Hippocrates the Greek physician (460-370BC) introduced the study of personalities.
His medical theories incorporated the four temperaments claiming that four bodily fluids affect personality types.
Of course modern science has rejected this theory but science continues to use similar categories to describe different personality types.
People make the world go round, they also make our lives interesting.
Personality is influenced by genetic and environmental stimulus.
At some point in our lives we meet people with different beliefs, social backgrounds and cultures; We encounter the quiet and reserved individual.
We are exposed to the friendly and outgoing character.
So when you are looking to recruit Contact Centre staff what characteristics do you look for? I once came across an advertisement that read; Customer Service representative - Must love people! - How sweet- but is this going to attract the right candidate? Will the personality you are looking for come across in person or on paper? A friendly personality isn't quite enough to make a good Contact Centre agent.
Knowledge and skills can be taught but behaviours, attitudes and personalities can challenge you.
Imagine this, you interview a well groomed candidate, they present themselves in a professional and friendly manner, their voice tone is balanced, they answer all your questions with perfect examples.
You believe that you have finally found what you are looking for.
However this facade may be harbouring a troubled individual.
Recruiting the right person for the role is crucial.
Will this individual fit in with the team? How will you know if their values and behaviours match the organisations? The dynamics within the team drive performance, productivity and outcome, this is the reason why many contact centres recruit agents on a casual basis first.
Consider this; A friendly and outgoing personality is not the only attribute to look for.
Are they competent with the criteria that is required for the role? For Example: Customer Service; it's not just about making the customer feel welcome or addressing the customers' needs.
Customer Service also involves dealing with angry or difficult customers.
Some agents are better at selling while others have a gift in investigating and solving problems.
Did your candidate work in an inbound or outbound contact centre? Did they work in a small contact centre environment? They may not be ready for a large fast paced environment.
Contact Centre agents of today are multi-skilled, they manage many tasks simultaneously, they need to be quick thinkers, adapt easily to any environment and be flexible.
There is an increase in regulatory requirements and customer demands.
There is frustration and pressure.
If they can't handle these situations they will not survive or hang around for long.
Some call centres are focused on reducing wait times, they manage high call volumes.
Others pride themselves in first call resolution; A sales focussed environment cross sells and up sells.
You will undoubtedly encounter different people throughout your career.
If you manage a small group of people it's easier to identify individual personality types.
If you manage a larger group of people, say 80-100 - it's a little more challenging but you should still be able to distinguish the personality of your key players Quick Tip: Always try to adapt to their personality to get your point across.
"Weird people make the world go round; normal people just populate it.
" - Kenji Stay tuned for our next article, we will explore the many personalities in contact centre land.