The document outlines the training programs offered by the Contact Center Association, led by experienced instructors, aimed at improving management skills in contact centers across various U.S. cities. It emphasizes the importance of effective management practices, performance monitoring, and the evolving role of contact center operations in enhancing customer service. The text also touches on key challenges in contact center management, including schedule adherence and the need for structured performance management models.

1. CALL CENTER MANAGEMENT | SCHEDULE ADHERENCE | CONTACT CENTER ASSOCIATION TRAINING
MARCH . APRIL . 2011
contactcenterassociation.com
New York, NY
MAY2-6
CONTACT CENTER ASSOCIATION
TRAINING... REGISTER TODAY!
contactcenterassociation.com/training
San Francisco, CA
JUNE20-24
Dallas, TX
SEPT19-23
Miami, FL
DEC 12-16

2. INSTRUCTORS
Jay Minnucci President and Founder, Service Agility
Jay Minnucci is the President and Founder of Service Agility, a consulting and training
company dedicated to improving customer service and contact center operations. In this
role, he provides strategic and tactical guidance across all industries for enterprises that seek
to optimize customer interactions. His client list ranges from small start-up operations to
large Fortune 500 corporations. Prior to starting his own firm, he spent eight years as the
Vice President of Consulting for the International Customer Management Institute (ICMI).
Before becoming a consultant, he spent 17 years running mission critical award winning
contact center operations.
Jay Penny Reynolds Founding Partner, Call Center School
Penny Reynolds develops and teaches courses on a wide variety of call center topics and speaks
at many industry conferences and association meetings, delivering more than 20 speeches and
workshops each year to call center professionals. Before co-founding The Call Center School,
Penny was the senior trainer and developer for Call Center University (CCU) which delivered
educational seminars in the areas of workforce management; recruiting; hiring; training; call
center mathematics; traffic engineering; performance measurement and management; call
center technologies; and staff retention. Prior to her role at CCU, Penny was the Director of
Marketing for TCS Management Group, a company specializing in workforce management
software solutions. Penny originally joined TCS as a Senior Consultant and spent several years
doing general call center and telecommunications consulting, working with a wide variety of call
centers. Her articles have appeared in publications such as Customer Relationship Management,
Penny
Call Center/CRM Solutions, Customer Support Management, Contact Center’s Inbound magazine
and others. An honors graduate of Vanderbilt University, Penny was one of the first recipients of
Call Center Magazine’s prestigious Call Center Pioneer award. Penny is a CIAC- Certified Call
Center Management Consultant.
Marilyn Saulnier Senior Consultant, Service Agility
Marilyn Saulnier is a Senior Consultant at Service Agility, which provides consulting
services to clients seeking to improve the efficiency and quality of services provided to their
customers. She works with clients across a broad range of industries to improve their call
center operations and customer experience. Prior to joining Service Agility, she spent five
years as a Senior Consultant for the International Customer Management Institute (ICMI)
and three years as a Senior Consultant for Alltel Information Services, Global Professional
Services. Prior to becoming a consultant, Marilyn spent over 18 years managing all aspects
Marilyn of call center operations.
Maggie Klenke Founding Partner, Call Center School
Maggie Klenke is a founding Partner of The Call Center School and an active industry
consultant. She assists clients in the development of strategic and tactical plans; technology
applications and integration; staffing and scheduling; service level analysis; and overall
management issues. Maggie teaches seminars on a wide variety of call center and
telecommunications topics and is a popular speaker at industry conferences. Maggie writes
frequently for the industry press and is on the editorial boards of the International Journal
of Call Centre Management and CRM Magazine. She has also co-authored the five textbooks
that support the Call Center Manager curriculum at the University of Phoenix, Call Center
Staffing – The Complete Practical Guide to Workforce Management, Business School Essentials
Maggie for the Call Center Leader, and Call Center Supervision – The Complete Practical Guide to
Managing Frontline Staff
2 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

3. LETTER FROM EDITOR
@QueueGuru QueueGuru Contact Center Association
W E LC O M E
C
Editor-in Chief: Rich Hand ontact Center Association is offering new training classes in four cities across the
rhand@ccapro.com
country – New York, San Francisco, Dallas and Miami. We have chosen our locations
Editor: Yvonne Hamilton based on easy access for contact center leaders. The training courses are designed to
yhamilton@ccapro.com
help the leaders in the industry stay informed of the latest practices needed to run
Creative Director: Scott Hanson
shanson@ccapro.com
increasingly more complex customer service organizations.
Media Sales: Cheri Bruno Managing a High Impact Contact Center is a must attend for directors, managers and
cbruno@ccapro.com
supervisors responsible for the customer experience. The course includes outlining the strategic
role the contact center plays in the organization and how to leverage the business intelligence that
How to reach INBOUND is harvested in the center. It is a course that both experienced and new leaders will need to be
Letters to the editor may be sent to: successful in the changing environment of the contact center.
editor@ccapro.com
About Contact Center Association (CCA) We are introducing five additional training courses: Workforce Management and Beyond:
CCA provides professionals with information, Efficiency that Builds Loyalty, Results Coaching: The Secret to Building High Performance
education, training and professional
networking opportunities. Teams, Quality Monitoring and beyond: Minding the Gap between Performance and
724 S Tejon Suite C • Colorado Springs Possibility, Fundamentals of Call Center Supervision, Contact Center Operations and Business
Colorado, 80903 • 719.476.0289
Management. Each course is designed to improve your performance as a contact center leader.
About INBOUND
INBOUND is digitally published by CCA. This edition also has three articles from the trainers who will be delivering our training courses.
It is a bi-monthly magazine which focuses on
contact center operations and topics impacting The trainers have a true passion for the industry; I encourage you to read these articles full of great
the contact center industry and practitioner.
information and if you have training needs check out when they are offering their new courses.
Back Issues of INBOUND
You may access electronic back issues at As part of the training experience, you can also take advantage of the site tours and networking
www.contactcenterassociation.com/inbound.
opportunities. You will receive valuable knowledge from sharing experiences and networking
Editorial Submissions
Visit contactcenterassociation.com to learn with your peers. It is an exciting time for our industry and we are proud to introduce this
more about submitting editorial to INBOUND. newest training offering.
Copyright © 2011 Redwood Collaborative Media
All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of the
contents in whole or in part without permission Regards,
of the publisher is prohibited.
RichHAND
T.O.CONTENTS ISSUE 02 2011 Director of Membership & Publications
02 | Instructors 14 | COURSE: Results Coaching:
The Secret to Building High Performance Test Teams
03 | Letter from the Editor
15 | COURSE: Quality Monitoring and Beyond:
04 | Five Phrases We Should All Embrace Minding the Gap between Performance and Possibility
Jay Minnucci, Every industry has its own language.
Contact centers are no exception. 16 | COURSE: Contact Center Operations and
Business Management
06 | Training Schedule at a Glance
17 | Registration Information
08 | Steps for Attacking Adherence Problems
Penny Reynolds, A structured performance management model is the key to 18 | Mastering the Fundamentals of Call Center Management
dealing with one of management’s biggest problems – schedule adherence. Marilyn Saulnier, Top five list of where companies should focus in order to get
value from their call center investment and deliver on their brand promises.
10 | Networking
20 | How to Sell Training to Your Manager
11 | COURSE: Managing a High Impact Contact Center Yvonne Hamilton, Ten steps for training approval
12 | COURSE: Workforce Management and Beyond: 22 | Five Reasons Training Matters
Efficiency that Builds Loyalty Bob Last, Perspectives on the value of training
13 | COURSE: Fundamentals of Call Center Supervision
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 3

4. 5 PHRASES
M
any of the terms we use are forward-thinking and
help drive positive behavior. Yet there is always
room for improvement, and there are a number of
phrases out there that should work their way into
our language. Listed below are my top five:
1 Career Agent
FIVE
Between consulting projects, seminars, and industry
conferences I have had conversations with thousands of
contact center professionals. During all that time I cannot
PHRASES
honestly recall a single instance of someone using the term
“career agent” – at least, not in a positive way. How is that
possible? We know it is a challenging, important assignment.
Yet we seem to expect that talented staff will want to move on.
Some of the more enlightened among us have devised career
We Should All Embrace paths that help people work up and/or across the enterprise.
Let’s augment those with a “stay right here” development
program that encourages frontline staff to continually
improve in their assignment. A great agent is not only hard to
Every industry has its own find, but he/she is expensive to replace.
language. Terms, acronyms, and
phrases help define a profession
as unique and specialized.
Contact centers are no exception.
2 Cognitive Drift
We have a language we all use Fans of the Freakonomics book series by Levitt and Dubner
to help us more easily connect might recognize this term. It describes how we lose focus when
with like-minded leaders at our attention wanders. It is surprising to learn how easy it
is for this to happen. You can be heads-down and focused
seminars, conferences, and with razor sharp clarity on a task, stop for a second to swat
other networking events. a fly away, then stare at the task in front of you for the
next 15 seconds trying to figure exactly what you
were doing. If that sounds familiar to you, rest
by JayMINNUCCI assured that you are not alone.
Does that matter to us in contact centers?
It absolutely does, and in two very
important ways. First, our agents spend
all day in front of a computer, flipping
constantly between applications. That
delay of a few seconds is not only
annoying – it has some serious quality
implications. I cringe when I question
staff about response times and I hear
“Not too bad, just a few seconds or so”.
Not only is a few seconds way too long,
but the lack of a more exact answer tells
me that it will never likely improve.
4 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

5. 5 PHRASES
Second, many of us expect our agents to multi-task. Handle a
call when it comes in, but in between time work on cases, or 4 Engineering Department
email, or faxes, or whatever else may be lying around. Despite
those exclamations about how some people multi-task well, In the infancy of the industry, contact centers were much
what we are learning is that no one really does it well – some simpler than they are today. One toll-free number, no menus,
are just a bit less poor than others. If the expectation is that and staff trained to handle every incoming call made the
people have to constantly flip from one task to another, be number of options limited. Thirty years later, contacts come
forewarned that productivity and quality will take a hit. in from various channels, through a myriad of menus, and
are subjected to different queuing and priority treatments.
The technological advancements have been great, but the
backlash is an environment with so many possibilities that
3 Moment of Truth forecasting and routing errors are commonplace. Making the
most of technology and staffing resources is an exceptionally
Your contact center handles thousands, or maybe millions, difficult task, and way too many of us try to do this with
of contacts annually. They all matter. Yet the reality is that minimally trained staff that was not hired for analytical talent
some matter much more than others. Sales operations often in the first place. We need to recognize the difficulty and
recognize this. Service centers lag behind. importance of this work and treat it like the engineering
exercise that it is.
Consider an insurance company. Many have centralized
contact centers that provide excellent service for basic
requests – did you receive my payment, I need to add a
driver, etc. Claims calls, however, are handled in a different
manner. Often sent to decentralized offices, these calls 5 Steady Eddie
typically are not reported on the same way, monitored as
diligently, or held to the same high standards as the service It is human nature to look for the dynamo when hiring.
calls. The irony, of course, is that the claim experience is We want to find the person that will really light up the
why you buy the insurance in the first place. Answering my workplace and motivate others on the team. Why?
account balance question effectively is nice, but I will not On the frontline, our work in contact centers is
remember that when I get transferred around and eventually one-on-one with the customer. We need people that
have to leave a voice mail about an accident that has left are rarely absent, arrive on time, and are professional,
me without transportation. Whatever industry you are in, friendly and informative on a consistent basis. We
it is critical to define the “moment of truth” call from the want them to enjoy the work and be intrinsically
customer’s perspective. Whatever it might be, that is where motivated by satisfying the customer. Does that
the level of service should be most impressive. sounds like a dynamo or a Steady Eddie? The next
time you are in an interview and are thinking about
placing a red x on the sheet because you were not
“wowed”, step back and think again. The quiet,
somewhat introverted person in front of you might
“It is surprising to be just the employee to give you five great years
learn how easy it is and 50,000 satisfied customers.
to lose focus when our
attention wanders.”
Jay Minnucci is the President and Founder of Service Agility,
a consulting company dedicated to improving customer service and
call center operations. His client list ranges from small start-up operations
to large Fortune 500 corporations, and he has completed assignments
in contact centers around the globe. Jay contributes articles to a number
of contact center journals, leads seminars on call center management,
and is a featured speaker at many industry conferences.
Visit him online at: www.serviceagility.com
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 5
Freakonomics book cover image

6. SCHEDULE
NEW YORK SAN FRANCISCO
MAY2-6 2011 New York, NY JUNE20-24 2011 San Francisco, CA
MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY
8:30 – 5:00 each day 8:30 – 5:00 each day
Managing A High Impact Contact Center Results Coaching Site Tours
Workforce Management Quality Monitoring
Fundamentals of Call Center Supervision Contact Center Operations and Business Management
(Schedule is subject to change. Please visit www.contactcenterassociation.com/training for an updated schedule at a glance)
MONDAY
7:30am – 8:30am Breakfast
8:30am – 5:00pm Training Courses: Managing a High Impact Contact Center, Workforce
Management and Beyond, Fundamentals of Call Center Supervision
12:00pm – 1:00pm Lunch
TUESDAY
7:30am – 8:30am Breakfast
7:45am – 8:30am Breakfast Roundtable Sessions
8:30am – 5:00am Training Courses: Managing a High Impact Contact Center, Workforce
Management and Beyond, Fundamentals of Call Center Supervision
12:00pm – 1:00pm Lunch
5:30pm – 7:00pm Networking Reception
6 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

7. SCHEDULE
DALLAS MIAMI
2011
SEPT19-23 2011 Dallas, TX DEC 12-16 2011
Miami, FL
WEDNESDAY
7:30am – 8:30am Breakfast
8:30am – 5:00pm Training Courses: Results Coaching, Quality Monitoring,
Contact Center Operations and Business Management
12:00pm – 1:00pm Lunch
THURSDAY
7:30am – 8:30am Breakfast
7:45am – 8:15am Ask the Experts Sessions
8:30am – 5:00pm Training Courses: Results Coaching, Quality Monitoring,
Contact Center Operations and Business Management
12:00pm – 1:00pm Lunch
FRIDAY
7:30am – 8:30am Breakfast
8:30am – 11:30am Site Tour 1
11:30pm – 12:30pm Lunch
12:30pm – 3:30pm Site Tour 2
Learn more at: Attend for
www.contactcenterassociation.com/training
Enriched Skills
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 7

8. For all you workforce planners
out there, it’s time to step away
from erlangs and workload
distributions and enter the
world of psychology and
behavior analytics.
Performance Management Approach
Figuring out why people behave a certain way is called behavior
STEPS
analytics and the application of this psychological science in the
workplace is called performance management. A structured
performance management model is made up of the following steps.
1. Define performance standards and objectives
2. Measure existing performance
3. Identify gaps in “what we want” versus “what we have”
4. Determine root cause(s) for the performance gap(s)
ATTACKING 5. Apply a behavioral solution to address the underlying cause
ADHERENCE The first step is to define performance standards and communicate them
P RO B L E M S
to the staff. This involves defining the precise times that a person is
expected to be on the phones, take breaks, go to lunch, work on other
activities, and so on. This needs to be defined and then communicated
clearly as the expectation. Don’t assume that when you specify a start
time of 7:30am that it’s perfectly clear what that means. If you mean
Ask workforce management logged in at 7:30 ready to take a call, then be explicit.
professionals about their Another part of this definition will involve the leeway that exists in
biggest problem and many will meeting the exact numbers. What percent time out of adherence
tell you that it is schedule adherence. will be allowed at a maximum? Are there various levels of adherence
that will earn them a better “grade” than others? And what are the
rewards and/or consequences for meeting the goal or not meeting it?
All this needs to be clearly defined and communicated.
Part of the communication about schedule adherence needs to be
education about the numbers. Be sure everyone understands the
relevance of adherence and why it’s so important that each person be
by PennyREYNOLDS in their seat on time. Every member of the team should understand
the “power of one” when it comes to call center staffing and know the
impact they make on speed of service, occupancy, and bottom-line cost.
E
normous effort goes into forecasting workload,
calculating staff requirements, and creating staff The next step is to measure performance. Note the login/logout times
schedules, but all that hard work goes down the drain compared to schedule and note the deviations, both in terms of total
when the frontline staff doesn’t stick to the schedule minutes as well as a percentage of total hours scheduled. If the deviation
plan. This lack of schedule adherence is frustrating and it’s meets your defined “grace period”, then there’s no performance gap.
expensive. So what can be done about it? However, if the deviation from schedule is more than allowed, the next
This article will outline some of the reasons that agents may step is to identify the reason that person is not meeting the expectation.
not be adhering to their planned schedules and explore some
potential solutions to the problem. For all you workforce Three Reasons for Non-Performance
planners out there, it’s time to step away from erlangs and There are three basic reasons why an employee doesn’t do what is
workload distributions and enter the world of psychology expected. These reasons are:
and behavior analytics.
1 Don’t Know 2 Can’t 3 Won’t
Let’s take a look at these from a schedule adherence perspective.
8 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

9. ADHERENCE
First, the agent may not know what is expected in terms of associated with this lack of schedule adherence, along with the
schedule adherence. Have expectations been communicated clearly? personal, immediacy, and certainty aspects of the consequences.
Does the agent know how much deviation is allowed and what the
consequences will be for adhering or not adhering? Make sure each Lack of Schedule Positive/ Personal/ Immediate/ Certain/
person understands the schedule “contract,” grades of adherence, Adherence Consequences Negative General Future Uncertain
and consequences for following or not following the plan.
Impact on Service Level N G I C
The other instance of “don’t know” is when agents are fully aware
of the expectation, but are not getting enough feedback about how Impact on Peer Occupancy N G I C
they’re adhering to the work plan. Make individual schedule adherence
Bad Appraisal N P F U
statistics available to them on a regular basis, preferably daily.
The next possibility for cause of the problem is in the “can’t” category. Loss of Bonus N P F U
Perhaps they don’t have the knowledge/skill to perform, or there is a
10-minutes Extra Sleep P P I C
barrier or obstacle preventing proper performance. While the “can’t”
reason can explain some other performance issues in the call center, it More Time to Socialize P P I C
is generally not an underlying cause of adherence problems. However,
occasionally there is a “barrier” to adherence (long calls forcing them Fewer Calls to Take P P I C
to vary from scheduled stop times or severe understaffing that make
it difficult to actually break away from phones when planned).
Even though there are many negative consequences associated
This brings us to the final category and the reason for most
with a lack of schedule adherence, the employee may continue to
adherence problems – the “won’t” category. Most employees
do it. Two of the consequences are not felt as a personal effect. The
with an adherence problem have willfully decided not to stick
bad appraisal and loss of bonus are also negative, but they are not
to the schedule. The reason for this behavior is most often the
immediate. Those things will likely happen sometime out in the
lack of a proper behavioral consequence.
future, and may be viewed as uncertain by the employee.
If your call center has no real consequences associated with schedule
These negative consequences may be outweighed by the positive
adherence, then think about what happens to two agents seated side
consequences. The benefits may include an extra ten minutes of
by side. Sarah is the picture of punctuality while her neighbor Alex is
“snooze” time in the morning, or an extra few minutes to socialize
consistently late. With no formal system of consequences in place, Sarah
in the break room, not to mention fewer calls to take. All these
will actually be getting negative consequences by being on time – she
consequences are personally felt by the employee, and they’re all
has to handle more calls and workload is heavier because someone is
immediate and certain. Even though they’re not as significant as the
missing. On the other hand, Alex is getting positive consequences by his
negative ones, the fact that they’re personal, immediate, and certain
behavior – he may be getting another few minutes sleep in the morning
may sway the employee to continue his errant schedule behavior.
or be spending extra time in the coffee area and he doesn’t have to take
as many calls. Unless a regular, predictable system of consequences is in The key when developing a plan of consequences is to apply
place, you may be rewarding the behaviors you want to disappear, while consequences that are positive to shape desired behavior. However,
there’s nothing to support the actions you want to see. it’s not enough that the consequence is positive. It also has to be
personal (something that means something to the employee),
Applying consequences is critical to shaping behavior. While some
immediate, and certain for it to work as an influence on behavior.
consequences occur naturally, others will need to be consciously
applied. For example, agents may demonstrate some desirable
Conclusion
behaviors such as telephone etiquette because they get an
The job of the workforce planner isn’t over when the schedules are
immediate consequence for doing so – a friendly, thankful reaction
complete. Making the plan a success involves working with supervisors
from a customer. However, other behaviors like schedule adherence
and frontline staff to ensure that everyone is where they’re supposed to
don’t come with natural built-in positive consequences, so you will
be. Schedule adherence will be much higher when the frontline staff
have to apply consequences to shape the behavior you want to see.
have been educated on the relevance and importance of sticking to the
Negative consequences can also be used, but they are not as effective as plan and provided with regular feedback on how they’re doing. Match
positive consequences. Negative reinforcement will shape performance, this with a system of appropriate rewards and consequences and you’ll
but it generally produces behaviors that are just enough to get by. see schedule adherence steadily and surely improve.
Discipline and punishment will generally stop a negative behavior,
but in some cases only for a little while, and it will never encourage
employees to give maximum effort like positive consequences can do.
In addition to the positive/negative aspects associated with
a consequence there are also the aspects of how personal a
consequence is, how immediate it is, and how certain it is. Let’s Penny Reynolds develops and teaches courses on a wide variety of
look at an example where positive aspects for adherence and call center topics and speaks at many industry conferences and association
negative aspects for non-adherence are in place, but still don’t yield meetings, delivering more than 20 speeches and workshops each year to
the desired result. Examine both the positive and negative effects call center professionals.
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 9

10. N C T WM I K I N G
TE AP OR HGIH
www.contactcenterassociation.com/training
New York
MAY 2-6
NETWORKING
ASK THE EXPERTS
Attend with your list of contact center challenges
and questions. You will have the opportunity to ask
industry professionals and consultants how they
have addressed your same roadblocks.
ROUND TABLES SITE TOURS
Make the most of your breakfast time and join Attend a tour to share best practices in a live
your peers in facilitated discussions. Roundtable setting where you have the opportunity to visually
discussions are designed to help you learn, understand the operations. You will receive an
socialize, and network at your fullest potential. overview of the organization, detailed information
Topics will reflect the most pressing issues you about the processes and practices utilized and have
face each day. We’ll provide the facilitator, but it the chance to ask questions.
is up to you and your peers to discuss solutions
This unique opportunity gives you a chance to
for these important issues.
network, learn and share information that you
would not normally have access to. You will return
RECEPTION to the office with new perspectives to implement.
Network and experience the electrifying energy at Visit us online for site tour details:
the Contact Center Association training reception. www.contactcenterassociation.com/training
NEW YORK SAN FRANCISCO DALLAS MIAMI
Breakfast Round Table Breakfast Round Table Breakfast Round Table Breakfast Round Table
Discussions Discussions Discussions Discussions
Tuesday May 3, 7:45am – 8:15am Tuesday June 21, 7:45am – 8:15am Tuesday September 20, 7:45am – 8:15am Tuesday December 13, 7:45am – 8:15am
Networking Reception Networking Reception Networking Reception Networking Reception
Tuesday May 3, 5:30pm – 7:00pm Tuesday June 21, 5:30pm – 7:00pm Tuesday September 20, 5:30pm – 7:00pm Tuesday December 13, 5:30pm – 7:00pm
Ask the Expert Sessions Ask the Expert Sessions Ask the Expert Sessions Ask the Expert Sessions
Thursday May 5, 7:45am – 8:15am Thursday June 23, 7:45am – 8:15am Thursday September 22, 7:45am – 8:15am Thursday December 15, 7:45am – 8:15am
Site Tours Site Tours Site Tours Site Tours
Friday May 6, 8:30am – 3:30pm Friday June 24, 8:30am – 3:30pm Friday September 23, 8:30am – 3:30pm Friday December 16, 8:30am – 3:30pm
10 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

11. In this new era, it is critical COURSE DESCRIPTION
GNIKROWTEN
for industry professionals to be
knowledgeable, highly skilled, and
adept at maximizing value across
the enterprise.
MANAGING A HIGH IMPACT
CONTACT CENTER
Customers are more demanding and empowered than ever before.
Contact centers are more challenging and complex than ever before. In this new era,
it is critical for industry professionals to be knowledgeable, highly skilled, and adept at
maximizing value across the enterprise.
This two day Managing a High Impact Contact Center course integrates fundamental principles with the
reality of today’s multichannel 24x7 world to deliver innovative ideas for success. During this course you will
learn how to enhance the strategic value of your operation and build customer loyalty through exceptional customer
service. Discover new ways to deliver value and lower overall expenses while raising customer satisfaction levels.
With our development model to guide you through assessment and prioritization, you will leave this seminar ready to
implement the ideas, solutions, and methodologies that will improve your contact center’s performance.
Topics to be Addressed:
l Recognize the unique strategic position of contact centers and how to capitalize on the availability
of customer and business intelligence
l Understand how to leverage the efficiency of a centralized contact center to improve the bottom line
l Identify the channel options that can most effectively serve your customers and your business
l Establish high quality service as your standard and make it the cornerstone to a memorable customer experience
l Create an environment that values each staff member and maximizes their levels of engagement
l Learn the key principles that must be mastered to make the most of a contact center investment
l Chart your contact center’s course through all levels of development: initial, developing, maturing, and
the high performing optimizing stage
Who Should Attend
This course is designed for directors, managers, and supervisors responsible for customer service in all industries.
Whether you are new to contact centers or an experienced veteran, you will have countless “aha” moments as the
pieces of the puzzle come together with exceptional clarity.
Course taught by: Marilyn Saulnier, Service Agility
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 11

12. COURSE DESCRIPTION
WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT AND BEYOND:
EFFICIENCY THAT BUILDS LOYALTY
Every contact center leader searches for ways to bring down the high
operational costs while still delivering the world class service that customers
demand. The challenge is a formidable one, as the options offered by today’s
technology and work processes offer as many obstacles as opportunities.
Successful contact center leaders know how to negotiate the possibilities
to meet the needs of customers in the most efficient ways, while those less
experienced struggle through a seemingly endless game of trial and error
to find the right combination.
This two day course, WFM and beyond: Efficiency that Builds Loyalty, will
give you the knowledge required to reduce expenses and improve customer
satisfaction. You will learn how to design your workflow processes from the
customer’s perspective, and how the attention to speed will positively impact
the customer experience. This course will also present examples on how to use
analytics to always be prepared for customer needs, and to evaluate how well
you have performed. Our approach of combining efficient workflow design with
the most valuable workforce management practices will help you to create an
organization that is always able to wow the customer without needing to break the
bank. This course is exactly what you need when the call is to do more with less.
Topics to be Addressed
l Learn ways to reduce contacts by anticipating customer needs
and responses
l Devise self service systems that are easy to understand and easy to access
l Design menus and call routing treatments that minimize the total cost
of service while improving first call resolution
l Recognize where proactive service can be utilized as a way to reduce
inbound contacts and impress your customers
l Identify the tricks to building efficient call handling processes across
your organization
l Understand the critical importance of WFM practices and ensure that
yours are optimizing staff resources
l Review best practices related to forecasting, staffing, scheduling,
and real time management
l Learn how to build a staffing model that accurately predicts resource
Every contact requirements and presents results with clarity and simplicity
center leader searches l Identify the key performance indicators that regulate and improve efficiency
for ways to bring down l Learn how to analyze data to identify opportunities for improvement
the high operational costs Who Should Attend
while still delivering the This course is designed for directors, managers, supervisors, and analysts that
world class service that are responsible for delivering efficient and effective service.
customers demand. Course taught by: Jay Minnucci, Service Agility
12 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

13. COURSE DESCRIPTION
FUNDAMENTALS OF
CALL CENTER SUPERVISION
The Fundamentals of Call Center Supervision two day course is designed
specifically for the call center supervisor or manager. Students will learn
proven approaches for managing today’s contact center from both an
operational and human resource management perspective. The first day of
the program provides supervisors with essential knowledge about call center
operations and the dynamics of call center performance. It includes a look at
all the statistics typically used in managing a call center as well as a behind the
scenes look at call center functions such as workforce management, quality
assurance, and reporting. The second day of the class helps supervisors define
performance objectives, identify and diagnose performance issues, and coach
effectively. It focuses on staff retention strategies and how to motivate and
manage in a team environment.
Topics to be Addressed
l Describe the critical competencies for call center supervisors
and identify the top ten leadership traits
l Define workforce management and outline a step-by-step process for
forecasting calls, calculating staff, and creating workforce schedules
l Identify the most critical KPIs for call center and agent performance
as well as, calculate the service, cost, and productivity implications
of staffing decisions
l Outline the components of a performance management model and
understand how to set individual performance objectives that are
in line with the enterprise and call center goals
l Identify the steps in conducting a performance review and practice
diagnosing performance problems as well as identifying proper
courses of action
l Identify the important factors in implementing an effective reward
and recognition system
l Discuss the main reasons why employees leave and calculate the
hard and soft costs of turnover to the business
l Describe the key elements of an effective retention program and
outline multiple strategies for improving morale within a work team
Who Should Attend
Contact Center managers, supervisors and team leads that are responsible
for day-to-day operations from a people and management perspective.
Course taught by: Penny Reynolds, Call Center School
San Francisco
www.contactcenterassociation.com/training JUNE 20-24
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 13

14. COURSE DESCRIPTION
RESULTS COACHING: THE SECRET TO
BUILDING HIGH PERFORMANCE TEST TEAMS
Many organizations underestimate the impact performance coaching has on a
contact center’s performance, employee morale, and the quality of the customer
experience. Relationships with customers are often made or ruined based on
their experience with a front line call center agent. Sometimes it only takes 3-4
minutes for you to build customer loyalty and reap the benefits of a customer
who will be your champion at every opportunity. In the same 3-4 minutes a
customer relationship can be destroyed, and through the power of social media
millions of potential customers may be lost to your competition.
This two day course, Effective Coaching: The Secret to Building High Performing
Teams, will equip and energize you to deliver transformational coaching in
your contact center. You will learn and practice a simple method for delivering
specific, concise feedback to agents that will have a measurable impact on the
quality of service delivered to your customers. This approach to coaching will
positively affect employee performance, increase the level of staff engagement,
and improve the culture of your operation. You will leave this course ready
to implement coaching methodologies that will improve results from even
your most challenging employees. If you want to lead a high performing team
delivering excellent service then this is your ideal seminar.
Topics to be Addressed
l Learn the key skills and attributes required to be a successful coach
l Learn how to use the GROW model to formulate and deliver a concrete
plan of action for each employee
l Identify the best approach to coaching by utilizing the GROW model
in mock exercises designed around performance issues
l Apply and reinforce coaching skills in class role playing scenarios
l Address resistance, stalled performance negotiations and behaviors
that must be eliminated immediately
l Identify how to appropriately balance substandard performance feedback
with positive reinforcement
l Eliminate employee perception of bias and gain coaching program support
Who Should Attend
This course is designed for managers and supervisors with direct responsibility
for employee performance.
Course taught by: Jay Minnucci – Service Agility
www.contactcenterassociation.com/training
DALLAS
SEPT 19-23
14 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

15. COURSE DESCRIPTION
QUALITY MONITORING AND BEYOND:
MINDING THE GAP BETWEEN
PERFORMANCE AND POSSIBILITY
Most contact centers have some type of quality monitoring program,
yet many begin and end with the basic process of evaluating agent performance.
World class organizations know that a monitoring program can go much further.
A contact center quality program has the potential to share valuable information
with other departments, to improve efficiency and service quality and to
drive process improvements in the contact center as well as throughout the
organization. Successful leaders know that quality monitoring is not a once
and done event. It is a journey of continuous improvement which, when
successful, progresses from identifying errors to preventing them from
occurring in the first place.
This two day course, Quality Monitoring and Beyond: Minding the Gap
between Performance and Possibility, will give you the knowledge to develop a
comprehensive contact center quality plan that drives critical key performance
indicators. Additionally, you will learn how to use a proven model to assess
the key processes of your quality monitoring program, identify gaps between
current versus desired levels of quality program development and results,
identify best practices, and gain support for needed resources.
Topics to be Addressed
l Recognize the role of quality monitoring in improving productivity,
profitability and customer satisfaction
l Learn how to align business objectives and customer needs to
quality criteria that support your goals
l Assess the components of a comprehensive quality plan including
approaches and tools
l Develop contact center monitoring criteria which supports strategic
objectives and drives individual performance improvement
l Learn how to analyze performance gaps and identify opportunities
for improvement A contact center
l Develop a specific plan for improving your quality program
quality program has the
Learn tips to involve the right people in the process
l
l Examine the best practices in quality monitoring program design,
potential to share valuable
implementation and maintenance information with other
departments, to improve
Who Should Attend
This course is designed for directors, managers, and supervisors with
efficiency and service
direct responsibility for contact center quality initiatives. quality and to drive
process improvements
Course taught by: Marilyn Saulnier – Service Agility
in the contact center
as well as throughout
the organization.
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 15

16. COURSE E T W O R K I N G
N DESCRIPTION Running a successful contact
center is like running a business,
and therefore today’s center leaders
need to have the right skills.
www.contactcenterassociation.com/training
CONTACT CENTER OPERATIONS
AND BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
The Operations and Business Management two day course is designed specifically
for the call center manager or executive searching for the knowledge and tools to
manage today’s dynamic contact center operation. Running a successful contact
center is like running a business, and therefore today’s center leaders need to
have skills in strategic planning; organizational design; financial management and
MIAMI decision-making; business process improvement; workforce planning; reporting
DEC 12-16 and communications. Many of these skills can be acquired in business school but
this class takes this knowledge one step further by applying it to the unique challenges
and operational issues found in today’s contact center.
Topics to be Addressed
l Identify the critical KPIs that reflect quality of service and l Review and interpret a wide range of call center
service efficiency for call center and agent performance financial reports, including various types of budgeting,
and describe how to perform a correlation analysis to most frequently used in call center operations
ensure correct KPIs are in place to support the call l Outline the steps of a capital investment analysis and
center and organizational mission and goals perform a comprehensive return on investment analysis
l Define the components of auditing the workforce for purchase decisions
management function and outline a step-by-step l Identify various models of business process
process of forecasting calls, calculating staff and improvement and outline the critical steps of
creating workforce schedules business process improvement
l Define effective processes for recruiting, screening,
interviewing and hiring key staff
Who Should Attend
l Discuss the pros and cons of an at-home staffing
program and identify the must-have components This course is designed for directors and managers
of a teleworking program responsible for running the business functions of the
l Define the steps to building a call center strategic contact center and managing the strategic direction
plan to support the mission and goals of the enterprise of the contact center.
Course taught by: Maggie Klenke – Call Center School
16 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

17. REGISTRATION
HIGH IMPACT
INFORMATION
TRAINING COURSE FEE INCLUDES
l Tuition
l Course manual
l Models, tools and templates (if applicable)
EARLY BIRD
DISCOUNT
l Continental breakfast each morning
l $100 off the 2-Day Training Course Package
l Refreshment breaks
l Certificate of Completion l $200 off the 4-Day Training Course Package
PRICING & DISCOUNTS LOCATION EARLY BIRD DEADLINE
The More Training You Take, the Greater the Savings! New York April 4
Maximize the impact of your training by combining San Francisco May 16
courses at the same location. Take a full week of training Dallas August 15
and register before the early bird discount ends to get the
best bang for your buck! Miami November 7
COURSE PACKAGES
PACKAGE PRICING EARLY BIRD PRICING
2-Day Training Course Package $1,495 $1,395
4-Day Training Course Package $2,790 $2,590
2-Day Training Course PLUS Site Tours $1,690 $1,590
4-Day Training Course PLUS Site Tours $2,985 $2,785
1-Day Site Tours Package $295 $195
Team Discounts Not Combinable with Other Discounts/Offers
The following team discounts are available: Teams must be from the same company and must be submitted into
the online registration system at the same time. Group discounts will
l 3-5 attendees: 20% discount
be applied after the course registrations have been submitted and a
l 6-9 attendees: 25% discount revised invoice will be sent within 24 hours of registration. If you
l 10+ attendees: 30% discount have any questions, please call 877.535.0707.
Cancellation and Substitution Policy Payment Information
Student substitutions may be made at any time prior to the start of class. To expedite your registration, please have your Visa,
You may cancel your reservation by providing CCA with written notice MasterCard or American Express card available when registering.
via email at info@ccapro.com. Cancellations received less than 30 days You may also choose to be invoiced for the training course fee(s).
prior to the start date of class will be subject to a $150 administrative fee. Invoices are payable upon receipt and prepayment (or a federal
If a cancellation request is received in writing, less than 10 business days government purchase order) is required prior to attendance.
prior to the class start date, payment will still be due and no refunds will be Please make checks payable to Contact Center Association.
issued. Failure to attend the course without written notification via fax
or email prior to the start of the course will be considered a “no show” Hotel and Travel Information
and will result in forfeiture of the full course price. If CCA is forced to Hotel and travel information will be posted online:
cancel a course for any reason, liability is limited to the registration fee only. contactcenterassociation.com/training or call
Abbie Caracostas at 719.476.0774
CCA Annual Subscription Package Holders Discount
Members that have purchased a CCA Annual Subscription Package Training Event Management
receive a $100.00 discount off each 2-day training course. Abbie Caracostas: 719.476.0774 | acaracostas@ccapro.com
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 17

18. CALL CENTER MGMT
The path to high impact, high value performance results
With all of the major advances in call center technology since the
early pioneer days in the 70’s and all the lessons learned about meeting
customers expectations and building brand loyalty, you would think call centers
everywhere would be routinely dazzling customers and building brand loyalty.
by MarilynSAULNIER
Y
ou would also think organizations would be leaders are expected to replicate extraordinary achievements
maximizing the call center’s value by tapping into made in other departments such supply chain, finance, or IT
the repository of intelligence so abundantly available into the call center. A cautionary note here, the dynamics of
through thousands of customer interactions every call centers are unique. Principles, methodologies and logic
day. And, you would think all companies would be using successful in other departments often fail in a call center. If
all this intelligence to continually refine and improve the you choose the path of promoting within, you must provide
customers’ experience and the efficiency in how the service is
the leader formal call center training.
provided. You would think… but we have a long way to go.
Why do so many customers still suffer inexcusable lapses in There are many resources including call center management
service with companies who profess to be customer driven, training seminars, professional associations, publications,
customer focused, and committed to service excellence? There and networking opportunities. Make sure you have a formal
are many contributing factors but here’s my top five list of training and development plan for your call center leader
where companies should focus in order to get the value they and a formal succession plan to prepare your future leaders.
should from their call center investment and deliver on their
brand promises: 2 Foster a High Performance Culture
Webster defines culture as “The set of shared attitudes,
1 Develop Strong Leadership values, goals and practices that characterizes a company
Call centers have evolved into complex, multichannel, or corporation.” Those who underestimate or ignore the
multisite operations making significant contributions to an impact of culture on their organization’s performance do
organizations’ bottom line. Maximizing the value of the call so at their peril.
center and ensuring their contribution over the long-term, Describing a high performance culture is almost like trying
takes strong leadership. to describe the exhilaration of a perfect ski run down a black
Truly enlightened organizations have C-level executives, diamond trail or skydiving. When you experience it, you
typically a CCO (Customer Care Officer) who brings the understand how powerful it is but putting the experience
vital customer perspective to the executive leadership into words is difficult.
team. The CCO’s is responsible to lead customer service, Companies that are legendary for their corporate culture
through the ever evolving, fast paced, consumer demanding, such as Zappos, Southwest Airlines, and Ritz Carlton are
technologically advancing, resource strained, value driven, good examples of how a culture can pervade every aspect
revenue generating, loyalty building operations. of an organization and propel them to higher levels of
We see companies recognizing the need for strong performance. Here are a few tips:
leadership in their call centers. While many are promoting l Behavior of leaders is the core of culture. Senior
from within and developing leadership skills in their call management should “walk the talk” be highly visible in
center management teams, others are deploying proven the call center, conduct periodic focus group sessions,
leaders from other parts of the organization. These proven and recognize and reward high performers.
18 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

19. CALL CENTER MGMT
the adult learning methodologies and have
a recurrent training program for deficiencies
identified through quality monitoring,
campaigns, new products/services, etc.
Live by the motto “hire slowly, fire quickly”.
You should analyze bad hires for the point of
failure and continually refine your successful
agent profile. Keep in mind the point of
failure may be in the training program.
5 Invest in a Supportive Infrastructure
A supportive infrastructure is one of the
pillars of a high performing call center.
Once you have strong leadership, strategic
alignment, and highly skilled employees,
you’re almost there. Hallmarks of a
supportive infrastructure include:
l Call center organizational structure with
appropriate supervisor/agent ratio (1:12-
15), manager/supervisor ratio (1:3-4),
director/manager ratio (1:5-6)
l Dedicated workforce management team
l Call center metrics must drive 4 Hire the Right People and Train l Dedicated quality team
appropriate behavior. Avoid conflicts Them Well l Formal performance coaching program
such as holding agents accountable
for average handle time. This always Of the five issues, this one is probably l Program to identify and correct
has a negative impact on quality. the most readily achievable. That said, it process inefficiencies
should not be misconstrued to be any less Evaluate your call center infrastructure
l Fund the resources required to important or impactful. Hiring the right
support your mission; headcount, against your mission. Can you support your
people requires planning, commitment and mission with it? If not, it’s time to make
management structure, technology, etc. collaboration between the call center and some changes.
l Build in accountability HR. Here are a few tips:
Assess your performance in all of the above
l Call center must develop an annual
3 Strategic Alignment Across hiring plan based on forecasted
areas. If you are not getting the value you
should be from your call center, you will
the Organization is Critical workload, identifying number of new likely find several opportunities to re-tool.
World class organizations are strategically hires required with the scheduled Even if things seem to be going well, it is
aligned to their mission from the front training dates always a good practice to do an annual
line employee to the CEO. All decisions, l HR and call center management assessment to identify areas at risk before
policies, procedures, activities, and tasks are must jointly develop successful they become performance issues.
held up to scrutiny against the corporate employee profiles documenting job
mission to ensure no conflicting objectives responsibilities, skills and knowledge,
or failure points. They continually assess experience and background
their performance and take swift action
l HR must conduct initial interviews
when needed.
by phone followed by an in person
Their commitments are not “window interview to screen candidates
dressing”. They keep their promises and
l Candidates must do side by side
react quickly to customer service failures
observations with 2-3 agents who are
and make it right with the customer. They
trained to assist in the screening process
do root cause analysis to fix problems and
to minimize the likelihood of recurrence. l Manager or supervisor must conduct the
final interview and review candidates
Assessing your call center for gaps between
with agents and HR using a formal Marilyn Saulnier is a Senior Consultant at
where you are and where you want to be Service Agility with over 25 years experience building
scoring methodology
can be a big wake up call. Identify and customer loyalty, improving the overall performance
document all the obstacles that have you Once hired, employees must be properly of call centers, and maximizing the strategic value
misaligned to the corporate mission and put trained. No skimping allowed. Provide of the call center investment. Visit her online at:
an action plan in place to right your course. robust formal training that incorporates www.serviceagility.com
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 19

20. SELL TRAINING
How to
SELLI N G
TRAIN
TO YOUR
by Yvonne J. HAMILTON The best employees are not satisfied with status-quo and simply earning
a paycheck. They desire career self-satisfaction and advancement.
M
ost employers understand that training is an important happening at the company. For instance, if the policy states that
element to hiring and retaining the best employees. training is open to all employees but you recognize that training
If you’re an employee who desires training to fulfill approval is only occurring in select departments or employee
career satisfaction and advancement these tips will be ranks it is important to understand how the culture impacts
helpful to open a discussion with your manager. this approval process. Develop a realistic plan to make a case for
training that will be supported by the culture.
1. Be Direct
It may seem obvious but if you don’t ask, you won’t receive. 3. Understand Your Employee Evaluations
Sometimes receiving approval is just as simple as broaching Oftentimes professional development recommendations are a
the subject with your manager. In other cases, it may require formal part of employee evaluations although it may not be very
more forethought on your behalf to convince management that in-depth. Review your evaluations and identify areas in which
investing in your training education is worthwhile. If you’re the training could be beneficial. Hone in on those areas that your
latter individual, then read on for a few ideas to help you reach manager identified as opportunities for growth. Review your
your educational objectives. future career objectives and identify the training which will
support those objectives. Once you have fully analyzed your
2. Know the Culture employee evaluation, make a list of the training needs and cross
It is important when building a business case for training that reference this list with the training program’s course descriptions
you understand the corporate culture. You can start by reading and objectives. This will not only help you build a business
the formal human resource policies and procedures as they case but also ensure that you have identified the best training
relate to training. Compare the policy against what is actually program to meet your objectives.
20 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

21. SELL TRAINING
If training has not been part of your employee evaluations then 8. Be Budget Cycle Conscience
you have the opportunity to make it part of the process. Have Be aware of the budget cycle and understand the corporate
a discussion with your manager about future career objectives expectations. For instance, some companies are more open-
and the knowledge you need to obtain those objectives. Most minded to end of fiscal year spending (“use it or lose it”
managers are happy to help you find ways to improve your mentality) while others have a more conservative fiscal policy.
skills so that you can be a long-term asset for the company. It is important to know which kind of company you work for
so you can time your training request during a reasonable time
4. Sell Your Past History period. Even if you work for the company who values training
Your employer needs to know that the training you have and is willing to allocate their budgets towards it, you may not
attended in your past was not only important to your personal receive approval if you are not familiar with the budget cycle.
professional growth but that you applied this knowledge to
benefit the company. Make a list of the training opportunities 9. Know the Strategic Goals
you’ve attended and list examples of how you have applied this Evaluate the time and resources spent by your department to
training to benefit the workplace. If you haven’t attended many achieve specific goals. Identify which goals are most important to
formal training courses, you can also include self-learning such the strategic vision of the company and how training offerings can
as research, white papers, or books that you read in your spare help streamline process to more easily achieve those goals. Your
time and then applied in the workplace. Your goal is to show manager will appreciate that through training you will not only
that you respond positively to training opportunities and excel help yourself but also help the entire department achieve success.
at applying what you learn from training to benefit the company.
10. When All Else Fails
5. Show the Value of Networking If you have made your business case and believe that your
Some training programs offer you the opportunity to network company values training but its finances simply won’t
through formal gatherings such as site tours, receptions and accommodate a training expense, offer to pay for some of the
roundtable discussions which allow you to pose questions to training costs. In past business climates, when human resources
industry professionals who are experienced in your day to day was declaring a “war on talent” and offering premium perks
challenges. After the training, you can return to the office and and benefits, this suggestion would not only be unheard of but
maintain your networking with these colleagues. Although considered heresy. In today’s climate, offering to pay for training
networking is often perceived as an intangible it can be an asset or a portion of it may be the only way feasible for your employer
as you negotiate your way through in-office project challenges. to give you the time outside of the office. It may be a monetary
Your networking colleagues can share information such as sacrifice on your behalf but it shows your employer that you are
best practices and vendor resources which will improve your dedicated to your education and career advancement. When
decision-making options. Share pertinent information from your additional funds do become available, your manager will remember
colleagues with your manager so that over time your manager your dedication and willingness to share some of the costs for
will see the value in your networking abilities. training making you a good candidate for future training dollars.
6. Identify the Benefits Closing the Sale
Identify how training is beneficial for the company. For instance When you approach your manager, think of it as a sales pitch.
if by attending training you can save the company money that Know all the facts regarding the training program you are selling
would otherwise have been spent on more-costly alternatives to your manager and keep the pitch short and professional.
such as hiring outside consultants or additional employees you Sales people, who are afraid of “no”, often don’t take the risks
can then justify the training expense. Avoid selling training as a they need to close the sale. So don’t be afraid of your manager’s
benefit to yourself and focus on the benefits your company will potential negative response. Simply make your business case in
receive by investing in your training. a sincere manner so that you leave your manager with a positive
impression of your dedication to not only your career but also
7. Save Money the company.
Be aware of opportunities to save money on training. Many
training offerings have money saving options such as early bird
or group discounts. Present your training request far enough
in-advance so that your company can pay less money for your
education. Ensure that your manager knows the deadlines
required to save money so that a decision can be made in a Yvonne J. Hamilton, CPSM serves as Marketing Communications Manager for
timely manner. Both your manager and the controller will the Contact Center Association. She holds a Bachelors of Business Administration
appreciate your attention to money-saving detail. with over 12 years of managing people and developing international brands.
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 21

22. TRAINING MATTERS
FIVE
REASONS
by BobLAST
TRAINING MATTERS
As a contact center leader you may be
faced with the challenge of explaining
why training matters to the success of the
contact center. For reasons passing understanding,
training is sometimes seen as a waste of time and money.
Quite to the contrary, training is one of the most ROI-rich
activities that a contact center leader has available to further
the success of the contact center.
22 I N B O U N D. M A R C H . A P R I L . 2 01 1

23. TRAINING MATTERS
A
“ ccording to one renowned SECOND FIFTH
study, employees who receive Training is good for morale. Let’s be Training says something about the
formal training reach standard candid, no one wakes up each morning organization that is providing it. The
performance levels (72 percent looking forward to working in a cubicle best organizations provide good training
faster), generate less waste (70 percent where they spend 97% of each day on that is based on developing skills that
less), and are better at customer the phone. When an opportunity arises the contact center agents will use every
troubleshooting (130 percent better) to do something else, even for a few day. It doesn’t have to be perfect training,
than employees who learn their jobs hours, morale improves. In addition, but it does need to be important training
through the time-honored but highly employees that learn new skills are and delivered by a seasoned trainer.
inefficient ‘watch Jill for a few hours, better at their jobs and that shows in Training is an indication of the maturity
and then we’ll turn you loose on an employee’s attitude, productivity of the contact center leader and the
customers’ approach.”1 Statistics aside, and the sound of an employee’s voice. commitment of the organization to its
training also has some less obvious, customers and its staff.
but equally important aspects to it. THIRD In some contact centers, training is not
Training is good for customers. valued; it is seen as a cost instead of an
FIRST While simple “smile training” should be
Training programs highlight the investment. As a manager, you can help
avoided, employees that participate in the company change its attitude about
contact center manager’s level of a robust class on customer service skills
expertise and degree of sophistication. training and turn it into an investment.
find their jobs easier, more interesting
For example, the wise contact center and have better quality monitoring Assuming your contact center is
leader always remembers that the scores. Albrecht and Zemke observe not one of those awful electronic
contact center does not operate in that, “Once we know what it takes to sweatshops, ask your contact center
a vacuum and the contact center do a particular service job well, we can employees their opinions about training,
leader should adhere to these figure out the most cost-effective way you won’t be disappointed with the
four principles: to help people learn those capabilities. answers you receive. Asking for their
l Understand the business plan: Here we have a wide variety of options. input will give you the insight you
The contact center leader must be If the job knowledge and tasks are fairly need to implement a meaningful and
able to show that the training solves simple, then on-the-job training may be productive training program.
a business problem in some way. all that is needed. But travel with care, Then develop a plan to implement
since customers have little tolerance for training initiatives that include
l Determine who the client is: new hires in the throes of on-the-job
The client is the contact center measuring its impact on productivity
training. More demanding jobs may and customer satisfaction. Share the
leader’s boss; with training, your require special, classroom-based training
employees can solve the boss’s results with other key managers so
programs designed just for the needs that they will also become advocates
problem and your value to the of those positions, along with effective
organization increases. for training. Over time, throughout
coaching and targeted performance the company, training will be seen
l Qualify and Quantify: review.”3 These nuances in training do as an investment. What’s more, your
Qualifying success is a matter matter to your customers, they just customers will be happier and more
of lyrical style and quantifying won’t realize it until they receive bad willing to spend money if they are
a particular outcome is a matter service and then tell the world about it! speaking with a contact center that has
of number manipulation. When people answering the phone that don’t
implementing training, both are FOURTH sound like they work in a sweatshop!
required in order to track and Training is a great stress reliever and Bottom line: Training is a great stress
make a business case. Your ability aids in employee retention! No doubt reliever and is good for the morale,
to not only implement but also about it, working in a contact center is customers, and the organization.
report on training showcases a very stressful job. While some pretend Start training today!
your management strength. that people are interchangeable parts, in
fact, it is always better to keep reps over
l Assessing the likelihood that
the long term so that their experience on
changes related to training can be
the phones is not wasted. A robust training
implemented: This likelihood is
program will help to increase employee
related to specific conditions and
retention rates and is great way to reduce
factors that will affect the trainees’
the stress of your contact center staff.
opportunity to use the new skills.2
If you are aware of shifts in the Bob Last is the Director of Research & Content
business climate and can adjust 1 Albrecht & Zemke, 159 for Redwood Collaborative. He has over 20 years
training accordingly, it will not 2 The Trainer’s Tool Kit, Cy Charney and experience in the contact center and technical
only make training successful but Kathy Conway, 1998, 94. support industry as a manager, trainer, consultant
once again, show your expertise. 3 Albrecht and Zemke, `160 and analyst.
CONTACTCENTERASSOCIATION.COM 23

24. CCA offers a suite of ever expanding
“best-in-class” resources which you can
instantly access 24 hours a day including
white papers, podcasts, blogs, webcasts,
articles, research studies, training and
conference events.
CCNG brings contact center organizations
together to share insights, ideas and best practices.
Members know that by participating, their organizations
can develop more effective ways to improve performance
and deliver customer service.
THE MOST POWERFUL
CONTACT CENTER TOOL IS A NETWORK
WAITING TO SERVE YOU.
CCA & CCNG Are Coming Together…
Stay Tuned to Learn More.
www.contactcenterassociation.com | www.ccng.com