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The Critical Importance of Voice Tone

Wanted: Bored,
Disinterested Call
Center Professional
Imagine perusing the Sunday paper for job opportunities and running across this ad:

‘Seeking call center professional that is tired, bored, unenthusiastic, apathetic and
conveys an overall disinterest during the greater part of the day.’

It is unlikely that you would open the classifieds and see this type of want ad, yet you will often
experience this type of person in a professional setting. Whether it’s in a customer service
situation, with a fellow co-worker or perhaps you have even caught yourself with these
characteristics on occasion.

We have all heard the old adage ‘You are what you eat’; well let’s take it one step further and
consider this…You are what you think! Travel to any bookstore or library and you will discover a
plethora of books on the power of positive thinking and how our thoughts, be they negative or
positive, contribute to our behavior. Part of that behavior is Voice Tone. It goes without saying
that using a negative voice tone with a customer is a major no-no. There aren't many managers
that are going to tolerate or excuse an employee that consistently yells, attacks or demonstrates
an aggressive or frustrated voice tone with a customer. Yet there does seem to be a level of
tolerance and acceptance when it comes to a neutral voice tone. That is not to say that
management encourages a neutral voice tone; certainly a positive voice tone is the preferred and
desirable choice just like the negative voice tone is the wrong and unacceptable choice. Besides,
maintaining a positive voice tone, call after call, 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 50 weeks a year is
asking an awful lot of someone - isn't it?

Anyway, what’s so bad about a Neutral voice tone? It just means they aren't positive..…right?
When neutral is used as an adjective to describe a color, as in one that is able to blend with
many; or as a means to describe one’s position as it relates to refraining from interference in a
contest by not taking part in either side, then the word neutral poses no problem. But when it
comes to describing a tone of voice, then NEUTRAL actually becomes a NEGATIVE.

According to a recent study conducted by AMDOCS (see amdocs.com for additional information)
80% of today’s consumers would rather go to the dentist, sit in a traffic jam or pay their taxes
rather than deal with an UNhelpful customer service rep. The “unhelpful” rep might be onethat is:

• Bored—you are the 51st caller they have had today and they have heard your issue
before.
• Tired—it has been a long day and their shift ends in 55 minutes.
• Indifferent—you think you have got problems, this is nothing compared to the last guy
they just talked to.
• Detached—yeah, yeah, whatever…you are the 17th person today alone that has called in
with this concern.
• Unenthusiastic—they only have 2 more months on the phones and then they can ‘post
out’ and get promoted to another department within the company.

The above are all characteristics of the unhelpful rep and obviously the list could go on and on
and even though in these instances the voice tone could borderline on negative, the reality and
the danger is that when one of these characteristics dominates the moment, the likely voice tone
for the moment is going to be neutral. So in today’s competitive market place is that an
acceptable and tolerable tone for the moment? I guess it depends on who you ask; according to
recent surveys, the customer considers it neither tolerable nor acceptable.

Thus, when these moments/characteristics present themselves, it is time for the rep to change
the thought cycle. Going back to the principles centered around the power of positive thinking and
if we really are what we think; then changing our behavior is really as simple as our changing
thoughts. We can choose to remain in a negative and/or destructive thought pattern or we can
choose to change and begin to introduce positive thoughts. Therein lies the positive behavior
which opens the door to positive voice tone. Is it an easy choice to make? Not always…but in
today’s competitive market place it is the only acceptable choice to make.

‘Seeking call center professional who is energetic, creative, enthusiastic, and is


consistently able to convey a desire and willingness to help our customers.’

Here’s a quick way to determine if a call center’s primary focus is “quantity" customer
service:
• Is a sigh of relief heard because the “90% call handling objective” was achieved
for that day?
• At the end of the day, is someone scurrying up and down the aisle announcing the
various call handling percentages for each team?
• Does panic set in at the end of the day, as various departments or teams realize the
“90% call handling objective” was not met?
• Are there inconsistencies in the proper way to “solve” a common type of problem
or handle a common customer complaint, yet everyone is very clear on their call
objectives as it relates to their stats?
• Are your weekly team meetings a thing of the past simply because “we are just
too busy”?
• Is an award given to the agent who handled the most calls or complaints?
• Is "soft skills" training cancelled or taking a back seat because call volumes
dictate everyone must stay on the phone?
If you answered yes to any of the above it could indicate that your call center culture
promotes quantity customer service rather than quality customer service.
Use the word “quality” all you want, but as the saying goes, “actions speak louder than
words” and the above bullet points speak of “quantity" customer service.
Gold Stars are Free!
Recognition is a
Powerful Motivator
When you were little, remember the teacher saying, “Good Job!” And remember how
you felt when your test came back with a BIG GOLD STAR? WOW!

Recognition! It’s one of the most powerful motivators we have.

Your employees may have certificates, trophies, and plaques all over their desks and
walls. But why does it seem that it is typically the same group who win all
the awards?

What about employees who aren’t top performers? Why are there are people with no
‘goodies’ hanging on their walls? Is it because they don’t like clutter? Not likely! Or is
it because they rarely - if ever - win recognition? Some employees may want to be
successful but are struggling, and others may have struggled so long they have
simply ‘given up’. Still others may be so discouraged and unhappy that they’ve
turned into troublemakers - with these employees, recognition programs may even
have backfired and are de-motivating.

You say, “But wait a minute, the reason they have no awards is because they aren’t
doing well. I’m not going to recognize someone for that! Plus, that wouldn’t be fair to
the top performers.” Of course it’s important to recognize the top 10%, but isn’t it
the other 90% who really need the most motivating? Finding a recognition
program that will motivate everyone can unlock huge potential in
employees, and make a difference not only in your organization, but also in the
lives of the employees.

I learned a lot about the power of recognition from my High School English teacher.
One day she was passing back our graded essays when she held up one student’s
paper. She told the class that if we wanted to read an excellent essay, we should
read this paper. The teacher went on to tell this student that she should seriously
consider a career in writing. Now that is powerful! An authority figure like a
teacher can move mountains in a person’s life by recognizing them in front
of their peers. I know - that student was a friend of mine and that experience was
a pivotal moment, starting her toward a successful writing career. (Perhaps you’ve
read “Harry Potter”…just kidding!)

There are people in your organization that rarely get positive feedback regarding
their work – they never get to enjoy the spotlight! If you’re in management, you are
in a position, just like my English Teacher, to motivate people by finding something –
anything - that they do well and publicly recognizing them for it. For some of your
staff, this may be challenging and it may take a while, but if you look hard and long
enough, even the weakest performer or biggest troublemaker has something
they did well.
No matter that it may have been something fairly small. It was a call well-
handled, an intra-department thing that got smoothed over, a small task
they took on voluntarily and with a good attitude of team work. Lift it up! Be
sincere in your recognition and thanks! Let your lips form those golden words of
praise and gratitude and recognition! Be a generous boss!

This type of recognition doesn’t cost a thing. There are no planning meetings, big
budgets, executive presentations, or record keeping. This is simply you and your
own creativity at work! Give yourself a timeline and a goal to recognize everyone on
your team within that timeline. If your words and actions are sincere and believable
then your public recognition of their good efforts will be a powerful motivator and
can move mountains in your employee’s lives and in your organization. (Pssst! Want
a good deal on Gold Stars?)

Impressive First Impressions

Sometimes the Simplest


Things Can Mean the
Most
Customers are full of unknowns. When they call a company because of some type of
dissatisfaction, they may be “on the fence”. It’s likely they haven’t decided which side of the fence
they will land on -- the nice, calm, rational “manner garden” or the downright nasty, upset and
emotional “landfill” side.

The side of the fence the customer chooses is influenced by what we say and how we say it
when we answer their call.

Whoever answers the telephone -- it could be the receptionist, switchboard operator, customer
service specialist, technical support engineer, or manager -- is actually the company gatekeeper
and sets the tone for the entire conversation during the first 3-5 seconds of the call! And between
garden and landfill, it’s easy to imagine the mudslinging choice because of a greeting that sounds
rude, monotone, rushed and abrupt versus a greeting that is confident, positive, friendly and
professional.

And if calls are backing up in the queue, the gatekeeper role begins with the recorded message
the callers hear while they wait. The situation can actually be aggravated when hold times are
used as an opportunity for a commercial or advertisement. For callers who are already
dissatisfied with the experience they are having with a company, these recorded commercials
may actually provoke them to think “I’m calling because I’m unhappy and having a bad
experience with your company, why are you trying to promote even more of your products and
services to me?”.

Aside from an opportunity to pave the way for satisfying the unsatisfied, there is also the
opportunity to impress “First Time Callers” who have not yet had an experience with calling.

Carefully consider what your company’s standard greeting is and ensure it is concise, helpful and
friendly. Avoid falling into the trap of thinking “It’s only a few seconds of the conversation, it’s
really not that important.” Customers should feel welcome and comfortable as they “walk in the
front door” of your company - even if it is via a telephone call. And the gatekeepers play a huge
role in this.

Remember, we never get a second chance to make a good first impression!

Basic Courting Etiquette:

• Greet with a warm, sincere smile


• Be fun and interesting (remember, “If you’re bored, that may mean you’re boring”)
• Manage expectations (and sincerely apologize if expectations are unmet)
• Listen without interrupting
• Respond with appropriate emotion (show enthusiasm or empathy)
• Be polite and kind (genuine politeness is rare these days – a well timed “please” or “thank you” goes a long way!)
• Appreciate a person’s time and respect it as valuable (Remember, it could be spent with a “competitor”!)
• Make the other person feel smart, important and good (even if they make mistakes or ask silly questions)
• Avoid being a “parent” (authoritative, condescending)
• Be yourself (Remember, everyone else is already taken!)
• Avoid rushing out of the door at the end of the date if you want to encourage them to go out with you again.

Call Center Rep Coaching / Part 1

Why It Matters!
The call center industry insists on interchanging the terms "coaching" and "monitoring." But they
are two separate and distinct activities that should be clearly set apart from each other. If you
want to know who has a handle on how different these activities are, ask the people involved –
management and the frontline. You will discover one question gets two different answers every
time.

The question, first put to management, is “Do you coach?" The resounding answer is “YES!"
Take this question to the frontline and ask, “Are you coached?" and the answer is, “No. But we
are monitored.” The recipients of coaching and monitoring know very well the difference between
these two disciplines. It’s management and the industry who are confused.

Before we get to the differences, I will admit that making this important distinction and sticking to
it won’t initially make life easier. Sorry, that’s only on TV or Internet ads. Learning, accepting and
then implementing the difference between coaching and monitoring will likely tighten up your
schedule, demand further juggling of priorities, and result in increased interaction with staff. In
return, the promises dangled out in front of you include: a higher level of satisfaction for the
customer; improved consistency between people and teams; personal growth and development
of each person; and even increasing job satisfaction and retention. Sound good? You bet!

Before you get too excited, a “buyer beware” warning. The world you live in, like mine, is a
microwave world and few people are willing to take the crockpot approach. Coaching is
crockpotting. Monitoring is microwaving.

Coaching takes time, energy and focus if not caring and mentoring. Monitoring takes a pen or
pencil and a score sheet dropped off in a mailbox. The good monitoring programs at least have a
counseling session where results are discussed, but I challenge the effectiveness of real change
from that session.

Here are the quick, down and dirty, definitions for coaching and monitoring. Coaching is an out-in-
the-open activity for the purpose of self-development. You may also know it as "side-by-sides" or
"double-jacking." When you coach, feedback is given at the end of the call with the expectation of
change in the very next call.

Monitoring is a behind-the-scenes activity for the purpose of quality control or assurance. When
you monitor, feedback is given later, after-the-fact with the expectation of “proving” a change has
or has not occurred in overall success.

Think sports specifically.

Where is the coach in football, basketball, swimming or golf? On the field, court, pool or course
with the player. Sometimes the coach stands next to a particular player, giving input on how best
to handle the task at hand. Only the actual game itself forces the coach to the sidelines, but the
coach is still there. In fact, most coaches have an entire language of signs developed to continue
the communication with players. Why? So that improvement, changes, and yes, even
encouragement for a job well done can happen NOW before the very next play, or the very next
call.

Think sports specifically, again – Is there a monitor?

Absolutely!

The monitor is in the press box filming the game, and on the morning after the game the team
gathers to view the evidence! Yes, the evidence of how successful your coaching sessions were
– who implemented or who didn’t implement the agreed upon changes, and at another level, how
good the coaches are doing their job!

Monitoring does exactly what the name implies – it monitors what has happened and provides a
quality assurance and quality control check on the “players.” How many players are covered in
this QC routine? Your frontline rep and their coach, of course. You can also include others who
impact the results of the center, for example, your product and service training team. You may
decide that the coaches need calibration. Maybe training programs need updated, or maybe a rep
needs more coaching session time.

The key is to remember that monitoring is historical. It looks back at what happened and reports
on the outcome.

Coaching is NOW! Coaching is about developing the talents of the person being coached. It
concerns itself with giving personal assistance in the present moment to affect change and
provides the person a partner and encourager who helps them facilitate the change.

So if Coaching is NOW, why is it a crockpot approach and not a microwave?

Because it takes humans lots of “nows” to add up to real change. Monitoring does not foster
change. It is a report, and a report will never cause a developmental change. It might cause a
change for adherence sake (which we too often accept as real change), but it is a short-term
change resulting in high turnover, but wait, retention is a subject for another time!
And finally, just in case you are wondering if monitoring has just taken a fatal fall from grace, the
answer is no. Every call center needs the pair, coaching and monitoring for the very reasons
defined above. One develops and the other checks on the success of that effort. It’s a two-
pronged approach to success.

What is Coachable?
In Part One of this series we handled the bedrock concepts of coaching and monitoring, and how they differ from each other. If
you missed that article, click here and you’ll be whisked away to Part One!

It’s now time to go to the next topic and discover how a coach develops staff by giving feedback
on performance.

In order to give quality feedback we need to answer the question, “So just what is coachable?"
One of the top reasons coaches cite for not coaching is their lack of comfort in giving feedback to
reps. The discomfort is usually a result of one of two conditions. The first is a lack of skills training
on how to give feedback. That’s the easy one to solve and a future installment in the series! The
second is confusion on just what is coachable. Where do you draw the line on what is and isn’t
fair game to comment on in a coaching session? This is the harder of the two to get a handle on,
and it’s our focus in Part Two.

We all have preferences and biases that affect everything we do from the brand of clothes we
wear to the restaurants we frequent to the friends and organizations we contribute our time,
talents and money. Some like hot foods, some don’t; some wear Tommy Hilfiger jeans, some
don’t; some join clubs, churches, sports teams, some don’t. How likely is it that we take our
personal preferences and biases into our role as a coach? VERY! And that’s where we begin to
answer the question of what’s “coachable?”

If I asked you to give me a list of qualities that an ideal rep would possess, in no time flat you’d
describe a super rep able to please customers and management with equal finesse. If next I
asked you to list the specific actions and behaviors that display each of these qualities, the task
gets a little more difficult because our personal bias begins to show. “I like a rep to be warm and
friendly.” Someone else says,”Forget the warm and friendly jazz, just give me the answer.” The
next person chimes in and offers “I think reps need to sound professional on the phone,” to which
someone comments “what do you mean by professional – my accountant is a professional but he
has zero people skills. Heaven forbid he’d be on the phone with our customers!” When we get
down to brass tacks, calling out specific actions and behaviors is hard work and full of our
preferences and biases.

Our very sense of how an interaction “should be” handled is a strong impulse for any coach to
manage when working with members of a rep team to help them develop their skills.

The goal then is to develop a clear guideline on what is and isn’t fair game to comment on during
a coaching session and to be able to manage our preferences and biases in the coaching
process. Three terms will help us with the task: standards, styles and ideas.

Standards and styles represent two different measures and ideas are not measurements at all but
tools a coach can use to develop both standards and styles.

• A standard is an objective measure that applies equally to everyone.


• A style is a subjective measure that applies to just one person at a time.
• An idea is something that works for someone else and might work for you.
Standards form the core of any coaching program because of their very definition: An objective
measure that applies equally to everyone. No one is above or below a standard. There is no
exception to a standard. It is a clear statement of what is expected, and it is clear that everyone is
expected to follow the standard.

While this sounds harsh, that’s not its purpose. When done right, a layer of solid standards
provides a foundation for freedom in style and ideas. Since standards are the core of any
coaching program, we’ll dig deeper on these now and tackle styles and ideas in Part Three.

Recalling the definition of a standard (an objective measure that applies equally to everyone),
how many real standards do you have at the core of your coaching program? You’ll find that there
are conceptual standards and content-based standards and shades of both. Take a look at a
content-based standard.

When a rep closes every call with “Thank you for calling First Financial Services,” they have just
completed a content-based standard. It’s this very sort of content-based standard that reps aren’t
fond of because while it fits most situations, it doesn’t fit all situations, and yet if they use any
other wording, they are out of standard. Being out of standard often has consequences in their
paycheck! Ow!

Another standard which all call centers have is the call opening, the greeting. Let’s look at a
three-part standard expressed this way:

1. Begin with a Salutation


2. Identify your department or area
3. Identify yourself using first name only

Until we “script” each one of these steps it’s clear that this standard as it’s expressed is part
conceptual (#1 & #2) and part content-based (#3). A rep would be in standard if they answered
the phone and said, “Good Morning (Salutation), Customer Service (Department ID), this is John
(Personal ID)."

Anyone greeting a caller without their first name, “Good Morning Customer Service” is out of
standard. Anyone not using a salutation, “Customer Service this is Dave” is out of standard. If a
rep greets a caller with “Good Morning and welcome to the Denver Customer Service Call Center
my name is Linda McStevens and how may I be of service to you today?” is clearly out of
standard. It’s not that they have left anything out, but they have added to your standard.

You can tighten or loosen a standard. If you want the greeting content-based, then you simply
decide the vocabulary of all three steps. Regardless of what you decide, it’s imperative to
communicate your standard clearly so it can be followed. (Later in this series we’ll talk about how
to formalize this by building a Nuance List.)

Once a standard is set, you see how easy it is to apply it to everyone in the call center equally.
Standards are great. They remove bias. They are actionable because they are clear and
universally applied. No one is exempt.

Now it was no accident that the two standards I chose as examples were the opening and the
closing because they demonstrate a glitch in creating standards. By their very nature, a content-
based standard is one where what to say has been decided ahead of time and without any
sensitivity to the caller or why they’ve called.

That’s a glitch. That removes dynamic customization by a rep when dealing with the customer.
The reason for removing it is often well-meaning. If we fear that our staff will forget or not be
skilled or caring enough to thank someone for calling, we make it a content-based standard, and
we deduct points (and maybe pay) when the standard isn’t used. The reasoning is that it’s better
to thank 100% of the callers and risk it sounding or feeling awkward 5% of the time than have
reps forget or be careless and miss thanking a larger percentage of callers they should indeed
thank!

Clearly, the only time you can truly craft the content of a standard without regard to the caller, or
the caller’s need, is the call opening. It’s the only place in the call where the rep singularly “owns”
the time slot, and it’s an important time slot – about 3 to 5 seconds. In that time by the words they
use and how they say them, they will communicate to the caller everything the caller needs to
know about what the next 3 to 5 minutes will be like.

Fully scripted, content-based standards are limiting. When we decide ahead of time what
someone should say, we take away the possibility of making the best choice of what to say when
the time comes to say it. Knowing this does not weaken the bedrock quality of standards at the
core of your program. It simply leads us to look at the properties of conceptual standards and how
to use them.

Conceptual standards maintain the quality of “structure” that you get in content-based standards
and add the element of customization and style. That combination allows a rep and a caller to be
truly dynamic in any moment and your rep still meets your standards and delights your customer.

A good example of a conceptual standard is the steps of placing a caller on hold. Here are 4
straightforward steps:

1. Pose a question to the caller that includes an action step.


2. Activate the hold with a courtesy word or phrase.
3. Recall the customer to the conversation by speaking their name putting a question mark
in your voice tone.
4. Add a courtesy phrase and resume the conversation.

Here are examples of each step so you can see how different content choices fit each
“conceptual standard” step.

1. Pose a question to the caller that includes an action step.

Can you hold while I check on that for you?


Would you mind holding so I can look that up for you?
May I place you on hold to find the information for you?

2. Activate the hold with a courtesy word or phrase.

Thank you.
Thanks.
Great; I’ll be right back.

3. Recall the customer to the conversation by speaking their name putting a question mark in
your voice tone.

Mr. Jones?
Sir?/ Ma’am?
4. Add a courtesy phrase and resume the conversation.

Thank you for waiting; your application was received…


Thanks for holding for me; your application was received…

It takes training and a good nuance list to get the clarity you desire so conceptual standards work
for everyone. Are all conceptual standards easy? No, but that doesn’t make it impossible or not
worthwhile to work on it. For example, do you hear reps telling callers “We can’t do that until the
first of the month;” “I don’t have the information yet;” “I won’t be able to get that document to you
until tomorrow.” Do you ask reps over and over to tell callers what they can do, do have, and will
do? Yes, of course you do. Have you made it a standard? You can. In fact it’s a perfect
“conceptual standard” to create for any group. It takes an excellent nuance list to help set the
guideline and remember, we’ll deal with nuance lists yet in this series.

What is Coachable?
In Part One and Part Two of this series we handled the bedrock concepts of coaching and monitoring, and how they differ from
each other, as well as the core element of all coaching programs: standards. If you missed these articles, please click on Part
One or Part Two and you’ll be whisked away to Part One and Two! Now that we have “standards” fully discussed, its’ time to
move onto “styles” and “ideas”.

It’s now time to go to the next topic and discover how a coach develops staff by giving feedback
on performance.

Remember that a standard is an objective measure that applies to everyone. On the other hand,
a style is a subjective measure that applies to just one person at a time.

A good way to get these two clear in our mind is to compare them to something we understand
very well. Think about music and musicians. All sorts of music are written (same notes and words
= standard) and the very same music is performed by artists who deliver it in many different ways
(variety = style).

Over the recent holiday season just passed you probably heard your fair share of “Jingle Bells.”
The tune and the words are standard. They’ve been around for years and no matter what artist
does the song, the essential tune and the words remain. However, depending on what artist does
the song, the style of the song is remarkably different. Think of Barbra Streisand singing this
favorite carol. Her rendition, from an album she released in 1967, is famous. Next, think of Willie
Nelson. Now, think of Neil Diamond, Britney Spears, Pavarotti, Charlotte Church, Kenny G. and
Johnny Mathis. We could list even more performers, and yet we would still conclude that while
the music and words remain the same, the delivery of the song is very different. Some artist’s
version you love and others you really dislike. Have you ever heard anyone “butcher” your
favorite song? They do it all the time to our National Anthem! OW!

Without standards, we are lost in a world of style. This is why standards are the core, the rock
bottom foundation of your coaching program. It’s wiser to set the standard and then have the
style flow from it. By the way, setting a standard and not allowing style to flow is not wise. It’s
stifling; for the rep and for your customer. It is sometimes too easy to tell when the rep isn’t the
author of a word or phrase they’ve just spoken.

Style gives communication life and personality. Everyone operates from their own base of
personal style preferences. Your style and your view of the world play a strong role in developing
your team. First remember that it is impossible to require or impose our style on others and when
it comes to measuring style, we are on murky ground. Here’s a real story that made this crystal
clear to me.

I was coaching in a consumer goods call center that supported a line of very popular marketplace
products. The software used to capture the caller’s information was ordered in a linear sequence
that made perfect sense to the programmer. As you know, callers are completely unaware of
what order your program is in and for the most part, they tell stories with the data you need
sprinkled throughout in absolutely no logical order at all.

In this call center there were 30+ reps and yet two reps in particular stood out. One rep’s style
was preferred because he had an innate ability to hear the caller’s story, capture the information
needed, and at the same time flip back and forth between screens and input the data where it
was requested and never lose control of the call. The other rep found it impossible to do anything
other than follow the linear layout of the program taking only the data each screen required.
Knowing that, she carefully and skillfully guided each of her callers through the call in the order of
the program and captured all the information she needed and still allowed the caller plenty of
storytelling time.

The first style was impressive and preferred by management. I was asked to coach the “linear
rep” to be more like the other rep. I knew I was on shaky ground. First I asked if I could see the
scores from coaching and monitoring sessions and then from customer satisfaction surveys. Both
reps scored in the highest possible ranges and within points of each other with the linear rep
scoring just under the other rep. Both reps nailed the standards perfectly. When compared with
each other, these two reps had very different styles. When ranked by the customer though, both
reps equally scored as excellent. This was purely a preference of style issue.

Absolutely no one, me included, knew how to reproduce and duplicate that innate skill in a way
that could be demonstrated and taught to someone, anyone, else. Here’s the hard and fast truth –
unless you can personally demonstrate what it is that you want to standardize in such a way that
you can teach it to someone, anyone, else and they can duplicate it, it is a style and not a
standard.

Standards apply to everyone. Styles are personal. So what’s a coach to do when faced with some
of the day-to-day challenges of working with reps who are meeting standards but you know they
have potential to develop further in their personal style.

That’s where an “idea” comes in. First, recall that the purpose of this is not to make someone into
anyone else but to give everyone the tools to make themselves better. It’s taking their capability
and with coaching, turning it into ability. No capability? Then no amount of coaching will give you
ability. Remember that.

The definition of an “idea” is something that works for someone else and it might work for you.
Notice it doesn’t say that it’s something that works for me and might work for you, but works for
someone else and might work for you. It’s the power of the third party. As a coach, monitor or
supervisor, you have a “parent” role, and by its nature that turns your advice into drivel. So the
strategy is to use the power of the third party to gain attention and willingness to try something
new.

Your best ideas will come by sharing what another rep, their peer, is doing. For example you
might say, “I was only sitting with Carl this morning in a coaching session when he received a call
very much like the one you just took. When the caller asked him if we had any promotions coming
up, he began to ask questions about what kind of promotions he liked and then went on to explain
that there aren’t any current promos running. It worked really well. Instead of the caller getting
upset that he didn’t have a promotion to use right now, he felt as if he contributed to the creation
of future ones. You might try Carl’s approach the next time a caller corners you about not having
enough promotions.”

Like the music and the musicians, there is an element of standard and an element of style in
every call. Keeping a balance between the two is necessary and that balance can be found more
easily when you set standards first.

Standards, Styles, Ideas. The three components of coaching frontline staff to excellent
performance and getting rave reviews from your customers. Next article we’ll talk about the art of
giving feedback to your staff so it’s accepted and acted on. Stay tuned

Now the scary part . . . actually giving feedback to your staff.

You might be fine with coaching and monitoring conceptually, but when the time comes to
actually do it you can find yourself out-of-sorts. Suddenly you seem to have lots of other work that
you really need to catch up on before you start coaching. Just as soon as that’s finished you can
be ready to coach. If you’re really good at this, you can establish “getting ready to get ready”
activities that serve to never get you out and coaching.

Why is coaching so scary and frightening? How do you tell someone else what to do? Worse,
how do you tell them that what they are doing is wrong?

There’s the flaw that causes the fright: stage fright! Telling is all monologue and all the pressure is
on you! Don’t tell. Telling is not giving feedback. Ask. Asking begins a discussion that leads to a
conversation which is dialogue. That’s giving feedback within our framework of coaching, which is
the activity of working one-on-one with an individual for the purpose of self-development (see Part
One of this series).

Think of a good coach – back to sports we go! I remember taking golf lessons — not necessarily
a fond memory! The leader board at the LPGA has nothing to fear from me! I’d take a swing, look
at the golf pro and he’d ask, “Where was your head Mary Beth?” to which I’d quickly reply, “I don’t
know. Where was it?”

He rarely let me get away with that. He’d ask again, “No, think about it. Review the swing. Where
was your head?” We’d do that with my elbow, my hip, my hand position, etc. Nothing was where it
was supposed to be, but the feedback he gave me wasn’t “telling,” it was “asking.” What the
student comes to know for herself is powerful learning. Masterful.

There are volumes on the subject of learning to give excellent feedback. I’m quite certain you can
find articles with titles like “The Eighteen Principles of Providing Feedback” or “The Fourteen
Fundamentals of Cutting Edge Coaching and Feedback.” Pardon me but after about 3 steps, I’m
lost and I’m tired of putting the steps on the photocopier and reducing them to a “wallet-sized,
easy-to-carry and refer to” copy! So here’s your 4-Step Formula for Giving Feedback. (Yes, even
I added a step for a total of four but you’ll soon see how it’s actually just three – just a little slight
of hand!)

4-Step Formula for Giving Feedback


Step One: Ask a question.
Step Two: Listen to the answer.
Step Three: Repeat steps One and Two (not really a “new” step)
Step Four: Offer “ideas” as needed.
Sound too simple? In a way, yes, because developing the talent in your team is still “work,” but
this formula helps remove the “fright of feedback.” Let’s try out the steps.

A call has just finished. Your rep completes the database record and turns to you and asks, “Well,
how did I do?” In the past you might have gone ahead and answered this question which starts
you on “telling.” Instead, answer the question with a question. “How did it feel to you?”

Let’s see some possible dialogue flow:

Rep: I guess it felt ok. Do you have any feedback for me on where I could do better?
Coach: Why was it “ok” and not “terrible” or “terrific?"
Rep: Oh, I don’t know, really. I answered her question alright but I wouldn’t say she was thrilled
that she called today.
Coach: Was there a chance to add anything that would have achieved a "thrilled I called"
response from her?
Rep: You know, not really. That was a straight forward question and I answered it. I didn’t check
her history file though while I had her on the phone. When I put the notes in from the call I saw
where she has an application on file with us for a loan, and I could have mentioned that or offered
to check on the status of it for her.

Notice that the formula feeds on itself beautifully. As you listen to the answer from your question,
your very next question is formed from that answer. Now you have a conversation where the
student is learning, for herself, where she is in her skills and where she can go. What an
improvement from “telling” feedback that informs the rep what she needs to do “better.”

Take a look at “telling” feedback:

Rep: Well, how did I do?


Coach: Not bad.You need to open the history screen though during the call and not wait till
you’re putting in the notes after the call is over. Had you done that you would have seen that she
had an application in process with us, and you could have given her a status update on it. That
would have been better service to the customer.

So, all you need is a handful of good starter questions and the rest is born out of conversation. If
your reps are likely to start the coaching process by asking how they did, then you already have a
handle on what your first question is. What if they get used to you doing that and suddenly turn to
you and say, “That was a great call, wasn’t it?” If you agree with their assessment, smile in
agreement and then ask, “Tell me why it was great – what happened?” If you don’t agree, don’t
smile and ask the same question. They’ll understand your question just the same.

If you are the first person to start the feedback process, here are a handful of questions for you to
be ready with. Most of them will require some customization from your end based on your callers
or products and services, but you’ll get the gist:

• “How did you like that call, Charlie?”


• “How did that call go for you, Linda?
• “What seemed to work really well for you in that call, Sharon?”
• “Tell me about that caller … can you describe him/her from the picture in your minds’
eye?”
• “What did you do differently this time, Ron?”
• “What happened, John, when you mentioned the extended coverage plan?”
• “When the call started and he asked his first question, what popped into your mind?”
• “If you could do that call over again, what would you change?”
If you meet with the sort of success we do, you’ll hardly ever be “telling!” You and your rep
together will be discussing, diagnosing and determining development opportunities. When you do
“tell”, remember the concepts of “standards,” “styles” and “ideas” (see parts Two and Three of this
series).

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