Want A Great Call Center Management Team?
Help Managers Become Coaches for Your Staff
Measure-X Offers Tips On Improving Coaching Skills

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sept. 18, 2001
CONTACT: Tom Ellis
Ellis Communications, L.L.C.
Phone: (623) 780-4558
E-Mail: tom@elliscomm.com
PHOENIX, Ariz. - Most people remember a person in their lives who helped shape their personal growth, who was like a personal coach. Call center managers need to be professional coaches for their agents.

"How would your employees respond if you asked each of them if they felt they had a coach at your call center, someone who was there to support their growth at your company?" asks David Saxby, president of Measure-X, a Phoenix-based firm that specializes in helping companies improve their customer service. "Providing supervisors and managers with the skills to be effective coaches for your call center employees is critical to decreasing turnover, increasing morale and exceeding your customers' expectations for service."

Following are five tips from Measure-X on how to improve the coaching skills of call center management teams.

Tip No. 1 - Give them the tools for the job. One of the most common reasons for people leaving a call center is ineffective management and processes. Hire a specialist in the coaching field to give managers the skills they need to be more effective coaches. Check out www.coachu.com.

Tip No. 2 - Understand learning styles. We all learn and absorb information differently. Some people are visual learners, some are kinesthetic learners and some are auditory learners. A good coach understands the learning style of the individual they're coaching.

Tip No. 3 - Acknowledge small improvements. A good coach works daily to improve the small things that help the team perform at its best.

Tip No. 4 - Know employees' strengths and weaknesses. Use a personality-profiling tool to evaluate employees' strengths and weaknesses. This kind of assessment can help management identify skills that need improvement. It also provides suggestions on coaching.

Tip No. 5 - Keep them in the loop. Employees want to feel like they are part of the team. Ask for their input and ideas. Share operational statistics with them. Let them know what it costs to run a call center.

"A manager with strong coaching abilities can be invaluable in retaining and motivating employees and helping them develop their skills," Saxby says.

Measure-X is a Phoenix, Ariz.-based measurement, training and recognition company that specializes in customer service skills and employee retention. The company may be reached at 888-644-5499. Saxby may be contacted at the toll-free number or via e-mail at david@measure-x.com. Visit the Measure-X Web site at www.measure-x.com.