CallTalk Caramels: Avoiding Agent Burnout

CallTalk is a monthly internet radio program featuring the most innovative managers and thought leaders in the customer contact field, interviewed by BenchmarkPortal CEO, Bruce Belfiore.  “Caramels” distills key moments from these interviews into practical, bite-sized nuggets to inform and assist you as a contact center professional.
Agent burnout is often correlated to the culture of the call center and to the culture of the people working in the call center. Sweatshop centers and “crisis call” centers have particularly high levels of burnout. A statistical proxy for burnout is agent turnover, which exceeds 100% per year in some cases.
Helpful tips to identify early warning signals of agent burnout include:

1. Agent Adherence to Schedule – When burnout occurs, agents lose their appetite and interest for work and become less responsive to occupancy levels and service levels.
2. Quality Scores – as attitude slips, so does the quality and accurateness of work. This is reflected through the tone and pace of the agent- -and can be perceived by customers as well.
3. Apathy – Agents lose interest in the activities of the center, or in interacting with others.

Agent burnout is also characterized by the following types of behaviors:

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