WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – As more and more credit unions reach thesize where a call center starts to make sense, they're discoveringjobs fielding hundreds of calls a day may create one of the highestturnover rates they've seen. A recent report by MarketWatch rankedtelemarketing and customer service jobs among a list of 10occupations that generate the most turnover, or churn. How muchturnover? Peter LaBlanc is senior vice president of SibsonConsulting, a human resources firm in Raleigh, N.C. There's lots ofdata and it's hard to get an overall average, he says. But heestimates that if 35% of a call center's employees leave each year,that's actually pretty good. If churn reaches 60 to 80%, you're introuble – and many call centers exceed 100%. Jason Kovac, seniorcompensation analyst at WorldatWork (formerly the AmericanCompensation Association and Canadian Compensation Association),Scottsdale, Ariz., confirms that. He once worked in a retailestablishment where call center turnover reached 120 to 140%. Bothexperts cite stress, high volume and high expectations as factorsbehind those figures. Yes, pay is low, but neither LaBlanc norKovac see that as the leading or only factor. “There's constantcustomer contact,” LaBlanc notes. “Unfortunately, a lot of thatcustomer contact is unpleasant. Sometimes there's pressure to sell.When there isn't pressure to sell, there's pressure to solve aproblem. There's also pressure to educate the caller, such as howthe interest rate was set. “It's hard for a person to explain allthat, over the phone, when there's also pressure to get through thecall as fast as possible. The intensity of the work, and theduration of the intensity, are factors. You face constantmonitoring and feedback.” “Stress is there because organizationswant the calls to flow in and out and maybe average three minutes,”Kovac adds. “Employees would like to actually help people. Theyfeel they can't do that in three minutes. “The organization needsto step in and say, `When someone calls to ask for their accountnumber, that may take 30 seconds. You may spend five minutes on thenext call and you're still averaging three minutes.' ” Call centersupervisors may not always be the best people for the assignment,LaBlanc suggests. People are promoted into that job who are notready and not trained. They transmit pressure. If you're a savvycall center supervisor trying to spot employees who may soon leave,LaBlanc says the signs will vary from person to person. Peoplepreparing to leave may be at their work station physically, butthey've pretty much already resigned. They may be unusually quiet.Someone who typically asks a lot of questions no longer bothers.They may have a bad attitude. They're not trying as hard, they'renot listening well, they're not following instructions. Kovacagrees the signs of burnout depend on the individual. Supervisorsneed to know their employees. It's a question of demeanor. Anemployee ready to quit may come into work late or not come in atall. They simply look unhappy. It's a generalization, he continues,but people who have worked in the call center for two or threeyears aren't as likely to leave as newcomers. They know the flow,they feel comfortable with what they're doing, and they're takingon more responsibility. Training is critical, Kovac stresses. “ Ifthey just sit in front of a computer and answer questions asking ifa certain call comes in would you select A,B, or C, that's onething versus actually sitting with someone else on a phone to seehow those calls go,” he says. “Try to give them a more holisticview of what the job entails. A lot of people are looking for thattraining opportunity so they do understand their jobs and feelcomfortable with what they're doing.” LaBlanc says it's not thathard for someone to find another call center job. After all, rapidturnover means there are almost always openings at other callcenters. If you can bring experience with you, you enjoy a definiteedge. The low pay also means you can readily find another joboutside a call center that matches what you've been earning. TheWal-Mart and McDonald's down the street are hiring. Both LaBlancand Kovac offer some tips for shrinking call center turnover: *Look at the work environment. Take your foot off the gas pedal andcreate a more relaxed, involved atmosphere. * Give employees asmuch control as possible. Form your best call center people into ateam and ask them for ideas on what management can do to improvecall center conditions. * In fact, management should ask forfeedback from all directions – call center employees themselves,the supervisor and the supervisor's peers. * Reduce the complexityof the job. Call center employees are expected to know a wide rangeof products and services. Employees always go to the place wherethey're the most comfortable. One employee may enjoy spending timesolving a particularly difficult problem. Another may be a naturalat cross-selling. When a call comes in about credit protection,direct that person to a call center employee who is interested inand well-versed on identity theft and credit protection. * Movingpeople up the ranks based on seniority is not necessarily the bestidea. Recognize each person is an individual, and develop a skillsset chart. When an opportunity occurs, move someone withappropriate talent and interest into that job, not necessarily theperson with the longest time served in the call center. * Look atscheduling. Maybe there is a way to manipulate the schedule soemployees have an extra day off, come in late or work staggeredshifts. A good supervisor should be able to determine when callvolume is highest and assign schedules accordingly. * Considerextra rewards such as a discount at a gym or movie tickets. Littlethings that aren't a great expense to the organization can go along way. -

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