Stress within every workplace environment is pervasive, be it a call centre or a marketing agency. Stress within the call centre not only impacts the performance of the call agent, but it also affects the success and growth rates of the company. To combat the causes of stress within the call centre, the managers need to recognise the sources and take necessary actions to eliminate them.
Here is a comprehensive list of different elements and sources of stress within a call centre environment:
1. The discord between assigned roles:
Assigning of more than one type of tasks and targets in a way that compliance and completion of either of them become a challenge for the employee. The differing demands of efficiency, productivity, completion, information gathering, and customer satisfaction makes the job of the call agent incredibly stressful.
2. The incongruities of evaluation and expectation:
One of the ultimate stress-trigger is the discord between the performance evaluation parameters and performance expectations. If an agent is assigned the task to improve customer satisfaction, evaluating him based on KPIs is what generates stress. In such cases, employees not only feel overburdened, but it also demotivates them to meet their expectations. Our Telestat Call Logging Software make it much easier to evaluate performance, rewarding those that also do well! It is not just about being negative.
3. The ambiguities of assigned role and responsibilities:
The clear case of miscommunication. It happens when the recruited call agent is unsure about his role, tasks, reporting authorities, expectations, and evaluation terms. Such ambiguity impacts the performance of the employee. Induced stress is the result of a lack of proper guidance and concrete training and job brief.
4. The inadequacy of the provided resources:
Agents who lack adequate training and hands-on experience of the modern-day equipment and tools feel more stressed. On the other hand, agents with proper training feel more prepared to execute and complete their tasks effectively and efficiently. Providing appropriate resources with apt training make the employee feel more confident about their role and responsibilities. Using the Telestat Leaderboard shows employees instant results removing the unambiguity.
5. The excessiveness in monitoring:
Intrusive and excessive tracking is one way to induce unwanted and unnecessary stress in your call agents. Rigid surveillance and intensive measures not only increases the turnover rate, but it also has drastic impacts on job satisfaction. Research suggests that excessive monitoring can lead to work-related depression, anxiety, and panic attacks. Our reports can be set as little or often as you like to work with the employee, not against them.
6. The overwhelming demand:
Working in a fast-paced and over-ambitious environment of call centres can put extra pressure on the call agents. When the assigned role and responsibilities exceed the working capacity of an employee, that’s when stress starts to develop.
7. The shortfall of social support:
The primary reason for burnout is the lack of support and encouragement from supervisors, managers, and colleagues. Employees who receive little or less support are unable to improve their productivity which ultimately, leads to stress and workplace anxiety.
8. The lack of regulatory control:
Call centres with strict policies, tight performance evaluation metrics, restricted break hours, and inflexible working hours are more likely to lose their ambitious and high-performing employees. It not only makes employees feel confined, but it also impacts their productivity and efficiency.
If our Telestat Call Logging Software is something you think would benefit your business, please download the free trial, email sales@lanonyx.com or give us a call on 03330022440. We are happy to help and work with you to get you a solution that is exactly what you need.