subject: What makes a good call centre worker? [print this page] UK call centres pride themselves on delivering the highest levels of customer service, and companies invest huge amounts of money to ensure that their call centre staff consistently exceed their customers' expectations.
That said, call centres could not deliver such a good service if it weren't for their highly-skilled staff. So what are the personal skills and abilities that combine to make a good call centre worker?
To succeed as a call centre agent, it perhaps goes without saying that you need to possess excellent communication skills - both verbal and written. Call centres are used by a huge range of different companies for an enormous variety of purposes, but the ultimate goal for a call centre agent is to build a rapport with the customer and resolve their problems in an efficient, sympathetic way.
Call centre operators need to possess a great deal of self-confidence and be fairly thick skinned, as they are often required to make calls about difficult subjects. It is no secret that many customers have fairly limited patience when talking on the phone, so call centre agents need to be able to deal with all queries in a friendly, understanding manner.
No matter what service the call centre provides, operators need to have an excellent knowledge of the products and services they are providing, as customers are much more receptive when speaking to a knowledgeable agent.
In addition, call centre workers need to have a great deal of self-motivation, as they often have to work to targets and have certain figures to hit at the end of each month. A lively, sociable nature is also a strong advantage, as call centre workers often work as part of a large team and need to be able to motivate their colleagues to perform well.
