My son has worked in a CC for over a year and is a bit anti the following.

The seating positions of the "teams"- previously random - is now set so that the best performing team sits at one end of the floor, second best performing team next to them, etc until you get to the worst performing team at the other end of the floor.

At the end of the month teams are physically promoted or relegated.

Individuals stay in their own team regardlss.

Is this a common practice?
Do any other companies do this?
Does it / should it work?


Alan ..............

Is this a common practice? - NO

Do any other companies do this?
Not that I've met travelling up and down the UK for 8 years on I/B,O/B sales, helpdesk, cust care, complaints handling, crisis management and tech support lines for call centres and contact centres. I've never seen one it although I do know of teams that have highly elitist names e.g.. "Exclusive" team etc since they were the team that required the greatest skill and knowledge set they were deliberately positioned as an aspirational team. (The pay on this team reflected this)

Does it / should it work? - In what respect ?
I guess you are asking about improving performance - in which case what field are you talking about sales/conversions/call length/ no of calls handled/customer satisfaction ....what?
However if you are talking about increasing motivation then according to Elton Mayo it probably will work (for a short time), he conducted the famous Hawthorn Experiment which basically in layman's terms says anything that you do to the workforce will affect their output usually positively usually for a short term.
However Vrooms's Expectancy theory proposes that :- if one values the ultimate reward, and believed that one's effort would enable one to get the ultimate reward, and one continued to value the ultimate reward THEN the motivation will be high (not the same as performance I know).
Your example corresponds greatly with Adam's motivational Equity Theory. Basically individuals compare themselves to others and fairness is an important factor (i.e.. they are motivated if they believe a situation is unfair).

Should it work? According to Adams yes.

Does it work? Probably for a short term but if you look at other motivational theories goal setting, affiliation, power, achievement and valuing the ultimate reward are high. In my experience this is also the case...then there are other influencers company culture, management style etc etc. So you cant really ask the question in isolation of everything else.

For more information on motivation theories try http://www.accel-team.com/human_relations/hrels_01_mayo.html#
For more information on performance measures ask how they are measured in this instance.

Regards

Alan,

I totally understand what you are thinking. Takin your questions one at a time.

Before, anything I must admit that it is based on tons of factors which need to be answered regarding managment style and company culture. The question is quite open-ended and it would be unfair to comment on it but I am still going to put in a few thoughts.

I have not seen this practice in call centers here in India. Maybe it is not such a mature market as other places in the world where the industry is much older and more mature.

Also, personally I would not do it.

This arrangement can work either ways depending on what kind of reasons the agent would have been given for the practice followed. I would just like to put my thoughts on the advantages and disadvantages of such practice. But of utmost importance is to understand what the agents' understanding of such an arrangement is because it could either make or break their morale.

Advantages: It could work as a motivating factor for other agents to try and make it their team the top team. Teamwork is at the highest level because each agent realizes that they need to perform so that the team could stay as the best performing team.

Disadvantages:
It could de-motivate an entire team, maybe because a few reps are not that great and cause personal grievances amongst team members.
The rivalry between teams could be escalated beyond a control point and this could work in a non-productive manner.
If all the teams are not balanced equally with good and notso good agents, it could cause your good agents to leave.

Comments and suggestions would be appreciated.

Samir thanks for your interesting perspective.

"Teamwork is at the highest level because each agent realizes that they need to perform so that the team could stay as the best performing team".

I have to disagree with this remark, many years of study within the HR fraternity and behavioural pyschologists will take the view that teamwork is only high if the team are in accord and all motivated. The moving of desks will seem irrelevant to some staff - they do not VALUE this 'reward', it may even work against them (for one reason the worst desk might be nearer the better view/cooler end of the office) etc. Selling more just so's you can move desks isn't a very high motivator for the average agent. They frequently value bonuses, prestige, achievement, etc higher and more importantly value them differently individually. Thus some staff perhps could be motivated by moving desks but some staff will not and some will actually be demotivated, this affects each agent individually and doesn't build teamwork.

Regards

Thanks for the correction. Point noted and copied.

I didnt spell out what I meant totally, but yes I do agree with your viewpoint.

"... team are in accord and all motivated....." - very true.

Thanks once again.

Regards,

Samir

Well Alan this practise is applied when there is competition and major job placements...........This actually helps the company to rate grades to a call center agent or a associate according to his performance which may motive or demotive he/she........now taking call centers as a whole and major focus on INDIA where this industry is at a boom one has to stand on top to prove his ability..........this industry requires PERFORMANCE and i bet you agree with me.

Till call centers which are concerned in U.K or U.S i may not be having in core idea but yes till a call center in INDIA is concern to get the QUALITY with high performace one has to be strict and vigilant............!!!