Thanks to Dr. Jones she is running marathons again.

Surgeries were scheduled back to back that day. The first several procedures went smoothly and were completed within the time frame allotted. But, when Dr. Jones ran into an unexpected problem during his operation he took 2.5 hours instead of 1 hour. As result, two surgeries had to be rescheduled

The head of surgery was not happy. Faced with having to squeeze these rescheduled operations into an already packed surgical schedule and fielding complaints from the angry surgeons and upset patients who were impacted, he felt compelled to ask Dr. Jones whether that “extra” time in surgery was really necessary. Dr. Jones responded, “My goal was to apply my skills and experience in a way that would repair my patient’s leg so she no longer needed to depend on using a wheel chair to get around. The operation was success. So much so, that we expect her to be running marathons again within a few months.”

Fortunately for the patient, Dr. Jones opted not to put handle time ahead of doing the right thing, the most important thing — permanently fix his patient’s problem.

The same principle should apply when evaluating the performance of customer service reps — your highly-trained, skilled experts in customer problem-solving. While it’s fine to use AHT (average handle time) as an operational metric, it is short-sighted and to be blunt — just plain wrong to use AHT as a performance metric for reps.

Next Monday I plan to talk more about what the growing movement by call centers to re-think the wisdom of using AHT to evaluate rep performance.

AHT Benchmarking Quick Survey:

DO YOU AGREE? I’d like your opinion on the use of AHT as a key performance metric for service reps.
Are you thinking about dropping AHA from the reps’ scorecard? If you already have done so, what what were your reasons? Has it made a difference in performance?
++ Please take 2 minutes to share your opinions. I’ll provide the benchmarking results next Monday, April 4.++

Be happy.

Barbara Burke

Copyright 2011 Barbara Burke. All Rights Reserved.

Got Isabels? Be glad you do!

I call them the “Isabels.” Day in and day out, these special people believe as I do that customer service is the business of people helping people. Whether it’s going the extra mile to resolve a customer’s problem or taking the time to listen to a co-worker share their troubles, Isabels know the importance being generous and compassionate.

Much like the wise character, Isabel, in my customer service fable, Isabels make it a habit to turn every day challenges into opportunities to make a difference in the lives of others.

Last week I presented at the WEI Spring Symposium in Seattle and had the opportunity to meet two terrific Isabels. Fran Shane (pictured on the left) a customer service manager at Avista and Kim Casey (right), her friend and fellow manager, having discovered my book, The Napkin, The Melon & The Monkey, several years ago  made it their mission to introduce the book’s ideas to their centers.

Over the years Fran and I corresponded frequently to discuss the various ways to use the book. I was delighted to be able to finally meet Fran and Kim (hugs all around) and learn the many inventive strategies they used to integrate the book’s 4 Elements into their call centers’ culture.

I’d also like to take the opportunity to mention two others who are making a significant contribution to their company and customers — my co-presenters at the conference, Sarah Peluso-Martinez and Denise Wasdrop from Southwest Gas Corporation. This dynamic duo told their amazing story of how their team transformed five call centers into one virtual center.

This week, seek out your Isabels and let them know what a difference they make every day and in so many ways. (Remember to give them a hug for me.)

Be happy.

Barbara Burke

Copyright 2011 Barbara Burke. All Rights Reserved.

“The true expert is the person who does the job.”
- Peter Drucker

One of the magical things that happens when 20+ supervisors participate in my Intentional Coaching Workshops is how they so generously share their best practices with each other.

Last week, Gerry Spielbauer, Director of Customer Service at Madison Gas & Electric and her leadership team hosted my workshop. On Day 2, Gerry shared several innovative initiatives MGE has implemented, including their very successful Peer Call Review team.

I asked Chris Keyes one of the CSRs who participated in the peer coaching program to provide an overview.

“Our peer team consisted of five members. Each CSR is at a different experience level and each with a variety of previous customer service experience.  Kris Nelson, Customer Center Supervisor, facilitated the first several sessions and eventually we met on our own with one CSR facilitating.  We listened to incoming calls and each of the team members provided feedback.  The CSR who took the call provided a self-evaluation.
Having team members with diverse backgrounds and experiences was very beneficial.  As a team, we learned how to give straightforward constructive feedback.  During many of our sessions we (Peer Coaches) learned different techniques and identified ways to improve.”

5 Tips for Creating a Successful Peer Coaching Program

1. Select the right people.

Make sure you select individuals who are self-starters, have a positive attitude, are great communicators and really know their stuff.

2. Realize that serving as a Peer Coach has inherent risks.

By positioning the program correctly (we’re here to learn from each other not to criticize and nitpick)MGE allayed any fears that the Peers had defected to the other side.

3. Set the ground rules.

The supervisor, Kris, did a great job helping the Peers use positive language and focus more on what’s right about the call than what’s wrong.

4. Role play.

The best way to reduce the risk that a rep being coached will have a negative experience is to make sure that the Peers calibrate their approach by practicing with each other in advance.

5. Measure success in two ways.

Consider your Peer Coaching program a success when their efforts make a measurable difference in performance and other reps are asking if they can be a Peer Coach.

A big “Thank You!” to Chris for your overview and Gerry and your team at MGE for all you did to make the Workshop such a smashing success. (If you’d like to discuss the possibility of hosting a future regional workshop, contact me.)

Be happy. Make a difference. Stay in touch.

Barbara
Copyright 2011 Barbara Burke. All Rights Reserved.