Points Programs

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Award Program Return on Investment Series: Call Center Incentive Programs

This week’s post marks a full year of publishing a monthly return on investment blog! The spotlight for this month’s ROI installment is on call center incentive programs and the returns they can have for organizations looking to improve job related metrics, loyalty and engagement among call center agents. I would like to examine how each of these three components can be targeted and the returns they provide when you implement a call center incentive program.

Job Related Metrics and Sales Incentives

Call center agents often have a variety of roles; they are sales people, provide customer service and support and perform a variety of actions for companies. When an organization designs an incentive program with specific goals related to each call center agent’s position and functions, each individual is given specific and relevant objectives to work towards. Merchandise-based incentive programs, according to an IncentiveCentral.org study, “increase performance by an average of 22%. Team incentives can increase performance by as much as 44%.” As goals are reached, it is a great idea for managers to recognize employees and reinforce the good behavior demonstrated that lead employees to reach their incentive program goals.

Loyalty and Retention

Call Center Magazine featured an article by Jennifer O'Herron that discussed how a call center can cut employee turnover in half by offering job related goals. O’Herron suggests, “Review your company's goals for the year and find a way to relate those goals back to the call center.” The article reviewed how hotel chain Wyndham International offered call center agents incentives for achieving job related and sales goals and was able to reduce their employee turnover from 150% per year to just 35%. In terms of the cost of training and payroll, Wyndham saved about $2.5 million while only spending $1 million on the incentive program. For every dollar invested in the incentive program, the company received $2.50 in return.

Call Center Employee Engagement

When you provide call center employees with a set of specific goals, you not only have better employee retention, you give them something to work towards which increases employee engagement. By reviewing a person’s performance and finding out how quickly and often he or she reached their incentive program goals, your company can also identify individuals who may be good candidates for career advancement. When employees know they are not just working a dead-end job but can advance within an organization, they are more likely to be engaged and committed in the long term.

When call center agents are given specific goals to work towards they can see the tangible link between desired behaviors and the incentives they will earn. The results for the call center organization include increased performance, productivity and sales while reducing employee turnover and hiring expenses. Check back next month on August 9th for the next installment in our return on investment series.

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