Experienced consultant = white whale?
Many managers have noticed how difficult it is to manage teams after switching to forced remote work. Task distributing, mentoring, ongoing communication, caring for the needs of the teams and even analyzing the results became more difficult, not only because of the change of working mode. Managers with a well-functioning team could talk about real happiness.
Customer service teams struggling with high turnover, frequent influx of new employees, the need for training and internal support faced great uncertainty and stress. The change in the work rhythm and the tightened up goals, the effect of continuous optimization, showed that an experienced and independent customer service consultant is of great importance.
For simplicity’s sake, we will define an experienced consultant, who has high soft skills and high process knowledge, is characterized by high motivation, independence and commitment. He has gained the knowledge needed to perform his independent function. Working in the customer service department, a large number of repetitive tasks, contact with people, working under stress and pressure is associated with a high risk of professional burnout. The longer in service and the greater the experience, the greater the risk of a decrease in motivation and a reluctance to be friendly to the client.
How to care for the welfare of customer service employees?
- Ask about your well-being, diagnose mistakes, solve problems
Lack of time often makes one forget about the basic issue, which is honest conversation with the staff. Knowledge about the operation of the team and ideas for improvement often come from regular employees. In addition, the study of well-being during remote work and uncertainty related to the pandemic has a positive impact on team morale and – what may seem surprising – the psychophysical performance of employees.
- Take care of access to up-to-date knowledge
Knowledge availability, no need to search for answers makes work much easier and faster. We start from this assumption by creating solutions for the AI Busters engine, which analyzes the content of the message and suggests the right answers to the consultants based on the analysis of previous reactions of the consultants. This solution accelerates gaining experience and eliminates the need for mentoring even during remote work.
- Automate repetitive tasks
The main sources of frustration, fatigue and burnout are repetitive activities. Fortunately, the development of technology allows for the robotization of repetitive tasks. This relieves the team, directs them to more creative tasks and speeds up customer service times. Automation is an investment that should be planned by everyone who is serious about customer service.
- Direct the right customers to the right consultants
Research shows that customers have a strong need for personalization and a feeling that the company remembers them. This effect can be achieved by using CRM systems and directing the correspondence to the consultants who know the matter. It also helps the consultants to make friends with the customer. It is better to serve someone you already know than to an anonymous – as the consultants often say – petitioner.
- Give your employees control
Everyone needs to feel that their work has a real impact and makes real changes. Surveys, team discussions, brainstorms stimulate the creativity of the team. Sometimes even a small element of gamification is enough – at AI Busters, suggestions for answers can be evaluated by consultants who have a real impact on how artificial intelligence is learning.
- Influence with empathy
Occupational burnout is psychophysical fatigue, lack of sense of purpose, which leads to reluctance to work, and in customer service – to aversion to customers. Let’s remember that the example of building the relationship between the organization and the client is a manager who, by showing interest in employees and showing empathy, passes on soft skills to employees, maintaining their motivation and positive attitude to work.
“In times of pandemic, a harmonious and motivated team is important. AI Busters provides tools that not only speed up work, reduce costs and optimize processes, but also help consultants and managers to face the challenges of working in customer service. This is a factor that cannot be overlooked when building valuable service and communication with customers.”
Karol Kowalczyk Co-founder AI Busters