Tutorial taken from Prosci's
Quality Monitoring Toolkit

Call Monitoring - Training and coaching

Module 4 of a 5 part series on quality monitoring

The goal of this tutorial series is to present Prosci's Quality Monitoring Lifecycle and to explain the role quality monitoring has in the call center. Quality monitoring is an essential part of call center operations, but many times the real benefits of call monitoring are not realized - the monitoring takes place for the sake of monitoring. The first module in this series presents the Quality Monitoring Lifecycle. The second module describes the monitoring step in this lifecycle process. The third module examines the critical feedback component. This module examines the final steps of the process - coaching and training. The fifth module examines how to make the most of a quality monitoring program and the key lessons and improvements your program can produce. All modules come from the Quality Monitoring Toolkit.

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Prosci's Quality Monitoring Lifecycle

Training and coaching

"Training and coaching" represents the final step in the Quality Monitoring Lifecycle before it repeats itself. Successful performance improvement - the true goal of quality monitoring - hinges on this important step. Quality monitoring allows you to identify weaknesses and address them with individualized improvement plans and changes to your hiring and training programs.

Your call center most likely has training programs already in place for new hires and for on-going training of existing agents. The topics addressed in this tutorial relate to how quality monitoring impacts those coaching and training programs.

Overview

When you have the results of quality monitoring for your agents, you will give feedback to each agent as discussed in the previous tutorial. However, this is not the final step in the quality monitoring lifecycle. In fact, if this is your final step, you may find your quality monitoring program ineffective. Agents can respond negatively to a quality program if they perceive the program as simply evaluating performance and giving them "scores." This negative view can add to the already problematic "big brother" perception that many agents have about call monitoring.

On the other hand, if agents perceive that your ultimate goal is to help them improve professionally and deliver better customer service, their perception will shift. Coaching and training are the key elements to this important step in the lifecycle.

This step in the lifecycle has two outputs. The first output is the individualized coaching and training for the agent. The second output is the improvement plan for existing training and hiring programs.

For example, if you identify a pattern or repeating problem with many agents around handling difficult customers, then you would need to address this problem with each agent, but at the same time upgrade your current training program for new hires to strengthen the training in this area. On the other hand, if you are finding a lack of basic computer skills from the monitoring results, then your hiring criteria may need to be revised to ensure that the right candidates are being selected for your center. The results of quality monitoring enable a closed-loop feedback process into the other key management areas of hiring and training.

Must-do coaching items

Your goal in coaching agents in this lifecycle approach is to create a development plan that both you and the agent can agree to for a specified time period. This development plan will include training and other opportunities for mentoring to address gaps in the call monitoring results. The most important "must-do" items when coaching agents based on Prosci's Call Center Best Practices benchmarking results are:

Communicate call center goals, expectations and measures regularly. Keep agents informed of their performance, clearly linking their work performance to overall call center operations.
Provide prompt feedback and comprehensive agent evaluations on a regular basis. Always use credible and consistent measures when evaluating agents.
Involve agents when creating a development plan and performance agreement that are beneficial for both them and the call center.
Recognize and reward agents when they meet goals. Use positive reinforcement to encourage high-level performance and improvement.

"Must-not-do" coaching items

During the coaching session, you must focus on the positive outcomes you want to achieve. From the Call Center Best Practices report, the number one "must-not-do" item when coaching agents is related to giving feedback and criticizing agents. Specifically, study participants recommended the following when coaching agents:

Do not degrade agents.
Do not be negative, rude or disrespectful.
Do not "talk down" to agents.
Do not publicly reprimand or criticize agents.
Do not display favoritism or bias.
Do not display unprofessional behavior.
Do not be inconsistent or erratic.
Do not ignore problems.
Do not overlook agent contributions or improvements.
Do not focus entirely on numbers.
Do not assume all agents learn at the same pace.
Do not be extremely lenient or extremely rigid; find a balance.

How is training delivered?

A common component of development plans for agents based on their quality monitoring results will be training programs that each agent needs to improve their performance. Training may be delivered in one of the following forms depending on what is available in your call center:

Workshops
One-to-one training
Computer-based training
Video training
Self-paced modules
Seminars
Instructor-led training

The delivery method you choose will depend on the specific topics or issues of the training. For example, the most effective delivery for "how to handle difficult customers" is very different than information-based training on new products. You may also choose to incorporate different media into the training. In some cases, you may elect to use off-the-shelf training aides for agents when your internal training programs do not address a specific need area.

For example, a three-part session on handling difficult customers might be completed in the following steps:

30-minute seminar "How to handle difficult calls."
30-minute computer-based training from a third-party vendor.
One-to-one coaching session with mock calls or role-plays.

Who performs training and coaching?

As with monitoring, the person(s) you select to perform training and coaching may depend on a variety of factors, including:

the method of training
the topic of training
the level of the agent
the size of your call center
the level of monitoring you are performing
the person or group performing monitoring

You may already have a training team in place. You may elect to use successful, senior agents for portions of informal training. Unlike the feedback process, training in new skills and behaviors can be done by anyone who can best relate to that agent to teach and develop those new skills. Possible trainers or coaches include:

External instructors
HR training team
Mentors
Peers with exceptional skills
Supervisors or managers
Team leaders

When is training and coaching performed?

The timing of this training directly impacts the effectiveness of your quality monitoring program. When training or coaching is delivered depends on the skill gap or area for improvement that is identified during quality monitoring. Most improvement opportunities can be placed in one of two timeframes.

Urgent (immediate correction)
Developmental (scheduled over time)

Critical gaps in performance that have a direct impact on customers or on business performance must be corrected immediately. Same day coaching or training should be implemented in these cases.

Below average performance with skill areas such as product knowledge or system navigation would be better addressed with scheduled development plans. These training and coaching sessions may take weeks or months to complete depending on the availability of the needed training and the scheduling availability for that agent.

Training for new agents

One of the most common uses for quality monitoring is performed during new agent training. Managers can effectively use recorded or documented calls to model both good practices and bad. Often, trainers will provide new agents with a transcript of the conversation so they can follow along as the call progresses. This visual version of the conversation also reinforces proper scripting.

Quality monitoring as a training tool provides:

A model of good and bad practices that can be seen and heard.
Methods for dealing with problematic circumstances (for example, an irate customer that is handled efficiently and with tact).
Compares and contrasts different ways of dealing with situations.
Good examples and bad examples.
Reinforces company expectations.

Closing the cycle

Remember that your call monitoring program is only effective if you create a closed-loop process that allows each agent to improve, and that allows other key programs in your call center to react to systemic gaps in performance including improvements to hiring and training.