Customer Experience (CX) in the Contact Centre has always been a driving force behind most businesses. But as we battle the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, organisations are finding that with offices and stores now closed further boosting the demand for online consumerism, delivering excellent quality CX is now shaping businesses far and wide.
One major factor in this is the importance of collaboration. We’ve all heard the term ‘a problem shared is a problem solved’ and that really applies to the contact centre – albeit remote, hybrid or working from the office.
How Collaboration Helps Improve Businesses
There are a variety of ways collaboration helps improve a business. This can be through simple teamwork throughout a hierarchy of roles or software collaboration to help make the cogs in the wheels of the organisation turn more smoothly. Collaboration helps a business to achieve a common goal, improves efficiency and also helps to motivate agents. But how does it help boost CX?
Unification
When teams are communicating across all business departments, agents feel they have a better support network. This means that any gaps in their knowledge are filled promptly, so call times are reduced, along with the need to pass customers around to different departments. As a result of this, there are less complaints and eventually, an increase in CX consistency.
Identify Strengths
Collaboration also helps identify strengths and weaknesses in a team. One agent might be the better logical thinker in comparison to another who might possess natural management skills. Another agent may make a good mentor while another on the other hand might need more support. Every agents’ personality is different and therefore will bring something new and unique to the table. Finding a balance among each team is key in the joint delivery of CX.
Encourage Patience
Patience is a skill in itself and not all of us have it. But, with patience comes listening and, more importantly, learning. Agents must remember to patient with new staff members who are learning their roles so that their skill set can be boosted to the same degree.
Learning Through Collaboration
Although the previous point touched on this, a strong team should connect to enable the exchange of information in learning. Varying backgrounds should be expected through different agents, with some having better skills in speed and others showing the remaining agents where they could improve in first-time responses.
Community Spirit
A well-connected team will provide one another a sense of security and community. The feeling of belonging is an important factor in maintaining team relationships and could be achieved through more team-building exercises or meetings, as examples. Community and connectivity as a result will boost employee satisfaction in their role and this will only reflect positively through the CX agents provide.
To summarise, collaboration not only helps build a team, but also aims to drive those part of it and the business. While organisations continue to battle through the crisis the pandemic has sparked, agents delivering excellent quality CX will keep firms thriving while providing a lifeline – and a familiar face – to their customers.
