Call Center Trends for 2023
By Michelle Crotty, Vice President of the Contact Center Solutions division of RemX
Employment Trends:
Due to COVID contact centers made the move to remote work, and this trend has continued until recently. Managers want employees to come back on-site, but employees still want to work remotely. This is causing high turnover and wages to remain competitive. Approximately 85% of RemX employees earning between $16 and $20 per hour are working remotely, while 95% of employees earning $21 and above are working onsite.
Companies are struggling to find quality employees if they are asking the agent to work at the contact center. Contact center employees want to work remotely to ensure a flexible work schedule. The 2022 RemX Voice of the Hourly Contact Center Worker survey found that, other than pay increases, companies earned employee’s loyalty by providing a flexible work schedule. We are seeing employees leave their current position if the company requires them to go back on-site, this is causing high turnover. We have also seen companies delay their employees going back on-site due to this trend.
Technology:
Technology is key for companies when hiring remote workers. At RemX we use a tool called RemX Engage to ensure communication is occurring during the hiring process, on the job and post-employment. Engaging with talent through the hiring process and during employment is key. When the pandemic began, contact centers moved their agents to work from home, and employees jumped in and did what it took to get the job done. Fast forward to 2022 and engagement has become a challenge with work-from-home agents. While production and attendance had improved when workers went home due to the pandemic, it is now at pre pandemic levels and sometimes higher.
It's important for companies to engage with their employees from day one. The 2022 RemX Voice of the Hourly Contact Center Worker survey showed that 62% of employees are either actively looking or open to another position. In this competitive employee market, the use of technology will help ensure a quick and smooth hiring process. Once the employee is working, engaging with employees on a regular basis will ensure their questions are answered quickly and provide valuable feedback. It is important to have a smooth post-employment process as well. RemX Engage has assisted in conducting exit interviews and helping with asset retrieval. It is critical to get equipment returned to the company. While the cost of rent has been reduced the cost of assets has increased. If assets are not returned the company will suffer losses to their bottom line.
About the Author
Michelle Crotty is the Vice President of the Contact Center Solutions division of RemX, which specializes in placing candidates in contact center positions. RemX is a professional staffing division of EmployBridge. Michelle has been working in the staffing industry since 2003, initially with Remedy Intelligent Staffing before being promoted into positions with RemX.