What makes a bad call center agent?

Hi David,

Vicki Herrell gave you good advice regarding conducting an initial telephone interview.

Typically there are three grades of Agents found in a Call Center: (Above Average), (Average), and (Below Average).

(Above Average) Agents seem to have “The Right Stuff” that pushes them to succeed and a natural compatibility with the duties of the position. They work hard - exceed expectations - do more than asked - achieve high-quality consistent results - can always be counted upon - need little direction - and work extremely well with everyone.

(Average) Agents perform their duties adequately enough “to get by” - but no better. They are the partially competent. Generally they’re strong from a Skills standpoint - but missing a key ingredient or two from a Job Fit standpoint.

(Below Average) Agents are the people who just don’t fit somehow. Sometimes they’re good people in the wrong jobs. They need extra coaching & supervision just to achieve average results. Often they cause unnecessary conflict. (Below Average) Agents have the Highest Levels of Absenteeism, Lowest Levels of Productivity & Sales, Poorest Performance & Customer Satisfaction Ratings, and generally have a Negative Impact on Team Morale. They represent the real problems in a Call Center workforce. While (Average) and (Below Average) Agents may seem fully qualified at the Interview Stage – they are a Poor Job Fit – and the cost of hiring them is enormous – with little-to-no value add to an organization.

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It can be tricky. Sometimes the only way is to hire for a probation period and see how they go. Even traits which can seem initially undesirable can turn out to be good later on - for example, someone asking lots of seemingly-unrelated questions may be annoying initially, but if they remember all the answers they can quickly become the most knowledgeable person on the floor, and a good mentor and documentation specialist.

If you're looking for problems in the first ninety days, look for employees who:

- ask the same questions over and over.
- ask questions which are answered in documentation they have been repeatedly pointed to.
- are notably below average on multiple metrics, even for their employment length, and are _not_ improving.
- have a lot of their callers call back within a certain period (can range from an hour to a month, depending on what the call center provides assistance with).
- get a lot of their escalated calls/tickets/instances returned with notes along the lines of "insufficient information" or "can't understand this at all".
- have had to take basic training more than twice.
- do not respond to intense mentoring from your top performers or trainers.
- continually fail to follow policy regarding things like looking up information, asking co-workers for assistance etc.
- lie to callers when they do not know the answer.

Someone who dislikes their job and is only there for the paycheck.