Society is just starting to understand what true productivity looks like, leading to better physical and mental health for employees everywhere. While some contact centers may have believed productive workforces spent hours upon hours dedicated to guiding the customer journey, we know now that this only leads to burnout. But the reality is that burnout encompasses far more than just how long employees are working. How do you prevent this common issue? If you’re looking to help your live agents thrive, here are a few tips on how to prevent call center agent burnout.
Invest in high-quality call center software to streamline your workforce’s needs.
Your contact center is only as effective as the systems and call center solutions you employ. If you want to enhance the customer experience and alleviate the stress your employees face daily to reduce burnout, you need to enlist the help of omnichannel contact center software. Omnichannel solutions provide a more seamless experience for call center agents by allowing your contact center to move quickly between communication channels like phone calls, social media messages, and SMS for more comprehensive customer interactions and increased customer retention. Better yet, today’s call center software provides you with one convenient dashboard for performance management and analytics, integrations with popular CRMs like Salesforce, and intelligent call routing and automated chatbots for improved productivity.
If your employees feel burnt out because their current systems aren’t supporting them, switch to omnichannel cloud contact center software to give them the help they need to do their job effectively.
Prioritize their mental and physical health.
Working at a call center means having a job that’s largely sedentary. Without the right mental and physical support, even a positive, desirable office environment can take its toll. However, you can change this by prioritizing their overall health. If you have employees who are dealing with anxiety disorders, major depression, or stress, direct them to resources like individual counseling. Today’s flexible teletherapy options make it easy for individuals to get therapy from the comfort of their own homes. This allows them to chat with a counselor who’s the best fit for them and receive a treatment plan that helps them move forward and learn the coping mechanisms they need to thrive.
You can then give them further support by giving them additional resources like workout plans and nutritional guides so that they’re practicing plenty of self-care at home. When your employees are taking care of themselves and managing their health outside of work, it can go a long way in preventing burnout.
Integrate more breaks into your employees’ schedules.
Everyone reaches a certain point where they need to step away from their work and take a minute for themselves. When employees are forced to work for hours on end, you’re not going to get the productivity that you want. Instead, the opposite is true. You’re going to wear down your employees, burn them out, and make it difficult for them to do their jobs effectively. Integrate more breaks into their schedules and make it easy for them to reenergize with healthy snacks, fun activities, and face-to-face interaction with their coworkers. When employees are being properly cared for, everyone wins.
Call centers need to be efficient and on top of their game in order to guarantee customer satisfaction and hit their goals. However, some of the habits that managers and supervisors will engage in to ensure greater productivity may backfire and cause burnout instead. Avoid burnout and care for your employees properly by using the tips in the guide above. With the right changes to workplace culture, you can see productivity and engagement soar!
