Every organization needs a good team to perform at its best, but finding the right people isn’t always easy. If you’re like me, then you believe that most people are inherently good. There are lots of great people out there in the world, but intuition alone won’t do the trick when determining if someone is the right fit for a job. That’s where the science comes in.
Having a team of skilled recruiters with the right experience and knowledge is important, but they’re only a piece of the puzzle. In today’s modern BPO, you need to use tools and technology to recruit at scale. With the right tools in place, recruiters make better decisions by combining science, experience, and intuition. I’ve seen how a smoother recruitment process led by an empowered recruitment team improves interactions with potential new hires, and excites top talent. Things run more smoothly, people feel more comfortable, relationships form, and we make better decisions, ultimately putting the client’s mind at ease when it comes time to ramp up.
Technology in Action: Recruiting
Here’s an example from one experience we had with a large U.S. telecommunications company. When they came to us, the company was having a difficult time finding top work-at-home (WAH) sales talent. They wanted to scale their operations and develop a solid outsourcing team that could increase revenue.
The first thing we did was to work with the client on developing a candidate profile through an online talent optimization tool. Combining our team’s expertise with the client’s learnings, we created a profile that matched the strengths and aptitudes of top-performing agents. This profile acted as the benchmark for recruiting new agents who, as part of their application process, were asked to complete a behavioral assessment survey using the same talent optimization tool. Those applicants, whose behaviors and motivations matched those of our profile, were easily identified. We then used the results, along with other traditional and non-traditional recruitment tactics, to zero in on “best fit” candidates.
The selection process was only the beginning. After onboarding the agents, we gave plenty of support to the new hires, including side-by-side live call monitoring, developmental coaching sessions, calibrated self-review call monitoring, daily huddles with progression paths, and gap analyses. Of course, we used a mix of technology and human intervention in the process. We even used gamification to engage the agents’ competitive natures, which was further supported through a competitive bonus structure.
All in all, digging deep into the process to collaboratively enhance the clients’ selection approach and build out their sales force was exciting. Their new hire proficiency time was cut in half. We grew their sales team from 40 agents to 140 in just one year, resulting in a 130% increase in monthly sales. Customer satisfaction also improved by 10% over the year. Most importantly, our partnership grew fast and has sustained even through COVID, allowing us to work closely together and pivot as needed. For me, this is the true measure of success. When you can establish a trusted, synergistic, and enjoyable relationship on top of surpassing KPIs, then you’ve set yourself, your client, and your team up for success. With open communication and idea sharing, creative problem-solving, and mutual accessibility, you are poised to take advantage of future opportunities and growth together.
Guest post written by: Yoni Epstein, CEO and Founding Chairman, itelbpo
To learn more about this topic, join Yoni for his CustomerCONNECT session, “Using Technology to Improve Relationships Between Team Members and Clients,” on February 24, 2021 at 9:15 am PST / 12:15 PM EST.
To attend, please register now for CustomerCONNECT.
