Achieving Predictable Results in an Uncertain Economy through Superior Talent Recruitment and Retention
by John S. Mattone, Cabot L. Jaffee, Michael R. Struth -
November 23, 2009
Achieving Predictable Results in an Uncertain Economy through Superior Talent Recruitment & Retention
By
John S. Mattone, M.S., Cabot L. Jaffee, Ph.D., & Michael R. Struth, M.S.
Talent Recruitment
According to Bersin & Associates Report on Enterprise Learning, Recruiting and Talent, one of the critical challenges for organizations today is building a deeper reservoir of successors at every level. This long view of talent management is especially true for call centers and is most relevant when considering successors for the multiple levels of leadership talent in a center. When attempting to attract, identify, and retain outstanding talent, call centers must remain highly focused on the knowledge, skills, abilities, and “fit” of candidates (i.e., hire and retain capable, committed, and aligned talent). More than any other measureable asset—including actual performance metrics—the initial measurement (i.e., as a result of recruitment and selection tools) and on-going diagnosis (i.e., assessments and engagement surveys) of candidate and incumbent capability, commitment and alignment are the strongest “leading indicators” a call center organization has at its disposal for predicting operating results.
Because so many call centers extract leadership talent from within the ranks of their individual contributor population, the focus on specific leadership knowledge, skills, and abilities tends to get lost. Over time, organizational fit is demonstrated; it’s easily observed. And in many centers this information alone leads to high performing individual contributors getting promoted to supervisory positions, often with little or no real evaluation of their capacity to lead others. The advancement rationale seems to be that individuals who are skilled and have excelled in one area will also be skilled and likely to excel in other areas, but of course this isn’t a reliable assumption. A better basis, a much better basis, for making advancement decisions lies in the deliberate measurement and alignment of knowledge, skills, and abilities required for leadership positions. Growing talent from within constitutes an excellent best practice, but failing to match candidates’ knowledge, skills, and abilities with the job requirements – particularly in the leadership domain – is certain to have devastating effects in the near and long term.
Great call centers are passionate and diligent ─ through measurement ─ about identifying the profiles (i.e., knowledge, skills, work preferences, personality, etc.) of successful call center contributors ─ at all levels and positions. Once those profiles are identified, they become targets against which recruiting resources are deployed.
Within great call centers, it is typical for HR to create and implement sophisticated tools and processes that enable internal client groups to do a better job executing talent acquisition. The use of technology to help call centers source and screen talent is becoming more prevalent. Candidates can now visit an organization’s web-site, be directed to their career portal, and click on a link to watch video of the CEO or Call Center Director delivering a dynamic and compelling recruiting message that both educates and inspires. After experiencing such a powerful introduction to the organization, the candidate has the option to select from a menu of available positions for which to apply. Candidates can then be presented with a brief “realistic job preview,” after which they can self-select themselves out of the process prior to entering any identifying personal data. If they decide to continue, they enter some brief identification data and are then presented with a series of questions designed to determine if they are minimally qualified for the position. If they are deemed minimally qualified, they advance to a “work preferences” section where they respond to specific elements of the position (some of which may not be appealing, such as “You will be required to travel 60% of the time. Are you still interested in this position? Click ‘Yes’ or ‘No’”. A candidate who (A) has entered their identification information, (B) has not been “knocked-out” for failing to meet the minimum qualifications, and (C) has not “self-selected” out because they are not interested in the position, then advances to a series of questions designed to capture their education and work experience. At this point, responses are scored “behind the scenes” as part of a scoring algorithm. The last section of this kind of technology-based sourcing and screening system may also include small simulations of parts of the job that assess a candidate’s job-related skills. As an example, this kind of simulation could be as simple as a short “mock-up” of a frustrated customer call where the candidate must use his or her judgment to select an effective response. These responses are also scored within the scoring algorithm, resulting in powerful overall “readiness” data that can be used to differentiate one candidate from another.
From a call center’s standpoint, the deployment of a technology-based system that accomplishes the steps described above results in a number of organizational benefits most centers work hard to achieve, such as reduced turnover, low costs-per-hire, short times-to-fill, and an overall higher quality of hire (i.e., the best “leading indicator”). Couple all this with the positive branding elements associated with an engaging introduction, with the legal defensibility associated in using a standard protocol to determine minimum qualifications, and with the reduced risk of adverse impact associated with this process (individuals are defined as “applicants” later in a selection process when using the formula described above), and the overall power of an application process like this is enormously enhanced.
To help call centers diagnose their strengths and weaknesses in the four foundational areas comprising Talent Leadership, AlignMark has created a talent leadership index. The AlignMark Talent Leadership Index (ATLI) is a powerful diagnostic tool that enables an organization’s HR department and its internal client groups to assess the relative health of their talent leadership beliefs and practices. In fact, the individual elements comprising each foundational area have been proven to accurately predict capability, commitment, and alignment as well as ultimate metrics such as call center revenue and margins. The elements—themselves—are proven “leading indicators”. Call center leaders who create a winning environment in which each element is believed in and executed realize, in turn, significantly greater operational success than leaders who do not create such an environment. Therefore, with respect to talent acquisition, the “leading indicator” elements include:
• Application process should be straightforward, easy, and convenient for applicants to use
• Application process should make a good “first impression” and should be perceived by applicants as fair and appropriate
• Prior to interviewing, candidates are pre-screened to ensure they are minimally qualified for the position
• Prior to interviewing and/or more in-depth assessments, candidates are ranked on preferred experience and skill information
• Candidates who pass the pre-screen are able to schedule themselves for next steps
• Candidates are provided immediate feedback as part of the screening process
• Selection assessments should measure capability (can do), commitment (will do), and alignment (must do).
Call centers with excellent reputations in their communities may well be positioned to attract top talent, but excellent reputations aren’t always a “given” for call centers. High employee churn often results in seeds of negativity germinating throughout a community. Misunderstanding or lack of information about what call centers do can negatively influence top talent from exploring opportunities with even the most outstanding call centers. The net result is that even deserving centers with good reputations can find it challenging to attract top talent. But acquiring top talent is not beyond reach. The principles described here are a powerful first step to meaningful improvement to better talent management.
Talent Retention
Effective talent leadership results in robust measures on two critical “leading indicators” for every call center: employee engagement and turnover. Engagement, in fact, makes or breaks the bottom line. And turnover, a hot topic in the final days leading to the Department of Labor’s gloomy prediction of 10 million more jobs than workers by 2012, is—without question-- a formidable obstacle to profitability. Effective talent leadership in the immediate and foreseeable future will determine for many businesses, especially call center outsourcers, whether or not they remain viable. What matters now, however, is knowing how to manage both engagement and turnover. To do this, call centers must know how committed, capable and aligned their people are. This returns us to the dictum reiterated earlier: all three “leading indicators” must be measured continuously, because accurate information drives effective strategies.
A 2008 study by the Gallup Organization reported bleak news on the issue of employee commitment. They reported that 52% of the American workforce is disengaged, while another 17% is “fundamentally disconnected” from the work they are paid to perform. Said differently, only one in three workers extends the necessary effort that moves American companies forward. Staggering. The good news is, as an industry, call centers seem to understand the importance of engagement and tend to measure engagement levels more frequently—but certainly not enough. Being “fundamentally disconnected” would be hard to get away with in most call center environments. But, what about capability? As much as call centers know about engagement, many understand far less about capability, and they understand the least where it may matter most – with their leadership.
The responsibilities supervisors and managers have in fostering a work environment built upon rapport, trust, and credibility cannot be overemphasized or underestimated. An engaged call center workforce is established by the quality of employees’ immediate supervisory and managerial talent, as well as by the quality, depth, and effectiveness of communication by HR and senior call center leaders. Call center agents must perceive that they are coached and developed (i.e., “can do”), as well as challenged and unleashed (i.e., “will do”), to execute the work that enables the organization to thrive and succeed (i.e., “must do”). Inherent in any call center’s quest to become a great talent leadership organization should be their unwavering commitment to measurement − the “checks and balances” orientation implicit in great coaching and performance management − so that agents understand and respect that they will be held accountable for the knowledge, skills, and capabilities that do, in fact, lead to superior performance. When call centers use objective assessment to benchmark and certify knowledge and skill levels, not only are they building opportunities for “course correction,” but they are also reinforcing the importance of accountability and continuous improvement for individuals and teams.
How does a call center organization strengthen their leadership capability as a foundation for creating an engaged workforce? Some of the “leading indictor” elements appear below:
• Objectively assessing supervisory and managerial skills
• Leveraging assessment results (i.e., Development Planning)
• Skill-based training programs that truly “raise the talent bar”:
o Analysis & Problem Solving
o Initiative
o Influence
o Team Building
o Situational Style of Interaction
o Change Management
o Talent Leadership
• Formalize mentoring relationships for newer supervisors and create structured opportunities for newer leaders to “process” their growth as leaders with more tenured and mature leaders
While all of these help “raise the talent bar”, the single most important and immediate need is providing all call center leaders with talent leadership training opportunities where leaders begin to shape a more positive mindset, come to a greater appreciation of the full scope of their talent management responsibilities, and begin to take action for being outstanding talent leaders.
With respect to Talent Development, Engagement and Benchmarking, some of the “leading indicator” elements include:
• Managers and supervisors need to be held accountable for talent leadership
• Retention goals should exist for every manager and supervisor
• Training for each individual is based on accurate diagnostic information
• Learning sessions are brief, engaging, and experiential
• Engagement survey’s should be executed once per year—at a minimum
• Managers and supervisors empower call center agents to take charge of their own development
The process of building employee engagement is ongoing and is best fostered through meaningful and enriching work experience. Effective employee engagement, a mixture of tangible and intangible factors, is the result of an environment of stimulation, development, learning, support, and contribution. This will require, at a minimum, strong leadership, a sense of shared destiny, autonomy, accountability, and the kinds of opportunities for development and advancement addressed in this article.
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