Tools that measure customer save/retention rate>Ask the Expert
  • Quality metrics for the contact center>Ask the Expert
  • How should Average Hold Time be figured into Average Handle Time?
    >Ask the Expert
  • Why is the industry standard for first call resolution less than three days?>Ask the Expert
  • Improving first call resolution (FCR) percentage in an offshore call center>Ask the Expert
  • Call center cost per seat: new vs. existing call centers>Ask the Expert

   

  Agent recognition and rewards

  Table of Contents

   Recognition is a natural part of call center operations, but effective call centers must learn to use rewards well. Rewarding means recognizing call center agents, individually and as members of groups, for their performance and acknowledging their contributions to the goals of the call center or organization. Recognition and rewards can and should be both formal and informal.

   

  • Call center salary: How to reward agents based on a performance appraisal>Ask the Expert
  • The decision maker's guide to contact center quality management>Article
  • The guide to contact center quality management (part two)>Article
  • Finding that special agent>Article
  • The do-it-all agent>Article

   

  Agent retention

  Table of Contents

  Retaining your employees is essential to improving performance in the call center. Experienced agents are more likely to be invested in the goals of the organization and will work hard to achieve those goals. So what's one key to keeping valuable agents? Keep them happy.

   

  • Call center agents -- six simple steps to help motivation>Article
  • Reducing absenteeism in the call center by determining the root causes>Ask the Expert
  • Call center agents -- how to maximize skills, efficiency and motivation>Ask the Expert
  • Measuring agent retention translates to the bottom line>Article
  • Contact center employee satisfaction>Article
  • A happy agent is a productive agent>Article

   

  More learning tools

  Table of Contents

   

  • Preventing call center attrition>Quiz
  • Call center performance management quiz>Quiz
  • Quiz: Customer service and call center>Quiz
  • VoIP call center quiz>Quiz
  • VoIP Call Center Guide>All-in-One-Guide
  • Marketing Strategy Guide>All-in-One Guide
  • Call Center Manager Learning Guide>Learning Guide
  • Customer Loyalty Learning Guide>Learning Guide
  • Customer Self Service Learning Guide>Learning Guide
  • Open Source CRM Learning Guide>Learning Guide
  • SaaS CRM Learning Guide>Learning Guide
  • Sales Force Automation Learning Guide>Learning Guide

   

03 Aug 2007