Motivation

[The Premierian]

I have been conducting training for a few months now. There are group training sessions as well as individual training. The problem is the agents stick with the topics for a day or two and then they just fizzle out and go back to their old ways. To me, it seems like a lack of motivation. I would like any input regarding what is causing the agents to just burn out and not improve. Also, I would like some feedback on some ways to overcome this.

[jip_IEX]

Can you elaborate on
training topic ?
new hire or update training etc ?
industry ?
tools available ?
There can be many factors, all need to be looked at, including the facilitator's style, is it a good fit.

[The Premierian]

We work in the resort industry. We call people that already own a product. Every day we cover a topic. Many times we cover the same topic several times over the course of a few months. Some topics are 3rd party stories, the take-away, being enthusiastic, speaking with a purpose (not rambling), etc. We cover these things and the reps use them for a day or two and then there is nothing. When I worked as a rep in the call center I would always like to learn new things because most of the time they worked. I accumulated many ways to be more efficient at the job, but I never quit using the things that worked. The reps now seem to forget or maybe they just don't care. The only tool used is monitoring software which can track anything they are doing (numbers dialed, calls received, idle time, etc.) and record calls. How do I get the reps to use the things they learn and keep using them?

What do you suggest I do if there are reps that don't seem to enjoy the job or be enthused about it? If they don't have fun with the job they will never be great at it and it also seems that their negativity is contagious.

[jip_IEX]

First I will qualify that I am not the best qualified for part of this response as I am not a trainer! Hopefully someone in that area will provide some suggestion around your commentary on frequency and it being repetitative.
I would comment on the second paragraph in that if reps are not enjoying the job you need to step back and look at a few things.
• Do they have clear measurable and obtainable objectives ?
I realize this is a basic and a lot of people reading it will say “of course they do “ I know from working in an Outsourcing environment a lot of changes can happen and if they are not properly filtered through all the depts. on site then you will have broken links.
• What incentives are in place, though incentives should not be needed to be a motivator for someone to do their job, I think all will agree especially in competitive market places for resources, you want to retain the folks you have put time and money into training. If monetary incentives are out of the question then you need to get creative, time off phones, day off etc.
• What are the dissatisfies: scheduling, working hours, lack of feedback and coaching. There is usually not a lack of volunteers to voice there opinion on a call center floor, so use that to identify (or have focus groups) challenges and address the ones you can, some are easy fixes, others are not as it may have constraints ie budget.
• Is there a contact handling process built that allows some type of scoring of calls for proper coaching and one on one feedback. This allows trending on individual and site needs as areas of focus.

There are a lot of other items I’m sure others can rattle off, at the end of the day you will have some that just do not want to be there and may need to be performance managed out but that should be the minority so if you have a substantial percentage of people in that category I would look at the structure around them first.

Hope this helps spark some ideas.

Cheers!

[n_meghanath]

My understanding from this line "The problem is the agents stick with the topics for a day or two and then they just fizzle out and go back to their old ways."

Old ways:

doesn't suffice the new things, Manage to perform the job (a little less than basic requirement). Addicted practices.

New topics: Manage to grasp it and execute it for 2/3 days only.

How big is the gap between the new ways and the old ways?
Are the skills set of this agent group compatible with the new ways?
is it the comfort of using the old ways that repels the new ways or the old ways is a way to just let the time go for the pay check to come?
How good were they withthe work? Is is a problem with their execution of the work or the work itself has evolve to a difficult work?

Too many question to ask and too many answer would come. However "motivation" as mentioned by you is something which is linked to almost all the answer.

Motivation to me is driven by a numerous factors but the top most factors as per my experience is the culture of the group and the relationship with the immediate supervisor. This 2 reasons makes a cohesive team and the motivation of a cohesive team is auto driven. yes, there are other short terms motivational factors like monetary gains which may be term as booster.

Lastly, weed out if less than 50% if not try other means.

[vanguard_cool_bro]

How about creating a controlled group or a pilot group first? Let say, begin with 5 support representatives practicing the expected or required way of extending customer support. They must be situated together in a special row for example. That may help strengthen the Training module's objective. The said group must be closely monitored for a week for example. Then, expectations must be disclosed as to challenge the pilot group: "We see a trend that after a couple of days or so, support representatives are back to old habits....Well, this pilot group will prove that wrong. You've been selected among...for a special purpose...".

On the next week, a new batch of support representatives will be added to the original pilot group.

Also, if monetary incentive is not a resource, immediate recognition and career growth motivation are also effective.

Just a train of thought....