How can a customer support call center avoid crises?

OABPO Blog Team Published on May 30, 2014

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How can you tell if a call center is prepared for the unexpected? Open Access BPO lists preventive practices that customer support outsourcing firms must have aside from their recovery plans.

It’s customary for customer support call center firms to include disaster recovery and business continuity plans (BCP) in the business solution packages that they provide clients. With a BCP in place, clients have a higher assurance that operations would stay unhampered should disasters strike. An outsourcing firm with contingency plans can be a reliable business partner, but a company that employs preventive measures to keep crises at bay is more ideal to partner with.

Call centers must have best practices that not just ensure superior workforce performance, but also avoid problems from arising in the workplace. Below are some preventive measures that call center managers can use:

1. Use scripts

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While natural-sounding conversations are preferable for normal transactions, scripts can come in handy when an unexpected surge in call volume bombards the agents. Call centers must first determine the possible causes of the sudden increase of incoming calls to produce a script that agents can use. This equips them with a ready, consistent answer so that they would not be caught get off guard during a call volume crisis.

2. Unify data

Database unification allows agents to instantly access and update a wealth of information from one place, regardless of the contact channel or platform each agent uses. When a call needs urgent escalation or follow-up, the phone representative can quickly refer to the central database to know the history of the customer and come up with a solution based on the previously gathered data.

3. Identify agent cores

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Leaders must know each of their employees’ strengths and weaknesses so that they can easily decide who to deploy on certain situations. There should be generalists who could stand in for members of a team that’s understaffed because of an untoward incident. Specialists should also be stationed to handle complex problems while other agents take care of ordinary calls.

4. Embrace cloud technology

Aside from backup, cloud technology can help call centers manage data and add resources when teams are overloaded with tasks due to seasonal rush, new promotions, or crises like product recalls.

In business, being prepared means more than just knowing what to do when a problem occurs; it also means being capable of taking steps that could stop a situation from developing into a crisis. Call center firms that apply these practices can give a greater promise of reliability to their clients.

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Open Access BPO 10 hours ago
It's easy to assume that dips in your #CustomerService team's #productivity is because of laziness.

But be extra observant, because it could be an indication of a deeper concern: ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ฐ ๐˜„๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ธ๐—ฝ๐—น๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ฒ ๐—ฏ๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ผ๐˜‚๐˜.

๐—•๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ผ๐˜‚๐˜ ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐—ป ๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฑ ๐˜๐—ผ:
โ€ข low productivity
โ€ข high employee attrition
โ€ข tanking service levels

Here are indications that your #CustomerSupport agents are burning out (and some team management tips for handling them!): https://buff.ly/UGegOw8

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Open Access BPO 15 hours ago
Night shift work inherently presents unique hurdles for #CallCenter agents, primarily through the disruption of natural sleep cycles.

This impact on their well-being can be substantial.

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Open Access BPO 4 days ago
Delivering exceptional #CustomerExperience starts with a passionate, unified team.
But if your #CallCenter agents are struggling with poor team dynamics and a lack of teamwork, it's time to intervene.

To supercharge employee engagement in your #ContactCenter, consider these powerful coaching strategies: https://buff.ly/w89ehB3

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Open Access BPO 6 days ago
How can we build stronger, more resilient teams together?
The answer starts with empowering employees to prioritize their well-being.

Self-care isn't a perk, it's a foundation for success for any brand, but only if you're sincere in your employee care.

Here are helpful ways to ensure employee self-care: https://buff.ly/pwwtsoR

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We empower our teams to create #CustomerExperiences for your customers.

Our workplaces are built to prioritize self-care for our employees and drive success for our partners.
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๐—ง๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—บ ๐—ข๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ป ๐—”๐—ฐ๐—ฐ๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜€ ๐—•๐—ฃ๐—ข ๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐˜‚๐—ฝ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ถ๐—ฟ ๐˜€๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ฒ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—ณ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ณ๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜€๐˜ ๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ด ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐™‹๐™ก๐™–๐™ฃ๐™ฉ ๐™ž๐™ฉ ๐™๐™ค๐™ง๐™ฌ๐™–๐™ง๐™™, ๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐˜๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ฒ-๐—ฝ๐—น๐—ฎ๐—ป๐˜๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ถ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—น๐—ฑ ๐—ถ๐—ป ๐—ฆ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—น๐—ผ๐—ฎ๐—ป, ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎ๐—ด๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ฎ ๐—ผ๐—ป ๐— ๐—ฎ๐˜† ๐Ÿญ๐Ÿฌ, ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฌ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฑ.

Held in partnership with non-profit Fostering Education & Environment for Development, Inc., volunteers from the call center's Makati office planted 200 indigenous forest trees in the UP Laguna-Quezon Land Grantโ€“part of the Sierra Madre's 9,000+ hectare protected forest.

The initiative focused on targeted reforestation and biodiversity conservation within this crucial ecosystem.

๐˜—๐˜ญ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ต ๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฅ underscores Open Access BPO's commitment to corporate social responsibility. By actively engaging in green initiatives, the company demonstrates a tangible dedication to creating a positive impact on the environment and the local community.

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Open Access BPO 7 days ago
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