How to bounce back from a call center performance crisis

by Margaux Panlilio, Quality Supervisor

Many call center agents feel that it’s the end of their world if they fail, perhaps let’s say their monthly quality score, or their schedule adherence score.

Dealing with situations like this becomes an issue in all inbound call centers. So why do you think this is a problem? It is because agents quit and go on attrition. Maybe you have heard this old adage before, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” I have as a tenured employee in a customer service call center, however, heard another version which goes like this, “When the going gets tough and the tough fall, they bounce back.”

Being able to bounce back from a performance crisis really matters a lot if you want to be successful in the customer service industry, and ultimately in life. All the successful people in the world have gone through a stage of crisis not just in work but in everything else, and have successfully bounced back from it. When you are working in the competitive contact center industry, maybe as an order taker or a help desk solutions rep, remember that ‘Failure is inevitable!’ if you want to succeed; but without taking the risk for failure, you will also not be able to take the risk of experiencing great success; don’t just quit… take it as a challenge!

As an employee of this industry, agents, managers, team leads, directors, COO’s, and sometimes CEO’s fail at some point or another. However, what makes a winner is someone who can turn failure into a success.

Donald Trump, the real-estate tycoon, was one tough guy who was really able to bounce back successfully from a crisis. During the 1990’s recession, property prices crashed down and he ended up with millions in debt. However, in just ten years, he was able to earn billions.

Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Inc., was a college dropout and was even kicked out of the very company he founded earlier in his life. However, because he persisted and never gave up, he was able to turn his failure into a success. Now, he is one of the richest men in the world.

So, WIFM? (What’s in it for me, as an agent?) The values you will learn from the call center industry are the foundations of “Service to Humanity”. As an agent, failure doesn’t mean it’s the end of your career, it means the start of it.

As a Quality Supervisor, I always believe that areas of opportunities are not focused on what you did wrong on the call, but it is focused on the opportunity to make you the best you can be, and the more opportunities we find the better person you can be and the faster you’ll be there.

Those people in front of you, your team lead your OM, the GM, and the company CEO; they all did not allow the crushing performance failure “crush” them completely. Their mindset, problem-solving skills, resilience, and champion way of thinking and doing things made them who they are today – the BOSS! The right kind of mindset leads to having the right thoughts and right actions, which produce great results.

So when experiencing crisis or failure, take it as an opportunity in disguise and continue to take consistent action towards your goal. Who knows, in 3 months you are already one of your company’s bosses. Believe me, I’ve seen this, and it really happens.