It is natural for companies to be interested in hiring call center employees with specific specifications, but there are common things that reveal a poorly performing employee who may have a negative impact.
underperforming call center employees
A report published by scorebuddy lists the five most common weaknesses in poorly performing call center agents:
Inability to tolerate pressure
Customer service representatives are under a lot of pressure to perform well, especially since 64% of people find customer experience more important than anything else.
Unfortunately, employees cannot easily succumb to the pressure of quick responses, pleasant conversations, showing empathy, and finding the right answers at the right time.
In many cases, agents need a trustworthy support system to help boost their confidence and prepare them to succeed and work under pressure.
lack of knowledge
62% of customers believe that knowledge and resourcefulness are essential to a successful customer support interaction, and unfortunately many call center agents also lack the knowledge to do their best for customers.
To address this, it is essential to provide regular training to employees to address core job tasks. Proactive training helps ensure that your agents do not lack the tools or knowledge they need to succeed in their role.
Bad follow up
Excellent customer service doesn’t end when the phone call ends. Call center agents should review each interaction to identify strengths and weaknesses. If an employee lacks this skill, it is an indicator of poor performance.
Agents must follow up with customers to see if the proposed solution is successful. This level of service demonstrates a commitment to customer service and helps resolve any outstanding issues, but it is not always an inherent skill among call center agents.
Incorporating these follow-up processes and best practices into your new employee training programs enables you to set the bar across your teams and ensure that every customer has a great contact center experience.
Lack of flexibility and adaptability
Sometimes, agents get so stuck in the well-defined structure of a call center that they can’t operate outside of those boundaries. Underperforming agents don’t know how to act appropriately in any given situation, especially when it falls outside the scope of the script.
So as a company you need to encourage flexibility and adaptability in your agents, it is incredibly valuable and can be channeled through role playing, training and coaching.
Contact center managers and other internal leaders should facilitate team building to promote smoother operations, provide more efficient customer service, and develop more successful agents across the team.
