Call centre operations
Assessment Tools: What They Do and Why You Should Harness Their Power Two dominant – and highly visible – problems that hinder a call center’s operation are (1) agent turnover and (2) suboptimal agent productivity. In most cases, the root causes of such challenges result from poor job fit or a lack of skills that are critical success factors for specific agent positions. Selection assessments and screening tools can help address this by providing vital information about applicants that directly relates to employee productivity and retention. These tools typically do so by measuring three different kinds of candidate data:
In regard to what applicants have done, assessments are designed to measure applicants’ previous experiences, past behavior, education or training, and accomplishments. Examples include resume scoring for education, relevant work history and skills training, in addition to the use of behaviorally-oriented interview questions that focus on how an applicant handled a specific situation in the past, and job-specific knowledge or skills tests. These types of assessments are based on the principle that future performance is best predicted by past performance.
Finally, in regard to what applicants want to do, assessments are designed to measure differences in applicants’ motives, aspirations, preferences, and interests. These types of tools are less effective for predicting productivity but are well-suited to predicting job/culture fit, employee satisfaction, and retention. Realistic Job Previews also fall into this category, as candidates can take a ‘sneak peek’ into the actual organization and job and opt out of the selection process if something looks particularly undesirable to or ill-suited with their interests and expectations.
Although a wide body of evidence demonstrates how powerful and accurate well-designed assessments can be, there are, unfortunately, many poorly-crafted, inappropriately-applied assessments on the market. In addition to reviewing relevant job analysis reports and test validation manuals, test administrators need to confirm that assessments are effective within their organization by analytically evaluating the impact on performance outcomes. Because previous experience is less critical in most hourly jobs, a call center selection system should typically focus more on screening for behaviors (“can do”) and motivation levels (“likes to do”) and less on cognitive abilities and technical skills (“has done”).
No single, “perfect” solution exists for every selection challenge, but a well-thought out, well-designed process that leverages selection science and incorporates multiple components can dramatically improve the quality of hiring decisions. As a result, organizations that choose to invest the time and resources into evolving their selection processes will see a significant improvement in productivity and retention, while reducing the burden on their hiring professionals
- What can they do?
- What have they done?
- What do they want to do?
In regard to what applicants have done, assessments are designed to measure applicants’ previous experiences, past behavior, education or training, and accomplishments. Examples include resume scoring for education, relevant work history and skills training, in addition to the use of behaviorally-oriented interview questions that focus on how an applicant handled a specific situation in the past, and job-specific knowledge or skills tests. These types of assessments are based on the principle that future performance is best predicted by past performance.
Finally, in regard to what applicants want to do, assessments are designed to measure differences in applicants’ motives, aspirations, preferences, and interests. These types of tools are less effective for predicting productivity but are well-suited to predicting job/culture fit, employee satisfaction, and retention. Realistic Job Previews also fall into this category, as candidates can take a ‘sneak peek’ into the actual organization and job and opt out of the selection process if something looks particularly undesirable to or ill-suited with their interests and expectations.
Although a wide body of evidence demonstrates how powerful and accurate well-designed assessments can be, there are, unfortunately, many poorly-crafted, inappropriately-applied assessments on the market. In addition to reviewing relevant job analysis reports and test validation manuals, test administrators need to confirm that assessments are effective within their organization by analytically evaluating the impact on performance outcomes. Because previous experience is less critical in most hourly jobs, a call center selection system should typically focus more on screening for behaviors (“can do”) and motivation levels (“likes to do”) and less on cognitive abilities and technical skills (“has done”).
No single, “perfect” solution exists for every selection challenge, but a well-thought out, well-designed process that leverages selection science and incorporates multiple components can dramatically improve the quality of hiring decisions. As a result, organizations that choose to invest the time and resources into evolving their selection processes will see a significant improvement in productivity and retention, while reducing the burden on their hiring professionals
How to start your call centre
How to start Your...
Instead of trying to find a call center to hire you, why not start your own? It’s much easier than you would think! We’ll get you started setting up your own at home call center.
Pick a space
To work at home, you need a work space. It doesn’t have to be a dedicated room, but it does need to be functional.
At a minimum, you’ll need a place to sit and a work surface (table or desk). Make sure you have sufficient lighting as well. Since you’re going to handle phone calls, you do need a fairly quiet work area. If your current office area isn’t quiet, consider moving your setup to a quieter area in the house.
Get a computer The backbone of your call center will be a computer. But we’re not talking about a super computer or some fancy gaming machine.
All you really need is a basic computer that can get on the internet. No huge monitors required. No fancy speakers or equipment. Just a computer, internet connection, and a headset.
Download Skype If you’ve never used Skype before, it’s time to get acquainted. This will be the key to your call center.
The download is free and you can even call other Skype users for free. But if you want to make and/or receive calls to/from regular phone lines, that costs money. You load up your account with credits, and then Skype lets you talk away.
Use SkypeIn for each client The model we’re using for this at home call center is that you’ll handle a low volume of calls for several different clients. So you’ll need an incoming number for each client.
Skype In gives you a regular phone number from your pick of various countries and area codes. You associate that number with a specific Skype account. Have your client direct callers to the Skype In number, and you’re in business!
When you want to add a client, just create a new Skype account with a SkypeIn phone number. To accept calls from that client, run a separate Skype instance on your computer. Simple
Expand from there Skype has been proclaimed as a revolutionary for the call center industry. In fact, several companies have used it to build extensive web-based call centers like Sky-Click.
You’re not going that big…yet. But the possibilities really are endless. You could expand on this simple model to have a couple employees working with you. Since it’s web-based, they could work at their homes as well
Instead of trying to find a call center to hire you, why not start your own? It’s much easier than you would think! We’ll get you started setting up your own at home call center.
Pick a space
To work at home, you need a work space. It doesn’t have to be a dedicated room, but it does need to be functional.
At a minimum, you’ll need a place to sit and a work surface (table or desk). Make sure you have sufficient lighting as well. Since you’re going to handle phone calls, you do need a fairly quiet work area. If your current office area isn’t quiet, consider moving your setup to a quieter area in the house.
Get a computer The backbone of your call center will be a computer. But we’re not talking about a super computer or some fancy gaming machine.
All you really need is a basic computer that can get on the internet. No huge monitors required. No fancy speakers or equipment. Just a computer, internet connection, and a headset.
Download Skype If you’ve never used Skype before, it’s time to get acquainted. This will be the key to your call center.
The download is free and you can even call other Skype users for free. But if you want to make and/or receive calls to/from regular phone lines, that costs money. You load up your account with credits, and then Skype lets you talk away.
Use SkypeIn for each client The model we’re using for this at home call center is that you’ll handle a low volume of calls for several different clients. So you’ll need an incoming number for each client.
Skype In gives you a regular phone number from your pick of various countries and area codes. You associate that number with a specific Skype account. Have your client direct callers to the Skype In number, and you’re in business!
When you want to add a client, just create a new Skype account with a SkypeIn phone number. To accept calls from that client, run a separate Skype instance on your computer. Simple
Expand from there Skype has been proclaimed as a revolutionary for the call center industry. In fact, several companies have used it to build extensive web-based call centers like Sky-Click.
You’re not going that big…yet. But the possibilities really are endless. You could expand on this simple model to have a couple employees working with you. Since it’s web-based, they could work at their homes as well
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