Hot Topics @ ACCE 2010 Conference
Filed under: Leadership, Management, Relational Leadership, Uncategorized
New Orleans in mid-June redefines the word humidity. I am from Memphis and we thought we invented the word, but a week in NO let me know we are B-league at best. So, it was hot… but so was the sharing and learning at ICMI’s ACCE Conference. Traditionally one of the best call center conferences, there was a buzz this year in the sessions and on the trade-show floor. I heard that attendance was up (perhaps a leading indicator for the economy) and the hot topic was social media.
Having been in the industry for more than 29 years, there have been years when everything seemed to be status quo. I remember being excited about quality systems in the early ‘90s. The technology went on to revolutionize the call center industry and I believe has been a key element in the consistency in centers. The IVR had a huge impact on centers in the mid-90’s. IVRs are now a part of every-day life (although they can be a HUGE point of frustration for those companies that don’t do it very well).
In the late 90’s CRM was “all the buzz.” It was everywhere. I even remember seeing a headset company that advertised their headsets were “CRM approved.” If you were a vendor in the 90’s you had to find a way to be a part of the craze! Of course the success has been undeniable. CRM systems are now a part of centers as small at 10 agents and as big as 10,000. Email management, chat and speech analytics were the next hot topics.
Well, this year the buzz was Social Media – and I say that not just because I had the opportunity to speak about it in three different sessions. It was the topic of conversations at breakfast and lunch – and on Bourbon Street when attendees put down their hurricanes to talk shop at night. One guy at lunch said it best, “Jezz, it is all I hear.”
ACCE is always an interesting blend of all levels of call center leaders. I talked with VPs of Customer Service for large corporations and to a lady leading a team of 25 in a small health practice.
It is cool to think about the possibilities of Social Media. There’s no doubt that companies with an online presence are the early-adopters and are leading the way for the rest of us. Actually I think we are all on a huge learning arch. In our session on Monday, I was happy to hear a story of one leader who said their small doctor’s group is “dabbling” in social media. Mike Pace with Constant Contact was a great resource in the session – sharing many success stories from his center. 1-800-Flowers, Dell and Intuit also shared best-practices. It comforting to know that even these companies, who are leading the way, have been doing this for less than two years so we all have time to ride the Social wave behind them.
Salesforce.com knocked it out of the park again at the sponsored lunch event. They may not be the only vendor doing Social CRM but they are definitely leading the way in teaching us how to do it right.
The trade show floor was lively. There were the usual suspects in the area of CRM, Outsourcing and Quality Management. I continue to be intrigued by CallCopy. I have several clients that have their systems and all have been VERY satisfied.
Many may have not noticed it but there was a new vendor in the mix this year with a totally new concept. He is actually an industry veteran. Michael Tamer (a previous Call Center Pioneer winner for his contribution to Quality Management while at Teknekron/etalk) was there representing his company Tamer Partners Corporation. They are offering a new SAS application that provides a way for customers to give feedback directly to the call center agent. The system allows the customer to become a direct “coach” for the agent. It is pretty cool stuff. I might add that I have worked with Mike and his top consultant Scott Thomas for many years - so while my comments may include some bias, they are still relative.
The ICMI team should be congratulated for a great conference. If you choose only one conference in 2011, this is the one to attend.
Finally, here are some great Social Media links that we shared in our session. If you have questions or want to talk more about how Social Media might affect your center, please give me a call or send me an email:
Learning more about Social Media:
http://mashable.com/ - Understand more about Social Media
http://www.socialmediatoday.com/ - great blog
http://mashable.com/2009/01/21/best-twitter-brands/ - 40 of the Best Twitter Brands and the People Behind Them
http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=22754 - Directory: 100 technology experts on Twitter
http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/hiner/?p=916 - Techies: The top 10 people you should follow on Twitter
http://mediasosial.com/socialnetworking/the-ultimate-list-of-people-to-follow-on-twitter/ - The Ultimate List of People To Follow on Twitter
http://www.chrisbrogan.com/ - the guy I read consistently…
http://socialmediagovernance.com/policies.php - great site for policies.
Thanks to Faith LeGendre for the opportunity to co-present on several sessions. She always makes me look smart!
Looking Through the Lens of Your Employees
Filed under: Engagement, Leadership, Management, People, Relational Leadership
I recently had the privilege recently to take a tour of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, TN. St. Jude is unlike any other pediatric treatment and research facility in the world. The discoveries made there have changed how the world treats children with cancer and catastrophic diseases. It is a place where cutting-edge research happens every day. And what is even more amazing is that all patients are accepted without regard to the family’s ability to pay. The tour was amazing and reminded me of how blessed I am as a parent.
It was also my honor to have more than the standard tour - a former patient conducted my tour. As we walked though the halls of the hospital she shared a perspective that was different. When she described what it was like to pull-up to the front door with her mom and to get out of the car and check herself in for the daily treatment, the perspective and the details were very real. I will never look at St. Jude or the kids of St. Jude the same. She gave me a whole new perspective on life.
This past week my son started his first “real” job and stepped into the path of his father to work for a call center. I am very proud. Since the first call telling me he landed the interview, it has been interesting to hear his perspective of the process. We talked about the interview and the follow-up (he told me how he slipped in the part about his dad being a “call center guru” and going to the call center when he was six-years old. I loved hearing the story!). Earlier this week he began his six weeks of classroom training. It has been interesting to hear him talk about the training process through the eyes of a millennial. We have talked about the training agenda – the positives and the negatives. We have also talked about the pace of the training and the delivery. After the call yesterday it occurred to me that listening to his stories was similar to taking the tour of St. Jude. I was hearing things that I KNOW his company would love to hear – that any company should want to hear - the view through the lens of the employee. Just like the hospital came to life through the lens of the patient, it was amazing to hear the little ideas of change and improvement that by the new employee.
So, let me ask this question – what are you learning from your employees? What questions are you asking to new trainees? Not the typical “satisfaction survey” but real question about how things can be made better. Deep focus group questions about how they learn and what might improve the experience? Questions that provide insight into how the trainer relates to the participants - Boomers, Gen-Xs and Millennials.
There are several ways to gather this information. Online or written surveys are good if the questions are written to ask the tough questions. Focus groups or one-on-one discussions soon after training are also great tools. Touchpoint Associates consultants all have more than 15 years of hands-on call center experience. We have also worked with some of the top companies in the company to help the write effective employee and customer surveys. If you need help, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Just like the story of the patient made me see the hospital different, the stories of your employees can provide deep insight into what needs to change in your company.
The Little Voice In Your Head
Filed under: Engagement, Leadership, Management, People, Relational Leadership
I heard a speaker today talk about how to lead a productive and happy life. He talked about the need to keep a positive and focused attitude. The angle for his speech was to ask, “what music is playing in your head. Is it a positive song with expectations for positive outcomes or is it a song of negative thoughts?”
I had a friend tell me recently that the “little voice in his head” was nagging him to do something new with his life. Now if you knew my friend you would probably ask the same thing I did – are you sure that it is one voice or many? Because if “you are hearing voices in your head you may have a different problem.” So let me ask you this – what is the little voice in your head telling you? Are you one of those people that starts the day with a positive spin on life or do you tend to look at the negative possibilities.
I watched recently as a supervisor in a call center stood in the middle of the room as people arrived for the morning shift. She greeted each one with a positive comment and a great smile. I heard her say things like “this is gonna be your best day of the week….” and “are you ready for a great day?” The power of this simple act was reflected in the attitudes of the people who sat down to talk with customers and potential customers. I bet if you could look inside her head there is great music playing – maybe some U2 or Creed. It was obvious that she chooses to start each day with positive thoughts.
I have been on a mission lately to help supervisors, managers and leaders narrow their focus for success to three things. I love to ask, “What are the top three things you want agents to do when they talk with a customer?” or “What are the top three things you want employees to do when they greet a customer?” Defining these three things clearly allows the employee to understand your expectations.
So with that in mind – here are the three things about that little voice in your head:
- Be a moti-vator not a moti-sucker. Have you ever been around one of those people that are so negative that they just suck the air at out of the room? Don’t be that person. Start today trying to find the positive spin on things. Do the “Tony Robbins” thing and start out telling yourself that you WILL be more POSITIVE today!
- Compliment someone as the first task of the morning. Create a 10-before-10 rule with yourself. Spend 10 minutes before 10:00 am walking around the office with the express purpose of telling someone that you appreciate their work.
- Read something positive. Make time for yourself. I told a new supervisor last week that they should learn something every day that no one can ever take away. Reading is like that. My recent Amazon.com search showed that there are 2016 items about leadership and 530 about positive thinking. Pick one, buy it, read it and invest in yourself.
And the next time that little voice in your head starts to go negative - tell them you are not listening any more.
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Bob Furniss
As founder and President of Touchpoint Associates, Inc., Bob Furniss has more than 25 years of experience in the customer service field - assisting organizations to increase productivity and profits by bringing out the best in their people. He has shared his experience in the areas of leadership and service with some of the top companies in America - companies like FedEx, Corporate Express, DePaul University, Delta Airlines, Hanley Wood and more.
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