Incentive Programs - PLEASE HELP

[Cunningham]

Hi all:

I have been tasked with creating A LOT of incentive programs that the Call Center Operations Managers can use at any given time to correct a performance problem. Problem: I have a few but not many. If you have initiated programs within your call center and would like to share, please send documentation/procedures to: MSUSpartanfamily@aol.com

Thanks in advance for you assistance. I truly appreciate it.

[CCOPS]

cunnigham
I just got the same project of planning incentive programs
If you get any can you share them please?
I will do the same thing

kchaparro@utep.edu

do you have anything setup as far as how to measure performance?

[tbilbrey]

sounds to me like you need items that increase performance on an hourly basis. Utilize $5.00 Blockbuster certificates / $5.00 Gas Coupons / Movie Tickets / Extra break pass / 1 hour off with pay.

Keep it as simple as possible, Highest Quality Score / Sales per Hour / Revenue per hour... Let me know how it works out....

[tarunpuri]

hi there,

firstly please identify in your call center, what motivates your employees for e.g. it could be cash incentives, it could be in kind.

in case cash, then you could have the following :
Power Hours in your shifts (the lean hours), this would do two fold benifit to you, that is it would make your agents push harder in the lean hours to get sales (if your center is into telemerketing) so you get more output, and it keeps the agents happy as well since theye earn the extra dollars in cash right there on the floor, all you need to do is anounce in the lean hour thathis is the power hour anyone making the first 2 sales(by the same person) would get t $100 in cash on the floor.

secondly , based on the trackk of the agents keep cash rewards for the best performer of the day, best performer of the week, best performer of the month, best performer of the quarter and so on, the cash amounts would also go on increasing i.e. example, day would get $50, best of the week would get $200, best perf. of the month would get $500, best perf. of the quarter would get $1000.....

and then once you have identified as to what really motivates your employees in kind you could have the following as an example, best performing team of the month gets an on the house party in the best hotel/pub in your town, or the best performing agent gets a 3 day all paid for holiday at any good destination in your country, the best performer of the center with the highest no. of sales (revenue for you) gets a gift vouher worth $5000 where in he could go to any electronic store in your town and purchase any electronic item he needs and so on.........

please ofeel free to get in touch with
me at taruncallcenter@rediffmail.com or call me at +91 98111 41111

regards,
tarun puri

[Frank A. Engle]

Hello Cunningham!

You mentioned that the incentive is to improve a performance problem. IMHO, that is one of the toughest things from which to generate long term results. Incentives, unless coupled with a lot of host of key company initiatives, end up just being givaway programs with minimal results.

I realize you are looking for some quick incentive ideas but, as a fellow Spartan, I feel compelled to offer a few global suggestions.

First: Identify the primary purpose of the incentive program. There are many reasons for incentives...they can be: to improve performance, improve morale, reinforce company image etc. Incentive programs sometimes can reinforce improper behavior so be careful!

Second: Be sure that the incentive is consistent with the company mission statement in theory and practice and that you explain the connection when launching the incentive. Nothing is worse than throwing money at an ill-conceived incentive that sends the wrong signal to both employees and customers.

Third: Be sure that the incentive is supported and endorsed by everyone in the organization and that it is itegrated with incentives in other supporting departments. I can't tell you how many incentive programs I have witnessed that motivate the sales department but fail because it buries others like the installation, shipping or IT departments. Be sure all departments in the chain are are included and that senior managment actively supports it.

Fourth: Make sure the reward fits the recipient. Some people love to be acknowledged publicly, others shy away from the limelight. Money motivates some while a mention in the company newsletter motivates others. Create flexibility to meet as many needs as possible.

Sorry for the long winded reply. I hope this helps!

[tarunpuri]

hi frank,

i just read your posting , i do agree with you, but i think in an only call center scenario we would ideally have team leaders, their respective teams, 1-2 team managers (manage the team leaders) and then the call center manager. I had this scenario in mind.

Now if im not wrong the scenario you are talking of is a complete organisation with a captive call center (most probably) , that is why there are a host of other departments.

Never the less i could still apply what you have mentioned here if we look at the entire call center (captive or non captive), coz in a call center we have the following dept's : Operat[ions, Administration, Human resources, transport, Finance and Accounts. If i am to devise incentives for the entire organisation then i would again put it in only two heads i.e. Cash Incentives and Incentives in Kind , after identifying what really motivates the employees.

for e.g. for the transport dept. i could fix a cash award ($1000) for timely pick and drop provided over a period of 30 days. or in kind a motorbike upto $5000 for the person ensuring timely pick up and drop service for a period of 90 days.

similarly for the accounts and finance dept. i could fix cash and kind incentives......and so on for all the other dept's.

please feel free to contact me at taruncallcenter@rediffmail.com or call me at +91 98111 41111

Regards
tarun puri

[scott977]

Alot of incentive programs can be useful both for long term and short term fixes. The main thing to consider is what type of work is it? Inbound or outbound? What is the behavier that you are trying to correct? We have a call center in a small town and weekend attendance was killing us. We started paying a shift differential for those working weekends but they did not get it for a particular weekend if they were late or out one day of it.

Cash is always a good incentive but you have to be careful. If your agents have never recieved bonuses before they may be a little peeved when they get the check and see what the tax rate is.