101 Ways to Improve Customer Service: Training, Tools, Tips, and Techniques

Chapter 48. New Kids on the Block: Orientation

Leader

New employees need time to adjust to the environment and any required processes or procedures. It is especially important to keep this in mind when you bring new representatives on board. You want to be sure that your customers receive the consistently outstanding service they expect, so don’t put your new service providers in situations that they can’t handle.

Actions

• Introduce your new service providers to one new skill set at a time by prioritizing all the skills you want them to master and teaching them in that order.

• Pair up new employees with experienced representatives for the first few weeks on the job.

• Provide new employees with all the data and resources they will need to perform their jobs.

• If possible, route customers according to the new representative’s acquired product knowledge and skill sets.

• Reframe mistakes made by new employees into learning opportunities by analyzing and discussing what can be done to correct things next time.