Many industry experts will agree that it is difficult to maintain high levels of productivity from their employees over a period of time. It has been as a constant challenge to keep the workforce motivated. This fact is especially true when we put the call center industry in the limelight. It has often been witnessed that many organizations turn to material perks like bonuses, free lunches etc. in the hope of making their employees happy. Even though this might be a decent driver to encourage some, but such a practice does not necessarily lead to the long-term well-being of an employee.
However, the key lies in understanding the deeper aspect of the problem when an employee does not feel motivated to work at a particular workplace. It must always be noted that motivation is a highly subjective topic and it surely isn’t a “one size fits all” kind of a theory that every organization must follow. What might motivate one section of the workforce might fail to motivate other section of the workforce. It is also dependent on the psyche of every individual trying to contribute to the overall organizational objective.
Let us now examine some of the major factors that might be essential to bring back the levels of productivity at the highest level.
- Incentivizing in monetary terms
Yes, this might seem as the most obvious element that improves motivation levels of employees at workplace. In an organizational setup, some people might be internally motivated because of their sheer will and love for the work they do. But many executives working in a reputed call center services firm are bound to feel dissatisfied because of the monotony in their operations. In such a scenario, performance-based incentives and other monetary perks like bonuses and increments can play a huge role in motivating the workforce. Call centers use this methodology for experienced personnel whose major motivation to work is to garner maximum amount of monetary benefits from their job.
- Empowering the cause
Once the monetary aspect is settled, some people in the workforce might still feel dissatisfied with the kind of work they do because of a certain lack of direction. Call center services providers that ensure prudent services might face this problem as the executives might feel directionless about their work. This is where it becomes important to make the executives feel the part of the entire system by empowering them to levels where they feel that they are in a position to impact decisions. It is pivotal to make such employees set clear and measurable goals for themselves. Such employees have an urge to feel at a responsible position.
- Belongingness to the cause
Executives working in a call center environment might feel demotivated because of the monotony in their operations. Some executives often feel encouraged when they are given timely information via effective communication channels. When an important information is shared, some executives try to understand the rationale behind the decision making process of the management. What leads to exceptional results, however, is when there is a visual documentation and regular posting of work progress and accomplishments of such employees. Such a practice will make the employees feel that they actually belong in the larger scheme of things.
- Growth and development opportunities
In a call center services environment, call center executives might feel stagnated at a certain position. Conducting regular education and training programs specifying a definite career path will surely act as a motivational factor for executives to operate with highest levels of productivity. Regular field trips, cross-training and training pertaining to succession planning will go a long a long way in the overall growth and development of the executives.
- Leadership qualities hold the key
In an organizational setup, leaders play an important role in taking the careers of his executives to greater heights. A good leader believes in taking the entire team forward by specifying clear expectations from his people. In a call center setup, it is important to lay pre-defined guidelines that provides a picture of the outcomes desired with specific goal setting and an appropriate mechanism to achieve those goals.
- Significance of self-care
It has often been witnessed that many call centers offering a BPO service for their clients pay very little or no heed to employee wellness. Such call centers try to deliver on this front by providing gym memberships and meditation classes for their executives. They often fail to realize the lack of time at the disposal of their executives. It is important that such units focus on helping their executives to maintain a work-life balance.
It can be inferred from the above discussion that there are several factors that improve employee motivation at call centers. It is up to the organization to find out the best fit among the points mentioned above to gather maximum productivity from its employees.
