Look for Training Help In All the Right Places

Are you looking for a way to enhance your training programs? The solutions may be closer than you think: Many managers find that the best source of help with call center training is their experienced agents.

II can't afford to take my top people off the phones so they can train newcomers/I, you may worry. But call center experts contend that you can't afford Inot/I to make use of this valuable resource. There are several reasons your top performers can help make your training programs successful:

-- They are highly qualified to provide novices with information on solving challenging customer problems.
-- They have experienced the pitfalls that are particular to your operation and can teach new reps how to avoid them.
-- They can tell new reps the best way to carry out customer service procedures.
-- They can get trainees to fill up to full production speed quickly.

So even though you might lose some efficiency by taking experienced reps off the phones to train new people, you can quickly make up for that in terms of added productivity when new hires start handling call proficiently.

"One call center had a wonderful idea for involving its experienced agents in training," says Anne Nickerson. "Management set up a team made up of top performers that were responsible for training and coaching new hires. The team members rotated, which gave all the top reps an opportunity to take part in the training program, and ensured that there would be adequate phone coverage.

"The first thing the team did with new hires was to call into the training room and simulate customer calls with the trainees. This practice not only started building new reps' customer service skills, it helped them become comfortable about working with the experienced reps before they even went out to the floor. This approach was extremely successful."

In another call center, experienced agents sat at phones in the training room and took actual customer calls in front of the trainees. The experienced agents modeled the right service behaviors. After the calls, they talked with the trainees about what had transpired and why they had followed certain protocols as they interacted with customers. This was a great way to involve top reps in the training process while still allowing them to cover the phones.

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