Call Monitoring Tips
For the Helpdesk Supervisor

Article by Donna Earl

Successful helpdesk managers, supervisors, and leads know that managing the performance of agents spells success. In order to assure effective and consistent call handling, supervisors and leads must know how calls are being handled. Here are some tips for effective call monitoring.

1. Clarify to all team members your helpdesk call monitoring policy and procedures. Agents need to know their positive, consistent call handling will be recognized, and areas of concern will be addressed through call monitoring. Let agents know who might be monitoring calls, when feedback will be provided, and what characterizes a successful customer interaction. Show agents the form that will be used to assess their calls during monitoring.

2. Make sure you are monitoring calls either randomly, or in an organized and even manner. Some systems select calls at random to record or monitor, or select a few calls per day or week to record. Agents need to feel as if they are not being targeted when calls are monitored.

3. When you monitor, record your evaluation on a form with checklist for critical call components, and space for your comments. Create a list of criteria which spell successful customer service for your user base. Devise an assessment scale for each component. Share criteria for assessment scale with your agents in advance of monitoring so they will know what it takes to be successful. Make sure to jot notes during monitoring so you remember the rationale for ratings.

4. For agents to buy in to call monitoring and not feel like "big brother is watching," objective feedback is critical. Develop and share criteria which will be used to evaluate their calls. Share the rating criteria. If agents must answer the phone with a specific greeting, or end call with a certain phrase, make sure agents know their call will be evaluated based on how well they include these elements.

5. Save recordings to play back to review your assessment later, share with others to validate your assessment, and also to play back for agents. If your system has the capability for agents to listen to their own calls, require agents to monitor at least two of their own calls per day and self-assess.

Copyright © 2009 Donna Earl. All rights reserved.

Donna Earl is an international expert in Customer Service. She specializes in helping technical help desks deliver world class customer service. To use or reprint this article, or for further information about Donna's consulting or training services, contact us by phone or email.

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