Market positioning of Call Centers in Portugal
In Portugal for two decades
Various sectors: telecommunications, insurance and travel assistance, banks and financial institutions, health,
trade, tourism, security, postal and distributors, transport, utilities, support and friendship
APCC, 2014 Just telecommunications sector alone has more
than 3 million customers and employed more than 8000 workers last year
Poor customer service can represent an average of €174 loss
per call However the preferred way of
contact between the company and the customer
Powerful marketing machine and a convenient channel interaction
Outbound Inbound "Good afternoon, my name is Ana
Andrade, I am contacting from the Customer Service in order to ... and I’d like like to talk to ..."
"Customer Service, good afternoon, Ana speaking, how can I help you"
Pragmatics
Greeting, request to speak, call recording information, quickly contact and explanation, contact development, customer orientation, closing of the contact.
Welcome, active listening, call recording information, reformulation, diagnosis situation, customer orientation for solution, closing of the contact.
Behaviour
Security, justice values, warmth and friendliness, handle objections, proactivity, customization.
Language, prosody and voice
Script suitable with respect to language, coherent and structured speech, pauses and silences management, intelligibility, voice and appropriate pace.
Characteristics
Responsibility directly proportional to the capacity to solve the problem
When a call exceeds the average time, a penalty is given to the Agent. Longer calls result in low success rates, controlled by the supervisor, creating an acutely stressful situation.
Competence
Capacity to take notes, select information, organize the answer, be empathic, and always give attention to the customer with certain expressions (not lose the call).
Make the correct time management.
Spending more time with misunderstandings could take longer and risk losing control of the call.
Focus on communication and language skills, maintain good control of their capabilities with voice level and prosody, and persuasive speaking.
• Low air humidity, air conditioner and high concentrations of formaldehyde
• Inadequate working posture (sitting position connected to a more effortful voice than
standing)
• Background noise from speech babble, ventilation, various equipment
BEHLAU, 2005; COYLE ET AL., 2001; DE JONG, 2011; JONES ET AL., 2002; LEHTO, 2007; SODERSTEN, 2012; VILKMAN, 2004; VINTURINI, 2001
Research has shown that these professionals
are exposed to
• Stress
• Tobacco and caffeine
• Dehydratation
• Inadequate treatment of early signs
• Fatigue
• More severe long-time fatiguing vocal changes
• Long and loud talk
• Prolonged vocal loading
BEHLAU, 2005; COYLE ET AL., 2001; DE JONG, 2011; JONES ET AL., 2002; LEHTO, 2007; SODERSTEN, 2012; VILKMAN, 2004; VINTURINI, 2001
Research question
• What is the self-perception of vocal
characteristics in Contact Center Operators
• What Contact Center Operators know and do about vocal hygiene?
Objective
• This work aims at contributing to a diagnosis of the factors that affect voice quality and the
degree of Voice Handicap Index experienced by Contact Center Operators (CCO) of 25
Method
• This is a preliminary study conducted before preventive vocal training, with a sample of 100 CCO.
• We used a questionnaire of demographic characteristics for the identification of risk
factors and the Voice Handicap Index (VHI) – 9 items.
• Original version introduced by Jacobson et al.
• 30 questions and a self-assessment of the severity of the problem as perceived by the subject
• Points from the questions can be combined to assign a total score, or they can be combined through a subscale
• Selected because it’s validated, reliable, requires little time to administer, and is easy to score and interpret
Voice Handicap Index (VHI)
BIDDLE ET AL., 2002; CHENG & WOO, 2010; HAKKESTEEGT ET AL., 2010; JACOBSON ET AL., 1997; NIEBUDEK-BOGUSZ ET AL., 2010; NIEBUDEK-BOGUSZ ET AL., 2011; SCHINDLER ET AL., 2009
VHI
Asks an individual the effects of voice on his life
Captures the patient’s subjective rating of a
series of questions
3 subscales cover emotional, functional and
physical aspects These are statements that
many people have used to describe their voices
The response indicates how frequently the
subject has the
experience: Never, Almost Never, Sometimes, Almost Always, Always
BOUWERS & DIKKERS, 2009; ELAM ET AL., 2010; HSIUNG ET AL., 2002; HUANG ET AL., 2012; SCHINDLER ET AL., 2009; THOMAS ET AL., 2007; VERDONCK-DE LEEUW, 2008; WOISARD ET AL., 2007
• Shortened version of VHI with 9-item self-administered questionnaire
• Cross-cultural adaptations, translations and validations of VHI have been made for many languages.
• Points from the questions can be combined to assign a total score, or they can be combined into subscales
VHI - 9
Subjects
Factors N=100
Personal Age 34 years
Gender 58% women
Professional Education 56% high degree
Hours day 76% full time job
Sector 30% telecommunication
Years in service 4,96 years
Life style Tobacco 54% smokers
Alcohol 26% use alcohol
Results
VHI-9 symptoms felt by OCC
VHI9 % OCC (n=100) Never 38% Almost never 36% Sometimes 11% Almost always 11% Always 4%
Personal factors
Sig. N=100
Predominance
Gender 0,o63 (t) Female
Functional domain
Age 0,05 (U) 41-52 years in all domains
• Effects between personal factors and voice handicap
Work factors Sig.
N=100 Predominance
Workload 0,o47 (U) Full time
Functional domain Years of service 0,63 (t) + 10 years Functional domain
• Effects among professional factors and the voice handicap
Habits Sig.
N=100 Predominance
Tobacco 0,o01 (t) + 6 cigarettes day
Physical domain
Alcohol 0,oo0 (U) Functional and emotional domain Coffee 0,000 (t) Physical domain
• Effects from risk factors on vocal disadvantage
• In our research 62% participants reported one or more symptoms. Other studies report between 68% and 78% one or more symptoms
• Also they report that 50% had missed work because of their voice problems.
• No training was provided in these areas
BEHLAU, 2005; JONES ET AL., 2002:. LEHTO, 2007; VINTURINI, 2001
JONES ET AL., 2002; LEHTO, 2007; VINTURINI, 2001
Voice therapy
• Aimed at recovering from vocal dysfunction • Clients typically with initial complaints
• Usually come from an ENT or phoniatrician Voice training
• Aimed at preventing a vocal dysfunction • Clients generally do not have complaints • Conducted in groups
Provide training to CCOs in
communication competences and vocal technique
Know the contex and necessities
Sensibilization and workshops
Vocal training with all CCO in the work place
Individual training if needed and help in the recruitment process of CCO
Arte & Fala Research Center
CATARINA OLIM [email protected]
“your opinion is very important for us.
Are you available to answer a brief
questionnaire?....”
English VHI-9
F1 My voice makes it difficult for people to hear me. F3 People have difficulty understanding me in a noisy room.
P4 The sound of my voice varies throughout the day. F5 My family has difficulty hearing me, when I call them throughout the house.
F16 My voice difficulties restrict my personal and social life.
P17 The clarity of my voice is unpredictable. P21 My voice is worse in the evening.
E24 I am less outgoing because of my voice problem. E29 My voice makes me feel incompetent.
Portuguese VHI-9
F1 A minha voz faz com que seja difícil os outros ouvirem-me.
F3 As pessoas têm dificuldade em me compreender num local ruidoso.
P4 O som da minha voz varia ao longo do dia.
F5 A minha família tem dificuldade em me ouvir quando os chamo dentro de casa.
F16 As minhas dificuldades com a voz limitam a minha vida pessoal e social.
P17 A clareza da minha voz é imprevisível.
P21 Tento modificar a minha voz de modo a soar diferente. E24 Saio menos por causa do meu problema de voz.
