Shaunna Wilson, our Workforce Engagement (WEM) consultant, is back with her latest blog post. This time, she takes a closer look at how investing in advisor engagement can make a real difference in your contact centre’s success. While many WEM strategies focus on refining processes and improving productivity, it’s important not to overlook your most valuable asset - your people. Shuanna shares practical ideas to help create a more motivated and committed workforce, leading to better retention and improved customer experiences.
Voice of the Employee: Going Beyond the Basics
Many businesses already collect employee feedback and do it well. But the standard approach - asking if someone enjoys working at the company or how likely they are to recommend it - often only scratches the surface. To truly understand your advisors’ experience, why not dig deeper?
Get specific. Ask about their experiences on calls:
- “Tell me about a time when you felt you needed more support and why.”
- “Describe a moment when you went above and beyond for a customer.”
- “What contact types do you find the hardest to handle, and why?”
- “How do you think we can make things better?”
Your advisors are your best source of insight. They know what works, what doesn’t, and where improvements can be made - not just from a business perspective but from a customer experience standpoint, too.
Days on Demand: A Radical but Effective Approach
Here’s an idea that might sound a bit wild at first - giving advisors a set amount of days throughout the year to take off on demand. No holiday budget checks or extended notice periods. Just the ability to reach out in the morning and take the day off if needed.
It might sound risky, but it doesn’t have to be. Contact centres in Poland and the UK I've worked with have implemented this approach successfully. By allowing advisors to take a day off when feeling burnt out, anxious, or overly stressed, engagement improves and attrition drops.
Supporting employees when they need it most fosters loyalty and promotes a healthier work environment. Of course, adjustments to other areas of the business are necessary to make this work, but when done well, the results speak for themselves.
Hourly Holiday Usage: Flexibility Matters
If you can allow last-minute or hourly holidays, do it. Imagine an advisor who arrives at work feeling off but powers through the morning. Instead of struggling through the rest of the day, they could book the last two hours off if availability allows.
This approach not only supports the employee’s well-being but also ensures that holidays are being properly utilised. Ideally, this process would be integrated with your WEM solution, allowing employees to request time off and receive approval within minutes. It’s a win-win.
Blended vs. Multiskilling: Finding the Right Balance
Blended vs. multiskilling is always an interesting topic. I've always been a big advocate of blended contacts for businesses, but lately, I've started to see the value in shifting some contact types to a multiskilling approach - especially within WFM solutions.
If you're dealing with vulnerable customers or handling complex tasks, it might be worth considering pulling those interactions out of the blended approach. For example, you could have a dedicated team focused on supporting vulnerable customers, equipped with specialised training and support to handle those interactions effectively.
You might also consider building dedicated work tasks into schedules - where employees can step away from blended queues to focus solely on more complex tasks. This gives them time to prepare properly and ensures the work is distributed fairly, like setting aside two hours a day for all skilled employees to work on specific tasks.
It’s all about finding the right balance to make sure everyone’s set up for success.
1-Hour Self Time: Encouraging Work-Life Balance
For employees working traditional 9-to-5 schedules, finding time for personal errands can be a challenge. Some companies have successfully introduced a weekly one-hour “self time” for this purpose.
Whether it’s making a GP appointment, posting important documents, or handling other personal matters, this time can be invaluable. Businesses that have implemented this option report strong positive feedback around work-life balance. Some even allow requests for split shifts to provide greater flexibility.
Recognition: A Must-Have for Engagement
Recognition is an essential part of any engagement strategy. Highlighting moments when advisors go above and beyond not only boosts morale but also encourages others to follow suit.
Whether it’s through weekly recognition posts, gamification, or incentives like vouchers and extra breaks, celebrating success goes a long way. Recognition can be embedded into your WEM solution to keep things consistent and transparent.
The Bottom Line
Supporting your advisors goes beyond having the right processes in place. It’s about understanding their needs, offering flexibility, and recognising their efforts. While not every approach will work for every business, exploring what’s possible is worth the effort.
WEM solutions are designed to help you put these strategies into practice. If you’re curious about how to tailor these ideas to your own contact centre, let’s chat.
