why aren't they coaching in the call center

8/14/2019 Why Aren't They Coaching in the Call Center

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y Arent

hing inall

hts from

Coachpa looza 05 : A Call Center FocusGroup Series

A White Paper from Knowlagent

Authored by: Debbie Qaqish & Dwight Lucas

Fall 2005

WhTheyCoacthe C

Center? Highlig


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demark of Knowlagent, Inc. Value-Driven Coaching Model fore-Driven Coaching Model are trademarks of Knowlagent, Inc. All

ks used in this document are the property of their respective owners.

The information contained in this document is proprietary to Knowlagent, Inc. Unless you arethe intended recipient (or authorized to receive for the intended recipient), you may not read,print, retain, use, copy, distribute or disclose any information contained in this document.

Copyright 2005, Knowlagent, Inc.All Rights Reserved

Knowlagent Inc.

Knowlagent is a registered trathe Call Center and Valuother trademar

9/1/2009 Knowlagent. All rights reserved. 2


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Driving value at the front line of business.

Table of Contents

............... 4

............... 5 I. Time.................................................................................................6II. Information ...................................................................................... 9

............. 12

............. 14..............17 ............. 19

II. Information .................................................................................... 19III. Process......................................................................................... 19IV. People........................................................................................... 19

Conclusion .............................................................................................. 20

Overview ...................................................................................

Coaching Inhibitors and the Parallel to Customer RelationshipManagement (CRM) ...................................................................

III. Process............................................................................

IV. People..............................................................................

The Value-Driven Coach ing Model..........................................

I. Time..................................................................................



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Overview

We recognize the value of coachingwe just dont have time to do it.

- Coachpalooza 05 participant

Coaching is one of the highest impact, yet overlooked, wacompany goals in the call center. The best centers know this and

attempting to develop coaching models,

ys to achieveare

tools and initiatives to drive

ough quality

nter coaching

es of Supervisoralso provides

model The

Value-Driven Coaching Model - to address these inhibitors. A fullreport of findings, including all em survey results and the distinct Key

Coachpa looza 05 Sum m ary Repor t at

coaching, yet even the best are struggling with how to deliver encoaching in the unique call center environment.

This paper discusses the primary inhibitors to successful call ce

as discovered by Knowlagent during Coachpalooza 05, a seriFocus Groups held with seven large call centers. This paper

both a set of recommended best practices and a suggested

itFindings, is available in the

www.knowlagent.com.

W hat i s Coachpa looza 05?

To better understand the call center coaching environment, Knowlagentp series with seven large call

articipants.

ching

gets coached the challenges to coaching in the dynamic call center environment

Participants in the focus group series included leading Fortune 1000companies from a variety of industries, including financial services,insurance, retail, telecom and travel, with agent populations ranging from

450 to 12,000.

conducted Coachpalooza 05, a focus grouce cluded 53 supervisor and manager level pThis strategic initiative allowed us to better understand:

nter groups that in

the attitudes towards and the perceived value of coa how coaching is conducted and measured

what



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Coaching Inhibitors and the Parallel to Customer

this white paperer, these themes

call centerced a

, successinhibitors.

), looked to

ey assumed

ies, itt we observedg issue. It is not

simply tell the supervisors they need to coach more and assumethey can make it happen. By taking this one-dimensional approach to a

p for

g failure or under-achievement of goals, just like CRM in its earlyns.

our key themes, or inhibitors, as part of our coaching research.

They are:

e

People

The following section explores each of these themes and Key Findings via theCRM analogy and presents recommended Best Practices for each. For

additional detail, please see the Coachpa looza 05 Sum m ary Repor t ,available at www.knowlagent.com

Relationship Management (CRM)

Several recurring themes emerged that became the basis forand the separate Coachpalooza 05 Summary Report. Furth

suggested an interesting parallel between the state of todayscoaching and the early days of CRM. In both cases, businesses fa

number of unexpected inhibitors to success. And, in both casesmeans taking a multi-dimensional approach that addresses all the

Early adopters of CRM, then called Sales Force Automation (SFA

improve the productivity of sales reps and often failed because th

a one-dimensional approach to solving the problem. For these companwas all about the technology. Similarly, most call centers thaare taking a one-dimensional approach to solving the coachin

enough to

multi-dimensional problem, we believe call centers are either set u

coachinincarnatio

We observed f

Tim

Information

Process

.



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I. Time

I have sufficient time to coach each day

(Supervisor Responses)

32%

39%

5%

20%

4%

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

No Opinion

Agree

Strongly Agree

71% of participating supervisors felt they did not have sufficient timeto coach each day, with the vast majority (80%) spending a total of

less than two hours a day on all coaching activity.



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Key Find ing 1

CRM: Finding time to sell is a

foundational necessity

Coaching: Finding time to

coach is a foundationalnecessity

The early promise of CRM/S

Automation systems was that

find time for salespeoplecould spend more time in front of

customers. This was, in effeefficiency play but one that w

definitely the first step towards o

sales effectiveness. Both early Ssystems and the later CRM syst

ales Forit wo

so they

ct, a pu

asve

FAems

produced large gains in sales

productivity, so much so, that theynow standard parts of any professiosales organization.

executived during

pressed ave more time to

ents. When we

uld changet their coaching

of alls responded

ach!

o show thecoaching

erformance, all

strongly believed thatving more time to coach,

rmance against all key

performance indicators could bedrastically improved.

ce

uld

re

rall

Every supervisor and

sponsor we interviewe

Coachpalooza 05 exstrong desire to ha

coach their ag

asked them if they coone thing abou

arenal

environment, 100%supervisor participant

Find more time to co

While it is harder tdirect correlation thathas on call center p

supervisors

by hacenter perfo

Recommended Best Practices:

Make time for supervisors to coach. Make time for agents to receive coaching.



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Sometimes it can take up to 1 week from the time we get information

until the time we can take action. Then the coaching session is allabout trying to recreate the event. Thats hard on everybody.

- Coachpalooza 05 Participant

Key Find ing 2

CRM: Time delays in sales

activities are detrimentalCoaching: Time delays in

delivering coaching aredetrimental

Time delays can kill a sales

rep waits too long to call backor takes too long to respond to

RFP. In both cases, the urgencclarity of the situation is lost o

time, and the deal is threaten

cycle. T

a leaan

y anver

ed. CRhelped address these time delays w

prompts and sharing of informationsuch a way as to gain quick answer

both for the sales person and across

the sales team.

ill coaching

all therequently

romd us that

ntat the

be aware of it

weeks or even more. So,when the supervisor sits down to

ch the agent, the event may

agents mindally reduce the

ng.

he

d

d

M

ithin

s,

Time delays can k

effectiveness. Acrosscenters we visited, we fheard this complaint f

supervisors. They tol

when a coaching-warranted eveoccurs, it is often th

supervisor may notfor 1 3

coanot be fresh in the

which can drasticimpact of coachi

Recommended Best Practice:

To optimize the coaching that does occur, deliver it asclose as possible to the most coach-able moment.



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II. Information

There are 6 different documents, 6 different systems, 2 or morereports, email, and Excel spreadsheets. Its really time consuming.


Key Find ing 1

CRM: Information gets in theway of sales

Coaching: Information getsin the way of coaching in

the call center

Companies bought CRM solutibecause they helped organi

about prospects and sales in sway that it freed up the time

onsze data

uch a

salespeople spent on administrativ

clutter. The reasoning was that ifsalespeople had more time, they

would be in front of more customer

more often, and sales would increa

finds itself in awe considerachpalooza 05

visors areom multiple

mselves

ounts of timepreparing

information

effectivelycoach and manage their teams.

heard many expressions of

frustration over the time wasted inhroughinformation in order to properly

prepare for a coaching interaction.

e

s,se.

Todays call centersimilar scenario as

coaching. During Cowe found that super

deluged with data frsources and find the

spending large am

compiling, massaging,and distributing key

required to help them

We

trying to filter t


Clean up the data clutter to free up more time forcoaching.



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We dont have any real visibility into how much coaching is happening

or how effective coaching is in our center.


Key Find ing 2

CRM: What gets measured, getsdone

Coaching: What getsmeasured, gets done

An additional impetus for CRMthat management had no

key sales activities and no way

measure or to assess saleand/or effectiveness. To gain

information required to run thebusiness, salespeople were req

spend hours manually prepari

was

view intoto

s efficienc

uiredng

weekly activity reports detailingaccount updates and forecasts. It w

also difficult for a company tounderstand or create a standard sa

process in the absence of key data.

oaching in

hile it isxtremely

re is nong events, noevents, and

asurement offectiveness of

hat seniorlittle to no view

was being

oaching wasefficiency and

ctiveness of the coaching that

n the rare instance

cked ands a cumbersome and

manual reporting process.

y

to

as

les

The same is true for ctodays call center. W

considered to be an e

valuable activity, theforecasting of coachi

tracking of coachingno direct tie-in or me

the efficiency and ef

coaching. We found tmanagement had

into coaching -- whatcoached, how much c

taking place or the

effedid occur. I

where coaching is trameasured, it i


What gets measured gets done. Implement a tracking andmonitoring program for coaching activities.

Make coaching a metric.



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We work in a real time environment and have real time accountability

but we sometimes dont have access to information for days orweeks.


Key Find ing 3

CRM: Good decisions require

timely and relevant informationCoaching: Good decisions

require timely and relevant

informationAs Sales Force Automation (SFsystems matured and the com

that bought them matured in thof technology, the term Cu

Relationship Management (CRM

born. Using SFA as a core plaCRM solutions became strateg

drivers for businesses by incother types of data into the sa

system such as pricing, market

A)panie

eirstomer

) wa

tform,ic

orporatles

ing a

support cases. The idea was if salesreps had the rig

right time, they could make better

is key to call

r of metrics,

ic nature ofronment. Just

an

presenting datasalespeople

e, call center

a similarfocus. This involves taking a role-

ed perspective andunderstanding what and when

needed for optimal

rive keyperformance metrics.

s

use

s

ing

nd

The role of coachingcenter success, and it is a difficult

role given the numbesystems, and dynam

the call center envi

as CRM systems begconsolidating and

in a way that helpedimprove performanc

solutions need to take

ht information at the bas

decisions, in a more timely fashion

that would have a direct and positiveimpact on sales.

information is

decision making to d


Provide call center coaches w ith timely and relevantinformation that helps them make decisions that improve

performance.

If a metric is real time or almost real time, the informationrequired to coach that metric should be available real time.



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III. Process

Nearly 50% of supervisor participants answered that they did not havea clearly defined coaching process in place.

- From the Coachpalooza 05 Summary Report

Key Find ing 1

CRM: A standardized

sales process is

vital

to success

Coaching: A standardized coach ing

process is vital to success

Many companies rthat if they were goin

improve and sustain sperformance, then th

needed a stand

sales process repesustainable and

ealizedg to

alesey

ardized

atablerelevant t

their culture. Companiesturned to CRM solutions to

help implement andinstitutionalize these key

business proces

that while callthe value

ng to convert

eveloped

strong and

round

all other areas,leave it up to

the individual supervisor to decide process.

e did not provide any of the

nition of coaching we letwn. Our observation isthat the distinction between managing and

call centers.

,

o

Our research clearly indicatedcenters are beginning to recognize

of coaching, they are strugglithat belief into action. Most of th

participants in the research had de

partial and/or inconsistent coaching practices.In some centers, we observed

consistent coaching processes aadherence and attendance. In

we saw wide variations and a

ses. Additionally, w

participants a defithem evolve their o

coaching is not clear in most


Review all of your current coaching practices. Look for w hat is formal and company mandated versus

informal and dependent upon the experience of the

individual supervisor.

Create, document and communicate a complete set ofcoaching best practices.

Define the difference between managing and coaching.



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80% of Executive

Participants felt tha

tsupervisors do not havethe right tools to be an

effective coach.

- From C achpalooza 05o

Summary Report

Key Find ing 2

CRM: Sales is a key process thatbecame institutionalized with

the help of software CRM.

Coaching: Coaching is a keyprocess that is not yet

technology enabled.

Prior to CRM, sales administration

labor intensive process. Manage

challenge in directing the businesthe information they used was on

good as the latest manua

wa

rs ha

s asly a

lly preparedsales forecast. They did not have a v

into the business. With technology thautomated many of these manual

processes, mana

and timely information which allowed

ll center is still athe key

are peoplether elements

ould look to CRM

For example, we

managers havelittle visibility into what is being

ched, how often, by whom and

with what effect. Automating this

ne of themost fundamental issues

ddressed by CRM.

s a

d a

s

iew

at

Coaching in the ca

manual process. While

elements of coachingintensive, there are o

of coaching that shfor guidance.

observed that most

gers had more accurate coa

them to make better decisions. kind of visibility was o

successfully a


Use technology to forecast, track and measure the impact ofcoaching.

Use technology to help institutionalize coaching bestpractices.

Supervisors have all the right tools to bean effective coach

(Executive Responses)

20%

0%

20%0%

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

No Opinion

Agree

Strongly Agree

60%



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IV. People

While 87% of Supervisors felt they had the required skills to be an

effective coach, 80% of the participating Executives disagreed withthat assessment.

- From the Coachpalooza 05 Summary Report

Supervisors have all the right skills to be an effective

coach

5%

60%

46%

41%

5%2%

0%

20%

0%

20%

0%

25%

50%

75%

Supervisor

Executive

Strongly

Disagree

Disagree No Opinion Agree Strongly

Agree



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Key Find ing 1

CRM: Sales reps don t think

they need sales training (buttheir managers do)

Coaching: Supervisors dont think

they need coaching training (buttheir managers do)

Salespeople are by nature hig

confident in their skillsFor this reason, they were

highly resistant to CRM proje

required learning new salesprocesses and trai

hly

and abilitie

oftencts th

ning on how to

optimally execute those processes

Ever tried to get a sales rep in sal

training?

ude amongr. As a group,

t in their skills and

need foraching from

moren Key Finding

s we visited was

are comfortable coachingon traditional call center metrics like AHT

ndance, but are not comfortable

coaching on more complex issues like

s.

at

.

es

We found a similar attitsupervisors in the call cente

they are very confiden

abilities and do not feel thetraining for themselves or co

their managers on how to beeffective coaches. A commo

in most of the call center

that supervisors

and atte

revenue or career growth.


The managers are right supervisors need training on how tobe a complete coach together with expanding their skills to

include coaching on less traditional metrics like revenue,customer loyalty and career goals.



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Sometimes reps dont think they need to change but it is rewarding

when you coach them and then they see that they could and did

improve!- Coachpalooza 05 Participant

Key Find ing 2

CRM: CRM creates sharedaccountability

Coaching: Coaching createsshared accountability

As Sales Force Automation e

into Customer Relation

Management, it became morepeople and changing the beh

all the people who interact wcustomer. B

volvedship

abouavior o

ith the

y providing clearguidelines and with monitoring of a

activities, CRM enabled sharedresponsibility for the client across a

team of people.

ry focus groupd that call

re passionatee performance

el strongly

nd shoulde responsibility

rformance. Therviewed felt

its of setting upching

at it would

empower agents to improveividual performance, foster a

e of accountabilityd agent andhuge positive

ess.

tf

ll

We observed in eve

session we facilitate

center supervisors aabout improving th

of their people and fethat their agents can a

be accepting mor

for their own pesupervisors we inte

like the key benefa best practices coa

environment are th

ind

shared sensbetween coach an

ultimately, have aimpact on the busin


Supervisors believe that good coaching creates sharedaccountability for agent performance. Create programs

that allow agents to take a more aggressive role in theirown performance improvement.



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The Value-Driven Coaching Model

al, cultural

quency ofe generally

the shoulders ofisors alone, with little regard to helping the supervisors juggle all the

day to day realities of their jobs. The following graphic illustrates thissituation.

As this paper has indicated, there are a number of environmentand technology driven inhibitors that reduce the amount and frecoaching, as well as obscure its effectiveness when delivered. W

observed that coaching is an activity that falls squarely on

superv



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Based on our extensive research and findings from Coachpalooza

model emerged that addresses these inadequacies and provfor a multi-dimensional approach to ensure coaching

05, a

ides the structure

delivers the value

ter - seelief in the value

At the same

s andright

approach and structure, call centers can begin to put coaching into action to

its maximum effectiveness. Based on our Key Findings, this model addresses

four dimensions for creating coaching value.

promised to the agent, the customer, and to the business.

We call it the Value-Driven Coaching Model for the Call Cenillustration below. Our research clearly indicates a strong be

of coaching and the strong impact it can make on the business.time, we saw little action behind the words. This model recognize

enables the value coaching can bring. Our expectation is that with the



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The following set of questions can be used to help you apply the model to

your coaching environment.

time to

g time for

time delays indelivering coaching?

pact the effectiveness of the

coaching that gets delivered?

tion

formation they work with timely and

?u established coaching metrics?

u have a clearly defined coaching process for all metrics bothional (ex. AHT) and non-traditional (ex. revenue)?

of the coach in your center?based on a value-

aching process?

Are your supervisors prepared to coach? Are your supervisors and ts ready for a new coaching

relationship? Are your agents ready for a new level of accountability and

responsibility? Are your supervisors ready for a new level of accountability and

responsibility?

I. Time

Are you challenged with findingdeliver coaching?

Are you challenged with findinagents to receive coaching?

Do you have too many Does this im

II. Information

Are your supervisors on informaoverload?

Is the inrelevant

Have yo Are these coaching metrics tracked and

monitored?

III. Process

Do yotradit

Have you clearly defined the role What other work processes will need to change

driven co

IV. People

agen



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Conclusion

oaching isa high value activity, yet few agree that coaching is happening at the rate or

s it should?

the specific

andfollow up

question

answered. At the most basic level, our research indicates

l issue ofg less

sts that multipleto create

n the call

powered to prioritize coaching, theamount and effectiveness of coaching in the call center will continue to lag.

Additionally, until coaching becomes a metric that is tracked, monitored and

coached to, like AHT, adherence, quality and revenue are, it will continue tobe pushed to the bottom of the to do list.

Our research indicates that most call center executives agree that c

level of effectiveness they need for their business.

So, why isnt coaching happening as much or as effectively a

While the Knowlagent team did not begin Coachpalooza 05 withintent of answering this question, it emerged as THE significantpervasive issue. During the course of all of our interviews and the

with each company to present their Key Findings, this was the

everyone wantedthat many companies are addressing the complex, multi-dimensiona

coaching with a simple, one-dimensional approach and are achievinthan desired results.

Just as with successful CRM initiatives, our experience sugge

dimensions must be addressed, aligned, and carefully monitoredand sustain a comprehensive, value-driven coaching dimension i

center. Unless supervisors are provided with the appropriate supporting

environment to find time, and are em



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About Knowlagent

gement

agent managemenhiring reduce

ties whileimproving the key metrics that matter most to you.

ase the amountfectiveness of coaching, ultimately

versions and

g solution, you

trol by as much a

tools to

and create individualize

solutions.

hedule time for coaches and age

gaps.

and

ctiveness of coaching.

eness of coachin

en supervisor

With Knowlagent, you can optimize frontline performan

faster and more affordably than ever before. You canspend less and get better. For more information aboutKnowlagent Coaching and our other on-demand agentmanagement solutions, visit us at www.knowlagent.com

By automating traditional call center manaprocesses, Knowlagents on-demand

solutions for training, coaching andspending attributed to off-phone activi

Knowlagent Coaching helps you increfrequency and efimproving key metrics such as sales con

overall agent productivity.

With Knowlagents on-demand Coachincan:

Increase supervisor span of con

20%.

Provide supervisors with easy-to-use

diagnose agent problems

Automatically sc

to meet to review performance

Dramatically increase the amount, frequencyeffe

Measure the impact and effectiv

Create shared accountability betweand agents.

57 Royal Drive, Suite 100haretta, GA 30022

8-566-9457w knowlagent com

11800 Amberpark Drive

Suite 200Alpharetta, GA 30009

Main: (678) 356-3500Toll Free: (888) 566-9457www.knowlagent.com

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