March
2002
Conventional wisdom -- that managing a call center is primarily about managing technology, not people -- is hampering call-centers' effectiveness. But well-rounded strategies could boost productivity, improve pay, and increase employee retention in your company's call center.
No company or manager deliberately sets out to hire sales reps that will perform poorly. Yet in many companies, up to two-thirds of salespeople are underperforming. So why do managers hire these individuals? Because they're unable to discern which candidates are likely to be stars, average performers, or abject failures.
Apple Computer's new marketing approach -- replacing product sales through Circuit City and other retailers with the Web and its own retail outlets -- seems puzzling. Why would Apple abandon one marketing strategy for another with less reach? Can a "less is more" approach really work?
When compassion is called for, your bottom line is at stake. That's what employees told Gallup in our fifth national survey, taken after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Far more employees who felt their companies did an excellent job of responding to the tragedy are engaged than employees who felt their companies responded poorly.
At a time when every corporate budget is feeling the blade, chief marketing officers can't afford to take chances with their ad dollars. Licensing a Beatles song as background music or re-creating Woodstock in a 60-second spot may snare a twentysomething's attention for a minute. But will it sell $60 chinos?
The longer employees stay with a company, the more disenchanted they become with their jobs. That means that, for most workers, the first year on the job is their best, and it's downhill from there for the employee and for the company. These insights can help you reverse the trend.
A survey of German employees last summer revealed that a staggering 69% are profoundly disconnected from their work -- a surprise, since German workers are highly skilled and generously compensated, and they produce some of the best products in the world. What accounts for the low German engagement? And what can be done to improve it?
Want productive employees? Make sure they have the right tools to get their job done. When Gallup asks employees if they have the proper tools for their jobs, a positive responses corresponds with enhanced employee safety, customer loyalty, and employee retention. A negative response means that employees may well be eyeing the exits.
When a customer feels wronged, companies rarely apologize. But when they fail to show contrition, the costs are high, and reduced customer loyalty, lost sales, and damaging word-of-mouth campaigns may be the result. To avoid the destructive consequences of inaction, try this six-step approach to problem resolution.
Team-building was a high priority when Toyota Motor Sales USA opened its parts center in California in October 1996. Toyota's concerted effort to create great teams -- and the productivity that resulted -- illuminates what makes teams truly effective.