Good coaching has to be developmental but can also be fun. When you approach a Conversational Marketing™ Expert (CME) and ask them to make themselves unavailable for calls so you can coach them and you see their posture sink, you know you are dealing with a CME that has had some bad coaching experiences! The good news, though, is that you have the chance to deliver a coaching experience to the CME that has the power to help them improve their performance, as well as their morale, by making it developmental and fun at the same time.

There are some basic rules for good coaching that the CME will learn from, as well as enjoy:

• First, determine your intention before you even approach the CME. This is simple. Decide if you will be helping them retain more customers, sound more conversational and natural, improve their conversational quality scores, etc.
• Second, create an environment that is not threatening or condescending. The best way to do this is to sit down beside the CME. Be able to talk to the CME eye to eye. Standing up while your CME is sitting creates a subliminal position of authority versus a subservient environment. The old looming-over-the-CME position creates a feeling of condescending communication or a one-sided conversation, and that is not the feeling you are going for. You want the CME to feel safe and relaxed. A safe relaxed CME is more open to feedback and naturally will have more of a feeling that you are there to help as opposed to criticize.
• Third, balance your feedback with positives as well as coaching opportunities. Think of it as a sandwich. Start with positives and compliments, move into coaching opportunities, and then wrap up with a couple more positives. This method starts out feeling great. It builds the CME’s confidence and allows them to relax when they realize you did not pull up a chair simply to tell them everything they do wrong or need to do better. The positives and compliments encourage them and tell them specific things they are doing great and equips them to duplicate them again for more positive reinforcement in the future. Now that they are open-minded and listening to you, transition into coaching opportunities. Never call coaching opportunities “negatives”! It’s human nature to want to avoid things that are negative. Instead, build off of the positives that you started with, and let the CME know that you heard some things in the calls that you think are great opportunities for the two of you to work together to make the CME even more awesome! Move into your coaching opportunities. Be clear and specific about why they are opportunities for improvement, tell them how they can make improvements, and then tell them the benefit of making the suggested improvements. From there, transition into the bottom bun of the sandwich: a couple more positives. Point out a couple more things that you think the CME does really well or that you really liked, and use them as a springboard to really strengthen the coaching opportunities and give them the confidence to work on the suggestions you gave them. It lets the CME know that you are there to help and that your intentions are to work with them and help them make the necessary adjustments.
• Lastly, create accountability. This is done by asking the CME if they have questions about anything you two just covered. Once the questions are answered, let them know that you are going to make a copy of the coaching form for them so they have something to refer to and that you will do a follow-up coaching in 5 days. Set a specific date for the follow up so that the CME is aware that there are expectations. Do it in a positive or encouraging way so that they look forward to it. Make sure to reinforce your confidence in them. Let them know you look forward to listening to their calls again and can’t wait to hear the great changes you discussed. This is a positive coaching style and typically gets very good results and great responses.

A few coaching experiences like this, and you will have CMEs actually asking you to coach them. Coaching does not have to be doom and gloom to get results. Give this approach a try, and you will see that you not only get better results but improved morale from your CMEs too. There’s not much better than happy CMEs that produce great results!

Image credit: http://coachingispower.com/business/join-our-team/

As I push forward in my role as a Team Captain at Incept, I am quickly realizing there are new things to be learned every day in the role of a leader.

For those of you not familiar with Incept’s company structure, we manage our Conversational Marketing™ Experts (CMEs) in groups of teams across the contact center that are led by their respective Team Leads, followed by their Team Captain. The Team Captain acts as the stand-in Team Lead on days where the Team Lead is not there and also serves as a source of verbal and professional support directly in the contact center for that team. Think of the role of a Team Captain at Incept as a “future Team Lead in training”.

From my experience as Team Captain of my team, appropriately named “The Youngbloodz”, I have discovered what works when it comes to motivating others to collaboratively work with you. I’ve also learned what doesn’t work, as well as many other lessons about contact center leadership.

Here are my tips for emerging contact center leaders:

Leadership Tips and Considerations for Up-and-coming Professionals

• You are a walking example to your employees of company policy. When you are a leader, people expect you to act like a leader. Your bosses expect that you have the company’s back and stand guard ready to educate about the policies, the workflows and, in general, serve as a beacon of positivity for your employees. Every company has policies that help with the conduct of business and interactions in the workplace, and it is your job to communicate that through your actions and set the example. In Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence, author Daniel Goleman states that roughly 50-70% of how employees perceive their organization’s climate is attributable to the actions and behaviors of their leader.

• Consider your mood and how it affects those who you manage. For me, personally, when I’m happy, I’m on top of the world. And it shows. When I’m angry or upset, I feel as though I also radiate negative emotions. Feelings are natural and normal, but being able to express your feelings in a constructive and positive way as a leader is an essential part of beginning to develop professional maturity. If you are a leader at your company, then you know that a negative mood will dictate how you talk to people, the way you carry yourself on the contact center floor, and even how your employees perform. That being said, take a moment to consider how outside circumstances can have a direct effect on the way you manage, and take a proactive stance to replace apathy with positivity in your words, your interactions with other employees, and, most importantly, your work.

• Change your workplace’s cultural climate by simply being observant of your employees. A true leader keeps vigilant note of his or her surroundings and how they change. By simply being emotionally and mentally aware of your employees, their workflows, their performance, and even just how their day is going, you can always be preemptively ready to combat negativity. Anyone can be a boss and simply dictate tasks, but being a leader means being able to literally guide your employees through mental obstacles in a realistic and encouraging type of methodology. Remember, a true leader looks for the good qualities in all of his or her workers and encourages the growth of their strengths.

I hope you kept up on the overall theme of being a leader that radiates positive vibes. Being in a management role in a contact center can be very demanding, but it is easy to start understanding what it takes with an open mind and an emotionally aware yet grounded outlook.

What are other ways that a leader can impact the performance of their workers positively?

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Every morning when I get dressed one of the last things that I put on before leaving the house is my customer service tool belt. My tool belt isn’t an accessory to coordinate with my outfit. My tool belt is essential in my job. It helps me get through the day.

First, to give a visual: you know how a construction worker has a utility belt that holds all of their equipment to help them? Well, a customer service tool belt is like that. There are many compartments and attachments to hold on to everything. And to provide great customer service you need to have some tools that are easy to grab.

One of the most important things that you must have is a smile. This is important whether you are face to face or on the phones. Customers calm down and respond better to you when met with a smile. And why is this important on the phones? Well, the customer can tell if you are smiling through the phones. You always want to be cheery and bright.

Other items located on your belt are patience, knowledge, and empathy. You need patience to stay calm with a frustrated customer. It will not help the situation if you allow the customer to get you all upset along with them. Knowledge is key. You need the knowledge to know how to help a customer and what your company policy will allow you to do to help the customer. And empathy will help you show a customer that you understand their frustration, and that you really care about their situation.

So don’t forget before you walk out the door, grab your customer service belt!

What items are on your customer service tool belt?

Image Credit: http://all-free-download.com/free-icon/icons/tool_belt_37764.html

As promised, here is my final post in this series about the last two stages: Norming and Performing

Norming

The team manages to have one goal and come to a mutual plan for the team at this stage. Some may have to give up their own ideas and agree with others in order to make the team function. In this stage, all team members take the responsibility and have the ambition to work for the success of the team’s goals. Group members establish implicit or explicit rules about how they will achieve their goal. They address the types of communication that will or will not help with the task. Indicators include the following: questioning performances, reviewing/clarifying objectives, changing/confirming roles, opening risky issues, assertiveness, listening, testing new ground, identifying strengths and weaknesses.

Performing

It is possible for some teams to reach the performing stage. These high-performing teams are able to function as a unit as they find ways to get the job done smoothly and effectively without inappropriate conflict or the need for external supervision. By this time, they are motivated and knowledgeable. The team members are now competent, autonomous, and able to handle the decision-making process without supervision. Dissent is expected and allowed, as long as it is channeled through means acceptable to the team.

Supervisors of the team during this phase are almost always participative. The team will make most of the necessary decisions. Even the most high-performing teams will revert to earlier stages under certain circumstances. Many longstanding teams even go through these cycles many times as they react to changing circumstances. For example, a change in leadership may cause the team to revert to storming as the new people challenge the existing norms and dynamics of the team. Groups reach a conclusion and implement the solution to their issue. Indicators include the following: creativity, initiative, flexibility, open relationships, pride, concern for people, learning, confidence, high morale, and success.

Although most teams will move through these stages on their own, team leaders can often manage this process to reduce time and to maximize the benefits.

Debriefing with both your team and your fellow supervisors following a game will provide some very useful information. With a few simple questions you can begin to gauge the popularity of the game, as well as any design flaws that were not previously recognized. Team leaders can also promote reflective learning through the careful choice of questions. This process will help you to see the individual characteristics of your team members as they emerge.

Debriefing Questions

Teams

• What was your favorite part of the game? Why?
• How did the game compare to your expectations?
• Did you develop any insights about your coworkers?
• Did you learn anything about your own personality?
• What did you learn that would be useful if you played again?
• How did you learn it? What were your “teachers”?
• What were the critical moments?
• What did you learn from success/failure?
• When things went well during the game, what were you doing? What was true? How could you have more of that kind of success in your daily work?
• What experiences from the game apply to your daily work? What were the “teachers”? What made the game a learning situation for you? For the group? What got in the way of learning?

Team Leaders

• What did you see to be true during the game re: communication? Working relationships? Problem solving?
• What could be true (based on the game)?
• What would it take to get there?
• Who was a planner and who acted? Who was a leader and who was a member? Who confronted conflict and who avoided it? Who was detailed and who saw the big picture?

Games offer the opportunity to reinforce the type of skills that most organizations want: goal achievement. Skill at, and effort toward, meeting organizational goals is encouraged with a certain and immediate reward, which in turn rewards the recipient with a game experience coupled with the opportunity to win. When combined with team building principles the outcome can be dramatic.

References

Tuckman, Bruce (1965). “Developmental sequence in small groups”. Psychological Bulletin 63 (6): 384–99.

Mitchell, James Brooks, Ph.D. (2008). “Games, Work and Human Motivation”. Snake River publishing.

Capezio, Peter (1996). “Supreme Teams, How to make teams really work”. National Press Publications, Inc.

Image: http://newdirectionsconsulting.com/4652/blog/blog-getting-past-the-storm-in-team-building-2/

As I mentioned in my earlier post, when using games to help with team building, you will start to see your team go through some stages. This post will discuss two of the four stages: Forming and Storming.

Forming

In this stage, the individual’s behavior is driven by a desire to be accepted by others and avoid controversy or conflict. Serious issues and feelings are avoided, and people focus on being busy with routines, such as team organization, who does what, when to meet, etc. Individuals are also gathering information and impressions about each other, as well as the scope of the task and how to approach it. This is a comfortable stage to be in, but the avoidance of conflict and threat means that not much actually gets done.

Team members tend to behave quite independently. They may be motivated but are usually relatively uninformed of the issues and objectives of the team. Team members are usually on their best behavior but very focused on themselves. Mature team members begin to model appropriate behavior even at this early phase. Supervisors of the team tend to need to be directive during this phase.

The forming stage of any team is important because, in this stage, the members of the team get to know one another, exchange some personal information, and make new friends. This is also a good opportunity to see how each member of the team works as an individual and how they respond to pressure. Indicators of this stage might include the following: unclear objectives, low involvement, uncommitted members, confusion, low morale, hidden feelings, poor listening, etc.

Storming

Every group will next enter the storming stage in which different ideas compete for consideration. The team addresses issues such as what problems they are really supposed to solve, how they will function independently and together, and what leadership model they will accept. Team members open up to each other and confront each other’s ideas and perspectives. In some cases storming can be resolved quickly. In others, the team never leaves this stage. The maturity of some team members usually determines whether the team will ever move out of this stage. Some team members will focus on minutiae to evade real issues.

The storming stage is necessary to the growth of the team. It can be contentious, unpleasant, and even painful to members of the team who are averse to conflict. Tolerance of each team member and their differences should be emphasized. Without tolerance and patience the team will fail. This phase can become destructive to the team and will lower motivation if allowed to get out of control. Some teams will never develop past this stage.

Supervisors of the team during this phase may be more accessible but tend to remain directive in their guidance of decision-making and professional behavior. The team members will resolve their differences, and members will be able to participate with one another more comfortably. The idea is that they will not feel that they are being judged, and will therefore share their opinions and views. Normally tension, struggle, and sometimes arguments occur. These activities mark the storming phase: lack of cohesion, subjectivity, hidden agendas, conflicts, confrontation, volatility, resentment, anger, inconsistency, failure, etc.

Stay tuned as my next post will discuss the final two stages, Norming and Performing.

References

Tuckman, Bruce (1965). “Developmental sequence in small groups”. Psychological Bulletin 63 (6): 384–99.

Mitchell, James Brooks, Ph.D. (2008). “Games, Work and Human Motivation”. Snake River publishing.

Capezio, Peter (1996). “Supreme Teams, How to make teams really work”. National Press Publications, Inc.

Image Credit: http://newdirectionsconsulting.com/4652/blog/blog-getting-past-the-storm-in-team-building-2/

The most successful teams achieve their best results by using optimal contributions from every individual team member. When the team becomes stronger than the sum of the individual members, it achieves what is called “synergy”. This may be the single most important key to building winning teams.

The goal of team building is to reach a point where each member of the team has similar values, and those values are policed by the team members themselves. This can be thought of as team thinking.

How do we create teams that will achieve synergy? There are many books published on this subject and a thousand different ideas to help achieve this outcome. However, it all boils down to one thing: shared experience.

Team building exercises and games provide this experience. They permit members to bond with one another and help the team leader identify strengths in each member. Team building exercises and games also function as a way to release tension and reduce conflict. Games can turn what is normally considered to be work into something that is considered to be fun.

As you play games with your team you will begin to see the team members acting in ways you might not have noticed in the past. Leaders may begin to emerge, or you may find that specific members have talents or skills that you had not seen before. You can also expect to see your team go through some fairly predictable stages: Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing. However, if your team members know each other fairly well, and/or new members will join the team from time to time, do not be surprised if your team moves back and forth through these stages.

In my next two posts I will be providing more details about each of these stages.

References:

Tuckman, Bruce (1965). “Developmental sequence in small groups”. Psychological Bulletin 63 (6): 384–99.

Mitchell, James Brooks, Ph.D. (2008). “Games, Work and Human Motivation”. Snake River publishing.

Capezio, Peter (1996). “Supreme Teams, How to make teams really work”. National Press Publications, Inc.

Image credit: http://www.gbb.org/tag/green-team-building/

I believe in having fun at work. That’s always been my approach throughout the years here at Incept.

As I’ve been pushing my way through the ranks and have made it to the level of a Program Results Coach, I have begun to hone my technique when I deliver a coach to my Conversational Marketing™ Experts (CMEs) that make them respect me as a leader and coach, feel relaxed, and engage them to want to improve.

Here is a walkthrough of the key points of my coaching style that help me pull results from my team, as well as strengthen the relationship between them.

Meaningful, High-impact, and Specific

• I make my coaching sessions meaningful by simply asking my Conversational Marketing™ Expert (CME) how his or her day is. How was your weekend? Did you relax? How is your day going today? Asking simple questions like that sets a neutral ground for coaching. It shows that I care about more than just doing a quick coaching session with them. I also love “taking a knee” rather than sitting with my Conversational Marketing Expert (CME). It’s all about being non-condescending – even in my body language – and doing everything I can to create an environment for them that enables them to listen and learn.
• I make my coaching sessions high-impact purely through my delivery. I start off with the strong points that I hear, and I think it is important to always praise the good things you hear your representatives doing consistently. If they are doing something good in their calls, I want them to feel good about keeping that up, so naturally I’m going to use positive coaching to help them form good call habits. When it comes time to break bad habits, I find it incredibly helpful to compare a strength to a weakness verbally with my CME, that way it makes them want to work on those improvements and get them up to par with their strengths.
• I make my coaching sessions specific by simply coaching in real time. The calls I listen to are the ones that I make notes on so I can refer to them in my coaching session. This is crucial because you want your CME to be able to recall the calls you have heard, if possible. It keeps the coaching session fresh and relevant. I make notes on the good things I hear in each call, as well as the items I feel that could be improved on and specifically tie in an example from the calls I just heard. Easy as pie.

How do you make contact center coaching sessions engaging for your company?

Image Credit: http://www.innovationmanagement.se/

Class is in session as Incept Program Results Manager, Bryan McGinnis, guides us through three easy sales techniques that can help your Conversational Marketing™ Experts (CMEs) have stronger phone calls with your customers. Listen up! There might be a pop quiz!

Quiz time! What did you learn from watching this video, and how can you implement what you learned into your phone calls to improve your results?

Oftentimes, I find that a Conversational Marketing™ Expert (CME) is not collecting as well as expected on an invoice call simply because they feel that they are creating a better customer experience or better experience for the client. Sometimes it’s just because the CME is not putting in the necessary effort to collect and be successful. Once in a while, it’s because the CME is not properly educated on how to successfully collect the necessary funds to satisfy the client’s needs. The good news is that all of these situations are corrected with the same solution: education and information.

As with any successful campaign, it’s critical for the supervisor and the CMEs to really understand the client expectations and what success looks like. This requires more of an investment during the training process but more than pays for itself in performance and client satisfaction.

Once the education process is complete, there a few simple steps that will increase your collection percentage every time.

• Firstly, make sure your CME is using proper listening skills. It’s critical that the CME understands the customer’s concerns, reasons for not paying the bill, or specifically what the customer’s questions are regarding the bill.
• Secondly, make sure the CME is familiar with the billing structure that the customer is engaged in. In order to assist the customer, the CME needs to be able to engage in a conversation regarding the past due charges and what those charges are for, as well as how the charges occurred to begin with. With this information, the CME can confidently explain the billing policies to the customer and tactfully explain that the charges are valid charges for a service that the customer has already used. If the CME is using proper listening skills, it makes the explanation much easier and allows the CME to tailor their response to the customer’s questions/concerns/reason while still using the client’s billing policy.
• Thirdly, coach your CMEs on asking for the close. Yes, that’s correct. Ask for the close. I know that sounds like a sales technique, and it’s very similar. Much like unsuccessful salespeople, unsuccessful collections people often don’t collect simply because they don’t ask the customer to pay the outstanding bill. Coaching your CME on how to state the billing policy with confidence, converse with the customer in a way that NEVER makes them feel wrong or stupid, and confidently and assumptively ask the customer to take care of the outstanding charges today will produce outstanding results. The improved collection rate sparks a feeling of success in the CME and makes the continued reinforcement of the above three steps easier and easier.

It sounds simple. And it really is. In summary, listen to your customer, have a conversation with them and tailor it specifically to their initial inquiry, and confidently and politely ask for the outstanding money.

If you want your collection rate to increase, then start Talking Results with these three simple steps.

Image credit: http://blog.fundinggates.com/2012/03/collecting-debt-improving-collection-calls-with-late-paying-customers/

We have talked about what Conversational Marketing™ means in previous posts. Now it is time to show some examples of how to use it. An important step when using this approach is listening. How can you have a conversation with a customer if you are not listening to them?

You can’t!

When speaking with your customers, make sure you are not just listening to what they are saying but that you are also understanding what is being said, how they are feeling, etc.

Here are some tips for effectively listening to your customer:

• Turn off any distractions: While you are talking to a customer, make sure they are your sole focus. Don’t engage in any side conversations with your co-workers. Also, don’t try to multitask during the call. There have been studies done that actually prove multitasking is less efficient and takes your attention away from your customer.
• Let the customer know you are listening: When speaking with someone in person that is easier to do. But how do you do that on the phone? That can be done easily too. Acknowledge what the customer is saying; even repeat back their questions or concerns. While the customer is talking, verbally nod by saying  ”Okay”, “I understand”, etc. These simple tools ensure to the customer they are being heard.
• Solve your customer’s problem: If you can’t, at least let them know what you can do to help them get their problem solved!

These are steps you can begin using in your calls today to improve your relationship with the customer and effectively start using Conversational Marketing™ in your call.

Try it and watch your results increase!

Image credit: http://quickbase.intuit.com/blog/2010/04/06/how-to-develop-your-active-listening-skills/