Employee feedback is critical for businesses who want to understand their employees’ opinions and attitudes towards work, and improve their business policies and processes. Measuring engagement through surveys allows for employees to feel heard.
Engagement is especially important for call centers, since staff turnover is typically high. Research shows that customer complaints, poor morale, and low pay all attribute to high turnover rates in the call center industry. However, you can’t know the specifics around an agent’s satisfaction levels without asking them about it. That’s why agent engagement surveys are so important.
What is the Purpose of an Agent Engagement Survey?
Agent engagement surveys help you reach the end goals of better profits and agent performance. To get there, however, surveys help you fulfill 3 purposes:
- Find out how agents feel about their work and the company.
- Show agents that you care about their voices and opinions.
- Identify areas for company and agent improvement.
Best Practices for Agent Engagement Surveys
When drafting your agent engagement survey, you might be tempted to list every burning question you have for your agents. However, to keep your survey results measurable, relevant, and actionable, consider these best practices:
1. Shorter is better
Shorter surveys have a better chance at completion, and are more reliable. If your survey is long, there’s a higher chance that agents won’t complete them, which can weaken the overall data. Keep surveys short, and relevant to your call center’s business processes and culture.
2. Avoid jargon and technical terms wherever possible
Keep the survey flow simple and easy. Avoid using technical terms and jargon where possible, to avoid frustration and confusion.
3. Keep the questions as easy to answer as possible
If there’s an efficient and easy way to get something done, your agents will be more productive. Similar to how call-back technology makes agents’ work easier, clear and concise survey questions make it easier for agents to complete the survey.
TIP:
You can significantly reduce agent overwhelm and high call volumes with call-back technology.
4. Go easy on the open-ended questions
Too many open-ended questions negatively affects response rate, and ability for analysis. While some open-ended questions help you learn unique information about your agents, you should limit them to ensure you can measure and analyze your survey data.
5. Keep each question about one topic
Avoid confusion and keep things simple by sticking to one topic per question.
6. Reward employees for participation
Make sure to reward employees evenly for participation. This might look like a staff pizza lunch, or letting them go home an hour early during quiet periods. Rewarding your agents in general is a great strategy for engagement.
7. Keep it voluntarily anonymous
Anonymous surveys encourage honesty from agents in completing the survey. Give your agents the opportunity to choose their preference. You might find that some prefer to identify themselves with their feedback, and they’ll appreciate you giving them the option to choose.
Example Questions for a Call Center Agent Engagement Survey
1. How do you feel about work today?
Call centers are stressful work environments, as they frequently need to deal with frustrated customers. This stress can lead to burnout, so it’s important to know how your agents are feeling in their day-to-day work.
2. Would you recommend [organization] to your friends as an employer?
As mentioned, call center jobs are stressful. That’s why it’s so important for employers to take an active role in employee engagement. If your agents aren’t happy at work, they’re far less likely to recommend you as an employer to their friends.
3. Are you proud to work for [organization]?
This question lets you know how your agents feel about your organization. If your agents aren’t proud to work at your call center, this might be an opportunity for you to improve your company policies and culture.
4. Are you satisfied with your current compensation and benefits?
Most call centers offer a base pay with bonuses. If employees are dissatisfied with compensation and benefits, it might be an indication that you need to either better outline performance goals for bonuses, or consider promotions for high-performing agents.
5. Do you receive constructive feedback from your manager?
Call center managers sometimes rely too heavily on data to inform coaching and performance measures. The truth is, agents are all unique and require targeted feedback to excel in their role.
6. Does your manager recognize your efforts when you perform well?
Manager-employee relationships are especially important in call centers. Agents should feel acknowledged, supported, and recognized by their managers, so it’s important to learn if there are any issues as soon as possible.
7. Do you have a friend at work?
Coworker relationships play an integral role in call center agent engagement. This question helps you assess a need for greater group engagement. Perhaps your company can consider social events and employee lunches to improve coworker relationships.
8. Is your team receptive to your suggestions?
Feeling heard by your manager is one thing, but feeling heard by your coworkers can be equally important for a call center agent. This question helps identify a need for more group meetings and sessions where every agent feels like their voices are heard.
9. Do your team members contribute to your success?
Call center agents should have shared goals with their colleagues and learn from each other. This question helps you identify a need to perhaps have more team huddles or group coaching sessions.
10. Do you have sufficient free time for your family and personal life?
As a call center, you won’t be able to satisfy your customers with unhappy employees. Work-life balance is essential to agent satisfaction, so this question will help you better identify any needs for improved flex-time options or introduce more vacation days.
11. Do you have the materials, equipment, and permissions, and technology you need to do your job effectively?
The right technology makes a huge difference in the day-to-day operations of a call center agent. Agents are sometimes hesitant to express technology concerns, so this question helps you assess whether or not you should invest in better technology. Fonolo’s cloud-based call-back technology is a great start.
12. Do you have opportunities to learn and develop your career at work?
Call centers have many opportunities for career growth and learning and development. You might offer your agents opportunities to move laterally to different departments to learn about a different area of work, coaching sessions, or opportunities for advancement. Use this question to make sure your agents are aware of these opportunities, and to learn more about your agents’ learning and development goals.
Final Thoughts
Agent engagement surveys help you understand your employees’ experiences and attitudes towards your call center. They also help you to improve company and agent performance, and heighten employee retention.
