Hi all,

Very big fan of the website been keeping an eye on it for a while now!

I have a few questions regarding a new campaign I am launching, if you don't mind of course!

Due to a major restructure in my company I have been put in charge of Telemarketing. We are going to do various campaigns which will possibly require different KPI measurements and training.

My main question is because we have brought in external employees I have no time to run a proper training programme. I was considering starting up a mentorship or one on one training in which they would work with the experienced advisors and have half days classroom style training to learn the products, role and systems.

Has anybody on here ever tried a system like this and if so did you find it effective?

Many thanks for reading. I appreciate any answers!

Hi Victoria and welcome....

I'm not personally involved in training per se being
the tech geek I am, however, do havea couple of suggestions.

I appreciate that your first priority is going to be
getting people on the phone but....

If they're not fully trained theis is going to kill your
customer service reputation [1]

What you need is a balance between your customer demands
and training needs. The last thing you want is the whole
operation slowed down by the unprofessional "Err can I put you
on hold while I ask someone?" It will drag everything down

So that said...

you need some kind of system familiarisation before people
deal with the phone as well as your system.

Can you set up some kind of model office/acadamy program
where you can drip feed calls in?

Is there any way of streaming complexity of calls? Allowing
new staff to cut their teeth on simple rather than horribly
complex calls?

And my favourite....

HAve you aske your existing staff for suggestions yet?

You may be surprised.


I'm sure someone involved more in the training side will be
along in a minute to have a good laugh and suggest the really
obvious bits I've missed.

Good luck, and DO let us know how it's going.

Regards

DaveA




[1] Having used customer services in store and been impressed!

I'm no training expert myself but here's a few straight-forward tips:

• Introduce the idea to staff prior to implementation. The level of success of any peer mentoring program is directly proportional to the level of enthusiasm of and buy-in from your existing agents. They are the ones who will carry the programme, so it’s essential that they fully understand and are committed to the concept.

• Select agents with the right mix for mentoring. Whom you choose to serve as agent mentors will have a huge impact on your programme’s fate. Rushing through the selection process results not only in poor mentoring, it may alienate qualified agents who should have been selected but weren’t. Look for lead reps who not only have high performance statistics, but who have outgoing personalities and the ability to make people feel comfortable.

• Train mentors for success in their new role. Consider dividing your mentor training program into two major modules: 1) how to be an effective mentor, and 2) how your program works.

• Take care in pairing mentors and “protégés.” Mentoring is more than just a training tool; it’s a way to build relationships that can have a positive impact on call centre performance. Prior to selecting partners, evaluate
all mentors and new-hires to determine who is most likely to work well together. Pair mentors and mentees according to similarities in personality, interests, regional and ethnic backgrounds, and possibly gender.

• Monitor the relationship and provide guidance. Lead agents may be the stars of the mentoring show, but the manager needs to serve as the director. Be sure to keep an eye on each mentor/protégé pair to ensure that the relationship
is thriving. Confirm that mentors are providing the right information and, even more importantly, that the new-hire is learning. Encourage open communication between partners to help them identify and overcome any
barriers that may hinder progress. It’s a good idea also to occasionally meet with each participant individually to discuss any problems or concerns they may have with the mentoring program or their partner.

Obvious this, but surprising how many people don't do it. Train your new agents for the most common type of call first, then for the next most common type of call and so on. Do this regardless of the complexity. The main thing is to have them competent on the most common type of work. They can then pick up on the other types of calls as they go by mentoring or pulling in expertise as they need it.

Rob

Hi,

Just wanted to give a quick update.

I did a mentoring programme where experienced people helped the newbies and then sent them off for 2 days on a call techniques and handling course. They are now doing very well and our department is already on target for the next quarter!

Thanks for the help of the people who replied!

Hi,

Sounds like a good idea at first, but.... are you going to loose the productivity of the associated that is doing the training, In my experience they will spend more time answering questions and chatting that doing the job. Best to stick with a dynamic training session

Richard
Credit Outsourcing Ltd