4 Tips for building a more collaborative call center

Faith Ocampo Published on April 17, 2017

young creative office employees brainstorming ideas

If your call center rewards employees’ individual achievements more than team success, it’s time to take a step back and re-evaluate your workplace engagement techniques.

As productivity-driven companies, most contact centers encourage agent productivity by rewarding individual employees’ exemplary performance. Agents are asked to end calls within a set time limit, handle an x number of transactions in a day, and so on. Those with the highest productivity as defined by these metrics are incentivized and hailed as “Agents of the Month.”

While this recognition-driven employee engagement approach can indeed drive up productivity, it comes with a cost. A highly competitive workplace leaves little room for collaboration. It breeds the mentality that customer support reps must outshine their colleagues for their hard work to be recognized. You may not think it matters at first, but this type of organizational culture can get in the way of teamwork.

diverse office employees cheering on teamwork

Team collaboration is essential in customer service companies. It’s the key to solving big issues that keep resurfacing and finding creative solutions to the most common customer problems.

Here are four tips to build a more collaborative call center.

1. Reward collaborative efforts.

proud office team holding one trophy

Instead of setting targets for individual employees, set team goals. Come up with tasks that will require your agents to work with one another. You can then incentivize your employees based on their collaborative efforts.

If your employees are used to working on their own, they might find it difficult to do this at first. So make sure to focus on team building tactics as well. Organize dinner parties, company outings, and other events to encourage your agents to get to know one another.

2. Promote transparency.

customer service reps serious business meeting call center team leader

Building a collaborative workplace all boils down to effective leadership. You need to create trust among employees by promoting transparency in the company. You can do this by welcoming constructive criticisms and widening agents’ access to work-related information.

3. Ask employees to identify the barriers to teamwork.

diverse business team in meeting writing on white board marker

Sometimes, managers have a narrow view of what it’s really like for call center agents to work on the production floor. So make sure to ask your employees about the practices, processes, or policies that are getting in the way of team collaboration. It could be your office’s layout, your no-chatting policy, or your overly hierarchical structure. Whatever the barriers may be, make sure to eliminate them in order to make it easy for agents to communicate with one another.

4. Brainstorm as a team.

creative diverse team in meeting

The bottom line is, you need to create an environment where your customer service reps feel comfortable sharing their insights, opinions, or suggestions. One way to do this is to brainstorm with them. Discuss an issue together, and solicit their ideas. Apart from making them feel at ease with their colleagues, this is also a great way to make them feel that the organization values their inputs.

 

Faith is a digital media enthusiast aiming to become an active part of the tech world by sharing her insights. She likes to blog about everything digimarketing, technology, and social media.
Join us on facebook
Open Access BPO 6 hours ago
Open Access BPO has officially launched OACIS, its very own coaching tool designed to introduce new paths to employee improvement. With how comprehensive the tool is, expectations are high for how transformative it can be.

Learn more about OACIS here: https://buff.ly/3YYqi9h

----------
We're committed to continuous improvement, striving to deliver exceptional service to our partners and their customers.

Learn more about how we can help your business thrive, please reach out to our team: OpenAccessBPO.com

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
#EmployeeManagement #SkillsTraining
#EmployeeExperience #TalentDevelopment
Open Access BPO 7 days ago
The holiday season is a double-edged sword for businesses. On one hand, it’s a golden opportunity to boost sales. On the other, it’s a daunting challenge to maintain exceptional #CustomerService amid the surge in inquiries and heightened expectations.

But fear not, brands, big or small! We know how to elevate your customer service game this holiday season: https://buff.ly/3OreCax

----------
You don't have to face the holiday rush alone.
Partner with a trusted #CustomerSupport call center that's powered the success of industry giants: https://buff.ly/40NMcP9

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
#CustomerSupport #CX #CSat
#CustomerSatisfaction #CustomerExperience
Open Access BPO 7 days ago
𝗗𝗮𝘃𝗮𝗼 is one of today's leading #BPO destinations, contributing to the #𝐏𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬' distinction as a premier player in the global #outsourcing scene. The city's economic strength proves its capacity to host rich #offshoring investments.

Its provincial rates, coupled with a population of highly skilled professionals make #Davao an ideal budget-friendly option for English language #BackOffice solutions.

Fuel your 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 with 𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐭-𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 delivered from 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐁𝐏𝐎 𝐃𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐨: https://buff.ly/3AMLpDq

----------
𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐁𝐏𝐎
• Our Solutions: https://buff.ly/3YMscKj
• Our Other Locations: https://buff.ly/4evCh41

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
Open Access BPO 7 days ago
𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 $𝟰𝟴 𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿.
And this loss is expected to grow annually unless online retailers make a significant move to strengthen their #DataSecurity strategies.

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁?

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀:
https://buff.ly/4hOEN8y

---------
For secure #outsourcing services trusted by global brands, elevate your business.
Contact us today: https://buff.ly/4fKNQpa

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
#InformationSecurity #InfoSec
#InternationalFraudAwarenessWeek
#FraudDetection #FraudAwarenessWeek
Open Access BPO 9 days ago
𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝗻 𝗴𝘂𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗱𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀. 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲!

While internal security measures are crucial, there's strength in numbers.
Luckily, you don't have to face them alone.

#CallCenter outsourcing can be your secret weapon in the fight against these criminals.

Here's how #CallCenter outsourcing can be your reinforcement against these criminals: https://buff.ly/3Z0GZCa

----------
Partner with an #outsourcing partner that keeps #InfoSec a top priority alongside great #CustomerExperience: https://buff.ly/3YYV970

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
#InformationSecurity #InfoSec
#InternationalFraudAwarenessWeek
#FraudDetection #FraudAwarenessWeek
Open Access BPO 10 days ago
It's crucial to meet your customers' expectations, but sometimes unforeseen circumstances can get in the way.

Here's a quick guide on how to handle those challenging moments and come out stronger with our #CustomerSupport strategy: https://buff.ly/3O7gYLa

----------
Let's turn mishaps into opportunities: https://buff.ly/3O26Bsc

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
#CustomerExperience #CX #CSat