Human Resource Management in a Call Center
Human Resource Research Paper
Human Resource Management in a Call Center
Instructor: Kathryn Taft Advanced Human Resources Management BADM 382 March 16th, 2005 Raymond Chow
Executive Summary One of the growing yet toughest industries for human resource to manage is the call center. The call center industry has one of the highest turnover rates compared to other jobs due to its high level of stress and dullness. Retention starts with hiring the right person for the job. Human resource recruiters should look for applicants with these characteristics: self motivated, high tolerance for stress, positive attitude, good listening skills, good communication skills, ability to work as an individual and in a group, good problem solving skills, and enjoy helping customers. A good way to test out the applicants is to pre-screen telephone interviews to test out their phone skills. One of the most useful techniques that call centers use is the employee referral program. This program allows employees to recommend a friend, relative, or family member to the job and receive a cash prize if they pass the probation period. This technique tends to provide the new recruit with more realistic expectations and can provide a better cultural fit. Training and orientation is also important in human resource management in a call center. Training should include lots of role-play so employees can get comfortable talking to customers over the phone, learn to turn negative thoughts into positive ones, and understand the company’s goals, mission, and corporate culture. Another interesting technique used by companies such as Bodog.com, is having all new employees in the organization take part of the training and orientation of the call center to learn about the company and make them realize that the call center plays a big role in having a successful organization. Lastly, retention reduces turnover costs, improves customer service productivity and satisfies customers, and increases
Human Resource Management in a Call Center
Instructor: Kathryn Taft Advanced Human Resources Management BADM 382 March 16th, 2005 Raymond Chow
Executive Summary One of the growing yet toughest industries for human resource to manage is the call center. The call center industry has one of the highest turnover rates compared to other jobs due to its high level of stress and dullness. Retention starts with hiring the right person for the job. Human resource recruiters should look for applicants with these characteristics: self motivated, high tolerance for stress, positive attitude, good listening skills, good communication skills, ability to work as an individual and in a group, good problem solving skills, and enjoy helping customers. A good way to test out the applicants is to pre-screen telephone interviews to test out their phone skills. One of the most useful techniques that call centers use is the employee referral program. This program allows employees to recommend a friend, relative, or family member to the job and receive a cash prize if they pass the probation period. This technique tends to provide the new recruit with more realistic expectations and can provide a better cultural fit. Training and orientation is also important in human resource management in a call center. Training should include lots of role-play so employees can get comfortable talking to customers over the phone, learn to turn negative thoughts into positive ones, and understand the company’s goals, mission, and corporate culture. Another interesting technique used by companies such as Bodog.com, is having all new employees in the organization take part of the training and orientation of the call center to learn about the company and make them realize that the call center plays a big role in having a successful organization. Lastly, retention reduces turnover costs, improves customer service productivity and satisfies customers, and increases
Cited: Dhillon, Raj Personal Interview, 1st March, 2005-03-15 www.leggecompany.com/ccretention.pdf http://content1.skillsoft.com/content/cm/CUST0213000000/summary.htm#Overvi ew http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:4ZmzHPGQbtYJ:www.ddiworld.com/pdf/ddi _reducingturnover_rr.pdf+call+center+reducing+high+turnover+rates&hl=en http://www.callcenterops.com/obs-retention.htm