While some centers were dabbling with at-home agents before the COVID-19 pandemic , the unprecedented shift to remote work in early 2020 looks like it could be here to stay . For most companies , it has proven to be very successful . While most organizations will likely opt for a hybrid working model , research is clear about the value employees place on flexibility and fulfillment in the workplace .

Keeping pace with change is not new to contact centers . What is new is that the rate of change is growing exponentially , and it ’ s affecting organizations and the people who work in them in a massive way .

Not only is there a need to manage the change itself , but most importantly , the impact constant change has on our employees . Dealing successfully with a

never-ending barrage of new systems , new products , new types of customers , and a revolving door of management is not a skill people are born with . It requires our ongoing support .

Equally challenging is that , as selfserve continues to remove routine transactions from the queue , contact center agents are left with more complex , high emotion interactions – interactions that they are often not well-prepared for . It may have been common to receive one or two challenging interactions a week , but most agents now receive more than two a day .

... RESEARCH IS CLEAR

ABOUT THE VALUE

EMPLOYEES PLACE

ON FLEXIBILITY .

These are just three of the many high-impact conditions contact center leaders must contend within the coming years :

1 . Hybrid work models

2 . Never-ending , exponential change

3 . The growing rate of high-emotion customer interactions

Amid this new environment , learning and development ( L & D ) leaders have a vital ( and urgent ) role . Here are five common mistakes organizations make when designing their contact center training – and how you can avoid making them too .

MISTAKE # 1 : NOT MIXING UP THE DELIVERY APPROACH

Given the rate of change that contact centers must contend with , it is essential to recognize that learning can no longer be thought of as a “ one-and-done ” approach .

CLAS INSTR

APPR

ON LEA

18 CONTACT CENTER PIPELINE