Middle Management is The Key
Whenever you read any negative article about the offshore call-center industry, it seems to be based around one or more of 5 issues.
Telecommunications
Infrastructure
Accent
Agent Quality
Middle Management
In reality, the top 4 are now non-issues among all but a few vendors. Offshore vendors quickly realized that western clients would just not tolerate weak infrastructure. As for accent, the sheer quantity of applicants for call center jobs means that this really isnt an issue in the good centers If anything, the availability of good quality agents is far higher in these offshore locations. However, for many centers, little movement has been made in terms of improving the quality of middle management. As some of the offshore vendors experience triple digit growth, the problem is becoming even more apparent.
Rob Gibbins, Chief Client Officer of Asian Call Centers, examines why this is the case and looks at how the painstaking process his own company has gone through and continues to go through in order to negate this issue.
The overall problem stems from a lack of understanding of how important the whole issue of middle management really is. You can visit a call-center that is beautifully designed, has start of the art technology and wonderful salaries for their staff but if the team-leaders and supervisors are weak, then the center is doomed to failure. The other side of this problem seems to be that the issue of making weak middle management into strong middle management is such a major issue with no quick-fix solutions that many companies simply choose to ignore it.
There are four problems within many of the offshore vendors themselves, which make this issue even worse.
1.A lack of focus on the call-center industry
So many offshore vendors started life as something other than a call center company. Some were IT companies, some were utilities but very few were call center companies. For example, in India, a lot of software companies all of a sudden felt that the offshore outsourcing model they have perfected for software development could easily be transferred for the call center industry. This is true to an extent but programmers are a different type of person to call center agents and they need to be managed differently. This kind of company simply doesnt have the expertise to be able to transfer the required skills to its middle management.
There is another worrying trend. Take a look at the websites of most offshore outsourcing companies and they will basically say they do all forms of business process outsourcing. This can tend to mean, were not really sure what we can do but will take any work which comes our way. Such a lack of focus doesnt inspire confidence.
2.The how difficult can it be syndrome.
Whenever I meet up with people in the offshore call-center industry, there is a major complacency about it. Many people seem to think How hard it can be to make or receive a few telephone calls?. If it were that easy, every call-center in the world would work perfectly and I have yet to see one that is. In reality, a call center is an entity where there are many conflicting pressures such as the need to drive down costs, the need to motivate staff and the need to consistently improve quality. It takes years of experience to even understand these finely balanced issues let alone solve them. The fact that it all looks so easy has led many vendors into a false sense of security. Very few offshore vendors have yet to realize that a thorough understanding of the importance of the team leader role coupled with the ability to make the function of middle management function properly is the single most important factor in any center. It determines the quality of the agents, staff retention rates, service levels and the entire customer experience.
3.Well read about from a book
This is very similar to the How difficult can it be syndrome?
If you ever visit countries like India, The Philippines or South Africa, you will find that there are countless numbers of experts in areas such as telephony or software. However, the soft skills required to manage call centers effectively are rare in these countries. This means that the up and coming managers dont have mentors to learn from and the problem will continue until outside assistance is brought in. However, the common approach is to think you can take someone elses operations manuals or training manuals and will automatically have the knowledge to apply them effectively. Reading the manuals will only show people what they need to do. If they dont know how to apply this knowledge, it will simply not work.
A recent trend for some vendors has been to bring in Westerns to manage sales and account management offices in The U.K. and The U.S. Although clients seem to like this in the short term, these internationally experienced individuals need to be where the action is if they are to have any significant impact of the delivery of a quality service.
4.Talk the Talk without Walking the Walk
What this actually means is that they are simply ignoring the issue. If you read the brochures and websites of many offshore vendors, they talk at length about how good their management is. In reality, they pay little or no attention to the development of their middle management personnel. The middle management is like the foundations to a house: if they are weak, nothing may appear wrong at first but when problems do appear, the whole house can fall down.
It is relatively easy to spot these vendors. Ask them detailed questions about their claims surrounding their middle management. They are simply not used to having to justify their claims and will be easily flummoxed.
So What To Do?
However, there is light at the end of the tunnel and we have proved that it is possible to make a difference. Heres what we can recommend.
1.Bring in experience
There is no alternative to having people who have been there and done it. Initially, this means bringing in an entire management structure from overseas. This team should then mentor your future middle management. It may cost more in the short term but it is the only way that has proven to work. Clients like it too as it proves you are serious. Most Governments in the major offshore locations have made employing foreign nationals relatively easy for call centers.
2.Focus your efforts.
Decide what you want to be good at and do it. Develop skills in one area such as list-cleaning or customer service. The management of customer service is very different to managing outbound. It requires a completely different discipline. If you spread yourself too thinly, you are doomed to failure. The hard part comes when you are offered work, which falls, outside of your core competencies. Always remain focused on where you want to be and dont be distracted for short-term gain.
3.Structured training, exposure and mentoring
With the fast-paced life of the call-center, its often very difficult to step away and see where things are going. Unless somethings broken, there generally isnt time to fix it. The training and development should be structured in an effective manner rather than short term quick-fixes to short-term problems. You need to fully examine what skills your middle managers need and design a curriculum to be delivered over the next 12-18 months. It is worthwhile bringing in outside trainers to evaluate your requirements and deliver the training is these skills dont exist in-house.
4.Dont give the jobs to kids
A major mistake in countries like India and The Philippines is to promote young, fresh graduates too early. This is not just the failing of call-center companies but a common problem where companies try to hire young, cheap and enthusiastic graduates. Its a policy that rarely works. Im not advocating a minimum age policy for middle-managers but young graduates tend to lack the life-skills which is often the difference between good and bad middle managers. A key component to a successful middle manager is that they need to understand how to get the most out of their people.
Conclusion
It may seem that I am just competitor-bashing but it couldnt be further from the truth. The failures of our competition to meet these challenges tarnishes the reputation of the entire offshore industry. However hard we have personally worked to overcome these issues, companies will still think twice before using our services if offshore outsourcing has a bad image
The simple truth is that recruiting, developing and maintaining quality middle management staff will be the single most important factor for the development of the offshore call center industry.
There is strong evidence to suggest that middle managers in offshore locations have the potential to outperform their counterparts in industrialized nations due to their high work ethic, loyalty and attitude.
There is light at the end of the tunnel and if you can rise above the day-to-day running of the centre to develop and implement a long-term strategy for your middle management. Its a never ending battle as other centres will be looking to take your quality middle managers but it is a battle which will produce amazing results if adopted successfully.
Rob O'Malley is one of the world's leading experts in business process outsourcing. He is The COO of Asian Call Centres, based in Manila, Philippines
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