The acquisition and retention of highly-qualified workers is crucial for any organization, and outsourced call centers are no different. That’s why the most innovative nearshore call centers are implementing new company culture strategies to attract and retain top talent.
Due to a global skills shortage which is affecting almost every single industry, these new strategies are essential for customer service success in the current marketplace.
In fact, according to global organizational consulting firm Korn Ferry’s 2018 study, the United States faces a critical shortage of skilled workers that could cost the country $1.748 trillion in lost revenue by 2030 – the equivalent of 6 percent of the country’s economy.
In the report, Alan Guarino, Vice Chairman of Korn Ferry CEO and Board Services, said: “The right talent is the greatest competitive advantage there is for an organization – and that talent is getting scarcer every day.”
Meanwhile, a 2018 survey from Manpower Group found talent shortages are continuing to grow around the world. Responding to the survey, 41 percent of Canadian employers reported difficulty filling jobs throughout the year.
With more jobs advertised than there are candidates looking, potential employees now have the luxury of being able to choose the company they want to work for. Company culture is now a huge selling point to top talent.
Company culture is king
Happy employees are particularly important in customer service. Good customer service relies on happy, passionate and loyal customer service representatives who can become brand ambassadors for your firm.
As a result, the very best outsourced call centers are putting company culture to the forefront of how they operate.
A superior company culture will ensure an outsourced contact center has access to top talent, retains its top-performing workers, is efficient, productive, profitable, can seamlessly work with its clients and many other benefits.
One popular company culture strategy that the best outsourced call centers are now using is the service-profit-chain.
What is the service-profit-chain model?
Service-profit-chain is a theory and business model proposed by a group of researchers in the Harvard Business Review in 1994. The business model establishes a relationship between profitability and customer loyalty, and employee satisfaction, loyalty and productivity.
The idea of the business model is that there is an irrefutable link between employee satisfaction and the profitability of your business. The happier and more engaged the customer service representatives that work for your company are, the more loyal customers will be to your organization.
By taking some simple measures to improve employee satisfaction and focus on the service-profit-chain model, outsourced call centers will be able to improve a wide range of customer satisfaction metrics as well as significantly increase sales.
How does it benefit outsourced call centers?
You’ve probably heard the saying “happy employees make happy customers” – but did you know that it’s actually true? Happy, passionate and engaged employees are the foundation of any successful customer service strategy.
Customer service representatives that are happy with their jobs are far more likely to provide a truly world-class customer experience (CX) on behalf of your brand. They’ll be far more effective at answering complex questions, providing knowledgeable answers and showing passion for your products.
If you are outsourcing your customer service strategy to a call center, happy call center employees will bring you benefits such as:
They are passionate about the projects they work on, becoming brand ambassadors for your organization. They are more knowledgeable about the products/services that your company offers. They build stronger relationships with customers, enhancing the customer experience. They are more efficient and productive at work. They are less likely to leave their job, building a long-term relationship with your brand and your customers. They are able to provide high-quality customer service every single day.