Due to the complexities of the task faced by call center agents, several strategies of managing them have been developed. Agents have to be monitored for quality control. In this regard, there is a set of criteria being used to evaluate the call handling of the call center agents. Such criteria usually include attendance, the average length of time of handling calls, and most importantly, the kind of service provided by the agent to the customer. The advice given by the call center agent should be in accordance with policy and it should be in line with the companys framework of customer service. Quality control is a means through which the company ensures that the customers receive the best customer service it has to offer.

The level of proficiency of the people are also assessed. Such proficiency includes the agents way of handling the computer program that helps him deal with the issues and requests of the customer, as well as in skillfully directing the conversation towards the resolution of complaints and issues.

In addition to the concerns faced by call center agents, there are also several areas that the call center in general has to look after. The queue of calls should be managed well as this directly impacts the access of customers to the call center. If the queue is too long, then customers might simply be dropped in the queue, their concerns will not be addressed and they will be more frustrated than they were before they called. Call center agents will then have to deal with more irate customers.

Generating Reports through Workforce Management

Workforce management is being used in almost all call centers in the Philippines. Using this helps a lot in monitoring the activities of the call center agents as well as the distribution of calls in the call center. Through workforce management, the management of a call center is able to generate numerous reports that can help in analyzing the performance of the call center and predicting the volume and the frequency of calls. Real time reporting can also be accomplished through workforce management software. Historical reporting can also be done to effectively manage the performance of agents.

In generating reports, there are several items being gathered: the number of agents available to take up calls, the agents who are currently on the phone with a customer, those who are simply wrapping up their conversation with their customers, the time spent by agents in wrapping up the call and making request to back-office support, and the number of calls abandoned among others. In addition to this, the number of abandoned calls is also logged, the rate in which the center responds to calls, the number of calls waiting on the queue, and the service level, which is usually derived from the ratio of the number of answered calls in a given time frame.

Through workforce management and the skillful overall management of this industry in the Philippines, these stalwarts of outsourcing stand proud in delivering excellent customer service.