The environment must be one of comfort and….yes its ok to say…FUN! When eligible, a rep comes to the table Why play it: Rarely are ideas born overnight. The goal is to hoard the Monopoly money rather than spend it on houses/hotels. When the bubble hits the floor, they put their team’s marker down. It imitates a conversation between the agent and other characters, for instance a customer. As you’re building your call center culture, be sure to incorporate fun into it. the dollar amounts in each category. Split your team up into smaller groups of three or four members and give them an egg, masking tape, and some straws. cup to literally punch out and keep whatever they find. They roll the die each time they hit their goal or make a sale. Select a theme for the game. You can take a story in any direction, as long as it builds on top of the previous sentence with a “yes, and…”. Part of the reason we end up with under-developed ideas is that we stick with the first good idea we have, rather than taking the time to explore complementary approaches. Having an easy way for call center agents to voice their concerns is easily achieved through a suggestion box. Give the employees a few minutes to think up a couple of requests. Since call centers may not require you to have experience specifically in a call center, it is good to highlight the skills and experiences you do have that make you a good fit. Once all cards are signed, they are pulled down Adding mirrors would enable the agents to look back at what they’ve learned and experienced, to help them get ahead more efficiently. Potlucks are fun and very inexpensive to pull off in a call center. Dec 3, 2019 - Interior Design Ideas for a call center office space with an open plan concept. While the other person is talking, many people miss out on a lot that’s been said. Why play it: A scavenger hunt is a fun activity that forces people to work together as a team. The remaining agents are the judges. For instance, food and wine critics wouldn’t really need a weekend getaway to instill an element of fun into their work. Correct answers earn points, but wrong answers eligible, they come up and draw a single straight line from one dot to a All emails include an unsubscribe link, so that you can opt-out at any time. Pin 20-25 Solo cups to a corkboard, and then fill some of the cups with small prizes: lottery tickets, cash, or wrapped candy. A call centre, on the other hand, is a demanding and restrictive environment, one which does not get endorphins flowing of its own accord. day, a manager, or someone outside of the call center, looks at each team’s The first person to identify it wins it! The service rep gets an exercise in conflict resolution, while the ‘customers’ get a lesson in empathy. Create a table with state names in the cells. Try it the next time your call center software crashes mid-call or your caller is particularly mean. You also need to have lots of humor if you want to get through your day without losing your sanity. Teams get to decorate their Founder and CEO of award-winning Expivia Interaction Marketing Group. fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); The clues hidden in specific geographic locations can be a part of a larger puzzle that the teams should solve. The iCVC is a select group of inContact customers selected to join as trusted advisors to help InContact validate ideas for new products and features and plans for future innovations. You must stop the clock when a challenge takes place. Whether they remain in the office or leave the building is up to you. 17,954. At the end of the You can even make them anonymous to encourage a candid submission. When a team lands in jail, do they pay to get out, or risk their earned throw and try to get a double? Whether that label is true or not, it can make attracting good employees and minimizing turnover an overwhelming job. have in your center by gently reminding them what is expected. Give a few examples of different requests, such as: ‘I want to switch places with you in this circle.’ Or ‘I want a personal spacecraft’. The championship round is held A healthy workplace will welcome feedback and suggestions in a structured and professional way. Stay tuned to get our latest eLearning tips and tricks! Check them out and have fun! Distribute sheets of paper to each player, or instruct the group on how to make their own 2×2 grid by drawing lines in their notebook. One variation is to make it a digital scavenger hunt in which they must find examples and specific information or web pages online. All you have to do is breathe in for four seconds, hold your breath for four seconds, breath out for four seconds, and hold again for four seconds before breathing in. As reps hit their goals, they get to sign A moderator sets a period of time in which all participating groups must return to ‘base’. Give Monopoly money to each participant at the start of the game and give them a throw of the dice for reaching certain KPI targets, for example, the number of calls closed per day, and give them a certain amount of fake money each time they pass Go. 4 Call Center Contests to Encourage Productivity. Put an End to Call Volumes as a Measurement of Success. Bring a spirit of fun and healthy competition to your call center with some motivational games. Encourage Call Center Agents to Organize Their Own Events: Work events can be a great way to have fun, get to know coworkers, and blow off some steam. Top 10 most viewed posts published in last 30 days. Tell everyone to put their right hand in the air and grab the hand of someone standing across the circle from them. is a great game. Agents have a lot to say, but might be too shy to express their thoughts, or worried about how their comments will be perceived. Prizes vary Throughout the day, advisors can then tick the relevant boxes as and when they perform those actions on a call. Choose several metrics, for example, ‘average handle time’ and ‘first call resolution’ to compete in and set the time period for the games. Tell each employee that they will take turns calling out another employee’s name and requesting one of the things they have in mind. It’s up to you what you do with the points system. Someone needs to check that everyone is holding the hands of two different people and that no one is holding the hand of someone who’s standing directly next to them. When a rep hits their goal, they come up to the table and pick a To see just how engaging and realistic conversation simulations can be, take a look at this dialogue simulation that trains car salesmen on how to deal with customers. After the role play, the rest of the group can give feedback, e.g., what the service rep could have done differently to minimize the damage. Some other benefits of a dialogue simulation are that agents can complete them in their own time, so there’s no need to gather all the employees together for formal training. Victor Holguin/Demand Media . For example, sketching headlights onto the bus’s front would help the team see the way forward and reach their destination. We cannot do this if we have associates that are lethargic, have bad attitudes and do not … go up for the question. Our most popular podcast tells how we do this: Check out Motivational Games to Play in Your Center 2.0 as well. Provide subjects related to customer service, such as the customer is always right, dealing with angry customers, when something goes wrong, the customer’s shoes, going the extra mile, good customer service, etc. neighboring dot, with the goal being to create a box. Six Amazing Employee Recognition Award Ideas. They might not be allowed to give a refund, for example, but are allowed to give away a voucher or a month of free service. Number of participants: Two or more people. Photo From: https://www.callcentrehelper.com. The dangerous animals of product management (and how to tame them), Salesforce, Slack, Facebook, Kustomer – the big epiphany, Beyond Surveys: Finding the Right Balance Among Your Customer Feedback Sources. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, the ROI issue is now front and center with CX leaders. The catch is that only one tick can be added per customer, so advisors can’t fill in their whole card on the first call of the day. ... (They will also need to provide the date and time that they heard the word, so that you can use call recordings to verify the entries.) “the internet was too fast”). This activity will elevate the mood of the group and could also be an interesting way to share ideas on how to deal with difficult customers. Plus, you can easily and objectively assess all your employees’ results. As each rep is on with a caller, Each KPI is considered a sport. Install a child's basketball game in a corner, and supply spongy basketballs. Find a coping mechanism Introduce the game and remind the players of the objective of the meeting. Call Centhor Agent. the head, an eye, a hat, etc. Create an awards ceremony to honor the top three winners. This game really lets the creative and artistic It is the job of the call center manager or supervisor to keep the representatives motivated to sell products and services. The team that gets to the finish line first Now tell everyone to put their left hand in the air and grab the hand of a different person. and gets a stack of Solo cups to create a pyramid. Instructions: Put a little intrigue into your workplace with Mystery Prize call center contest ideas. Don’t Fear The GigCX Agent – They Also Love Your Customers! lose points for the team. Categories relate to the program that they All members of the team that crosses the It also brings an element of fun and maker-ism into the mix, with the added twist of learning how to solve a problem with reduced options. This call center customer service training game is really about exposing your employees to a new way of thinking, and allowing them to get comfortable putting that thought process into action. Highly skilled communicators also need to be active listeners and can digest information and quickly convey a solution. Join us, and you'll immediately receive the e-book The Top 5 Practices of Customer Experience Winners. Overview: A conversation simulation is kind of an interactive game that people can play on their computers and mobile devices. Why play it: The egg drop game is not only excellent for creative problem solving and improved cooperation, it’s also fun. If they put it back on the top of the stack successfully, they get a point. Supervisors create a racetrack around the call center and Choose an unusual mystery prize that your team members won’t easily guess. Our reps actually practice this game because it own game piece. As team Here are some interesting ways to make your contact center more fun: 1. You will need to keep score; one point is awarded for a correct challenge, and the person challenging (if they are correct) takes over and continues to speak. It spurs creativity, particularly if clues or puzzles are involved. Many service deliveries go wrong because the service rep doesn’t listen or tries to prove the customer wrong. Call centers have a notorious reputation as difficult places to work. If the chain is broken, participants will have to start over. Instructions: The GPS Adventure game relies on following clues to find a hidden item with the help of GPS coordinates. If team A has 5 throws to use but team B only has 3, use the order A-B-A-B-A-B-A-A. Tweet Teams get a small whiteboard. if (d.getElementById(id)) return; A well-bonded team takes care of each other and is more motivated. The agents who make a sale receive the small prize written on the ball immediately. Here are seven ideas that require barely any planning or expenditure but which can still raise a smile and help your team to relax. Pass the mascot around the room as kind of badge of honor. Each target gets a different point value based upon the location and difficulty Call center games can be a super-effective way to boost your team’s performance. This game is They score each other on how well they resolve the customer’s problem, how well they maintain control of the conversation, and their success in saving the customer’s experience. fill some of the cups with small prizes: lottery tickets, cash, or wrapped Call center agents need to use clear language, proper etiquette and be able to convey instructions in a way that customers understand the first time around. Choose a funny-looking stuffed animal, like a teddy bear, to be the mascot. Hooked On Customers: The Five Habits of Legendary Customer-Centric Companies, Digital CX Opportunities to Kickstart the New Year, Best Practices to Prove the Business Value of Customer Experience. Instructions: This improvisation game is tailored towards customer service. When customers direct profanity towards contact center agents, it can have repercussions for the organization that last well beyond the call. The group can ask questions of each player, but this is not a time for a larger brainstorming session. can gather around and cheer for their friends, without disrupting the people More importantly, a treasure hunt is also an effective team-building exercise for any contact centre team. Keeping call center staff motivated can be tough. podcast.callcentergeek.com. Optional: Something for the participants to make a noise with – rattles, whistles, and bells. Please tell us in the article comments; we would love to know! On a separate set of cards, write down an equal number of problematic customer types (angers quickly, interrupts often, etc.). js.src= "https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"; Each group of teammates needs to have a GPS device that will help in searches. One person starts with one sentence of a story. your center! is more talent-based than luck-based. The AirCall app features every traditional call center tool without requiring a company to purchase equipment or spend a fortune in startup costs. Call center agents aren’t robots, and while much of the job may revolve around scripts, there’s no downside to improving your team’s problem solving abilities. Instruct each employee to think of two or three requests that they’d like. Calls 1000 PPL. This, in turn, helps with the adoption of desirable behaviors in the call center. On the second card, which is blank, write the behaviors or phrases you’d like your staff to adopt. members are eligible, they go to the board and add one feature to the mascot: How Computer Vision Helps to Influence Customer Behavior, Make Your Next Hire an AI-Driven Virtual Agent. Have Fun. Whoever got the Joker is that day’s prize winner! If people on the opposing team observe a deviation, hesitation, or repetition, they challenge by blowing their whistles, or shouting their names out. Number of participants: Four or more people. This exercise helps team members to visualize team performance without putting people directly against each other. Stupid yet affective…lol. When the time runs out, the players should share their sketches with the rest of the group. It is something that contact center agents can do every day to help buffer themselves from the detrimental impact of stress and help lower their physiological arousal after a particularly tough call. The person who has the best KPI score for that sport gets a medal or ribbon for the win. [01/28/2021] Call center agents and employees have high rates of burnout, poor performance, turnover and many ask why. CTRL + SPACE for auto-complete. at end of the day on Friday, when the final match is played. Workplace games are a fun and creative way to keep your employees happy and performing well. Number of participants: Six or more people. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. return window.twttr || (t = { _e: [], ready: function (f) { t._e.push(f) } }); 5 Minutes Until Shift Ends. Get them to evaluate their own calls, and give prizes to the people who shout ‘bingo’ when they are first to fill their card. They can also be used to incentivize meeting engagement, productivity, and qualitative goals—like better customer service. When a rep earns the right to participate, they blow a bubble and This exercise will prove to be extremely challenging and will rely heavily on teamwork and communication. They practice this in a safe environment, so that in a real situation they can act confidently and make no mistakes. The challenge is completely up to you. Join Kate Leggett of Forrester Research and Peter Milligan of Five9 they reveal the top digital CX opportunities to kickstart 2021. When they have ticked off the entire list, they can exchange their sheet for a raffle ticket (and get a new sheet). A call center, on the other hand, is one demanding profession. Why play it: Problem-solving as a team, with a strong mix of creativity, is exactly what this exercise accomplishes. member to get a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal Bingo wins! Plan a breakfast party every month or try theme days, like Eat-Out-Wednesdays, where the call centre agents can take their teams out for a barbeque or brunch. Be sure to conduct a monthly team meeting to discuss which comments might be a good fit for implementing. You can enhance the difficulty of this game by reducing the number of clues or the time to escape. Each dialogue step can be based on a real business case from your practical experience. Instruct the participants to stand in a circle, shoulder to shoulder. Jan 29, 2015 - Call centers are hubs of consumer-customer service contact. What Are the Top Ways to Use Speech Analytics? gets to play, they roll a die to see how many beanbags they get to throw. The contact center can be a place where you can do things that you cannot do … I have 25 years of experience in all facets of contact center operations. Why play it: This game is great because it keeps things interesting, and gets your agents interacting with each other. Call center/customer service work is hard. You may have to steal your kid’s bubble mix for The first team A recent Call Centre Helper article identifies the kinds of team contests and games in call centers that have been most successful in motivating agents to increase their level of performance. Why play it: This game helps to develop speech skills; it will help your agents to speak coherently on any subject and in any situation. Don’t Let Your Customer Buy Because Of What Your Product Costs! The service reps in Group B are tasked with resolving the situation. Troubleshooting accounts and product issues can leave anyone stressed out and discouraged. For version 3.0, we have some of our reps’ CustomerThink is the world's largest online community dedicated to customer-centric business strategy. © 2001-2021 iSpring Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved. One way we can help them is by making the contact center THE fun place to work. advising them of other recommended products or capturing contact details. Every month, organize a session in which you invite random call center agents to share the most annoying, dumb or irritating calls they attended over the month and the way they managed the situation. They learn if they are too high or too low and get to guess again during their Make Work Fun There’s a stereotype in the contact center world that work is … Clues can be about what the mystery prize is or where it’s located. It can also help with team building, because players are forced to get tactical with their throws. time or going home early with pay. That named employee will then name another employee, ask for a request that must be denied, and so on. First close your eyes and sit up straight with your feet on the floor. Leave a few cups empty, but also fill some shaving cream for laughs. A bad conversation habit is to be overly focused on what you want to say. You have to build upon what was said last. three spaces, swap places, roll again, etc. Let’s look at some of the ways that contact center management - and businesses in general - can motivate their staff and foster a heightened sense of morale. Give the team with the most helpful additions the prize. The Write CSS OR LESS and hit save. A tournament goes on all week. The requests can be reasonable or unrealistic. phones to play! it. Tape an entire deck of cards (with the Joker I am sure many of you reading this know how excited call center representatives get when they want to bring in and show off their best dish. Some jobs are just inherently fun. played within teams (not against other teams). Previous. Split your team into groups and invite them to draw an outline of a bus on a sheet of paper. Then, cover the cup with a tissue, using a rubber band to hold it in Attracting good employees starts with the hiring process, but minimizing turnover is a direct product of employee engagement. Each call is different, but the work can seem repetitive, and high call volumes for extended periods can really sap morale. Choose an agent to go first. Why play it: The goal of a simulation is to teach employees to speak clearly and concisely, addressing the point of the conversation as quickly as possible. Then, cover the cup with a tissue, using a rubber band to hold it in place. for each game. The next person builds on that, either bouncing back and forth between two people or circling around a larger group. candy. board–increasing awareness of where all the calls come from. It works better to build on what’s been said. Ways to have fun inside the office as a call center agent 31west May 8, 2020 Heath Wallace Music entertainment , fun , music , work Call centre work is hard work. What does this mean for customer experience (CX) and contact center leaders? To earn the right to play each game, the reps The Wheel of Wow Fill in one card with customer service phrases for your people to spot during role plays, or when listening to calls. js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; That named employee then has to deny the request, without actually saying ‘No.’. Give each team the same supplies to work from, or create a pile of available supplies in the middle of the room. Since call center jobs are very people oriented and require strong communication skills, a cover letter is a great way to make a positive first impression. Or, the points could be used to redeem raffle tickets which you could use to draw a much larger prize. Why play it: It’s a quick, simple team-building exercise that helps agents focus and work together. Who doesn’t want a strong team with a sense of collective responsibility and pride? A Recipe for CX Success: It’s About Authenticity, Not Perfection, Conversational AI in 2021: 3 top trends to look out for, 21 Tips for 2021 Customer Experience Excellence, Customer service trends in 2021: the post-COVID contact centre, 9 Habits To Make Your Sales Team More Customer Centric in 2021, Reflections on the Causes of Lousy Customer Experiences, 7+ Strategic Solutions To Keep Your Business Floating During Covid-19 Crisis. Clear communication is crucial for success in any job, especially for interaction-driven positions like call center agents. Customer Experience at Netflix: 6 lessons we can all learn from! Ya’ll Got Any More O’ Dem. See more ideas about design, office design, interior. You have to show that you’re listening as well. Your staff have to solve a problem (or a series of problems) together in order to achieve the goal of discovering the treasure. CustomerThink’s research finds just 19% of CX initiatives can show tangible benefits. Pass the Bear. Do you want to improve your call agents’ efficiency and enhance their interactions with customers? Why play it: It helps to improve the agents’ understanding of what adds to a positive customer experience, and what they can do to boost customer experience. Number of participants: Five or more people, Tools needed: A pen and paper, bingo cards. level–we use a cornhole board, a Nerf basketball hoop, and a wastebasket. theirs. They can range from cash, “horse” game piece. Tell the players that the goal of 6-8-5 is to generate between 6-8 ideas (related to the meeting’s objective) in 5 minutes. Divide the team into pairs, with group A playing angry customers and group B playing the service reps. This is kind of like those minute-to-win-it In this blog post, we’ll outline 21 games you can set up in your contact center to strengthen your team on every front, from generating interest and commitment in staff or increasing motivation, to boosting communication and problem solving skills. Print out a few pictures to keep the game going throughout the day. You could associate it with a small rewards store, like 10 points could buy a 10-minute break. Each time an agent makes a sale, they get to choose a bingo ball from the barrel. Despite its role as a leisure activity, setting up an escape room at work is one of the best team-building, problem-solving activities you can create for your employees. If they put it back on the top of the stack successfully, they get a point. I am also the author of "Advice from a Call Center Geek" and host of the podcast of the same name. When a team member Create Traditions: Create a USP for your work-culture and get creative with ideas. Reps are broken into teams. This set of call center problem solving games can help your agents to improve their problem solving confidence, teamwork, and issue resolution skills. must help it float down the carpet “track” as far as the can by blowing on This game is really interactive because the reps can see where everyone else is Simply set up the stack, and whenever a team member completes a successful outcome, they can pull out a piece. As team members are we play Water Pong instead. Our job is to make the customers that interact with our center have a world class experience. Goal: Jenga is a fun way to motivate employees to perform. }(document, "script", "twitter-wjs")); Think about how productive unhappy employees are—not very, right? To wrap up your Call Center Olympics, you can have a party to celebrate the winner’s success. Just make sure you set the game up in a place that’s easy to clean. How can you Scale your Customer Service with Custom Chatbots? Today call centers have to do more than just training sessions to keep employees enthusiastic about their jobs. Why play it: This exercise helps team members boost their performance and call volume. are running, company-related issues, company history, supervisors, or other If you have eLearning insights that you’d like to share, please get in touch. Why play it: Escape room games are growing in popularity across the United States, especially in the workplace as a fun way to spend time together while creatively solving problems. labels carpet tiles with different board game spaces: lose a turn, go back Tools needed: A stopwatch, a whistle to signal the end of one minute, a whiteboard to keep score. Instead of going against what’s been said, your aim is to build on top of it. Why play it: This is a useful exercise for both groups. Why play it: No matter the request, whether it’s reasonable or absurd, there are ways to decline the question without saying ‘No.’ Once your agents realize how to do this, it gets easier and easier to answer questions in positive, solution-oriented ways. Learn the best ways to prove the business value of CX, including ROI advice in customer feedback, customer service, and CX infrastructure. You may wish to restrict which search engines or methods they use to complete the challenge. Prepare enough paper for everyone to have about 10 boxes per round. They must do it and then A scavenger hunt can be themed, and might involve a variety of clues or other twists that force a team to get creative and work together. Divide your team into equal sized groups, and send them out with a list of items to locate and bring back. AirCall is a completely cloud based customer support system, enabling a company to set up their own call center in a matter of minutes. 1) AirCall – cloud based call center. After 2-3 months, allow the players to use their Monopoly money on prizes, like extended lunch breaks, mini toys, and any other cool stuff you think your team might like. That day’s prize goes to the winner. Facebook poll. We set up a dry erase board as a Jeopardy board Print out an image of a celebrity, pin it to a wall or noticeboard in full view of your team, and cover it up with a grid of post-it notes. Start with an example between yourself and another group leader, and then get the group started. pay! Learners are required to face a challenge in real time: correctly present a product, assign a task to a subordinate, or calm down an angry customer. By organizing their own event, call center agents will be more likely to participate. Divide your team into equal groups. Games to motivate call center agents: Who says your workplace has to be all work and no play? Tools needed: A computer or mobile device and an authoring tool to create the simulation, such as iSpring Suite. We use the 12-inch square carpet tiles on the board and chooses the coolest daily mascot. Create boxes big enough for players to sketch their ideas in, but small enough to constrain them to one idea per box. Within a set period (10, 20, or 30 minutes) they should start to add different touches to the bus and explain how they can promote good teamwork. The sketches can and should be very rough — nothing polished at this stage.