How to Reduce Attrition in a Call Center

The demanding nature of call center work, coupled with low pay and unsatisfying work conditions, often leads to employee dissatisfaction and burnout. In addition, poor management and unfair policies can further contribute to call center attrition, making the high turnover rate a persistent challenge to overcome. 

However, amidst these challenges, there are strategies that call centers can implement to address attrition and create a more positive work environment. Investing in technology, such as conversational AI software, can also help alleviate the stress and monotony associated with call center work. 

This blog will offer insights on embracing technology and creating a workplace that values employee growth and well-being and reduces call center attrition rates.

What Is Call Center Attrition?

In a call center, attrition refers to the loss of employees, whether voluntarily or involuntarily. It can have a detrimental impact on the overall success and productivity of the organization.

The average attrition rate for call centers is around 38 percent, meaning that 38 out of a hundred employees will leave their jobs within a year. This is significantly higher than the average attrition rate for many other occupations where businesses tend to target an attrition rate of around 10 percent or less.

Attrition Rate vs. Turnover Rate: What’s the Difference?

While often user interchangeable, the main difference between the two lies in how employees leave an organization. The attrition rate defines the percentage of employees who left in a given period for any reason, which can be both voluntarily and involuntarily. On the other hand, the turnover rate is the percentage of employees who leave a company voluntarily. 

For example, employees fired or laid off come under involuntary departures, so they should be counted as attrition. However, employees who quit voluntarily should be considered a turnover.

How to Calculate Call Center Attrition and Turnover Rates

With every call center averaging a high attrition and turnover rate, keeping a periodical track becomes important to identify issues early. 

The attrition percentage rate of a call center can be calculated by the following equation:

Attrition Rate = (Number of Employees Who Left ÷ Average Number of Employees) x 100
Where the number of employees who left and the total number of employees are for the same period.

For example, a call center started a quarter with 200 employees and ended with 150. Its average number of employees will be (200 + 150) ÷ 2 = 175. Then using the formula we can find the attrition rate to be approximately 29 percent for the same quarter.  

A similar formula can calculate the turnover percentage rate except with a slight difference. 

Turnover Rate = (Number of Employees Who Quit ÷ Total Number of Employees) x 100
Where the number of employees who left and the total number of employees are for the same period.

For example, a call center has 200 employees and 80 left over the year. Its turnover rate will be 40 percent for that year.

Why Call Centers Have High Turnover and Attrition Rates

Many factors can contribute to call center attrition, including:

High-Stress Levels

The fast-paced environment and repetitive nature of a call center can be quite straining on your mental health. The constant demands of dealing with difficult customers on the phone, adhering to strict call-handling procedures, and meeting deadlines and sales targets all day long can easily burn out an employee. 

Low Pay and Benefits

It is common for call centers to offer fresh employees minimum wage and few benefits. While some call centers may give reasonable bonuses and commissions, they are generally not easy to achieve. Even if top performers or experienced call center workers get a good wage, the money is not enough to compensate for the grueling work cycle. The low rewards make it difficult to retain and attract good employees. 

Poor Management

Another reason for a high attrition rate among call center employees is a poorly managed workplace. Due to the inability to attract good workers, and the minimal recognition for current workers, call centers often place inexperienced or highly dissatisfied managers at the top. This lack of investment creates a demotivating and toxic environment for everyone that does not foster good relationships.  

Monotonous Work

Burning out is one of the highest causes of attrition in call centers. The repetitive nature of work demands that you are glued to your phone during office hours. Following the same script, and for low rewards, can lead to boredom and quickly demotivate an employee to put in any effort.

Unfair or Inconsistent Policies

Employees always expect a certain amount of freedom and confidence in how their tasks are done. Limiting or revoking that freedom and confidence with absurd policies can contribute to high levels of attrition in call centers. For example, forcing agents to adhere to strict call times, not leave the site for lunch breaks, follow a script to the dot, etc. Berating or disqualifying an agent from a commission because of a minor discrepancy in following a policy negatively impacts morale and working relations.

In addition, office politics where policies are bent for top performers or seniors leave others disappointed. Employees cannot expect to put in effort if the office has no consistent policies.

Low Career Advancement Opportunities

Employees want to advance their careers by learning new skills and taking on new challenges, which call centers cannot provide. With limited growth opportunities, employees find themselves stuck in the same loop without any clear path to advance in the company. An employee who cannot see a better job title to strive for will likely add to the company's attrition rate.

Despite the challenges, there are a number of call centers that have been able to reduce their attrition rates. These call centers have typically implemented a number of strategies to improve employee satisfaction, such as providing good training, offering competitive pay and benefits, and creating a positive work environment. 

By taking steps to address the factors contributing to attrition, call centers can improve their bottom line and provide a better experience for their customers.

Impact of High Attrition Rate on Call Centers

With the inability to retain employees and motivate the existing workforce, a call center's high attrition rate can significantly impact its revenue streams. When the top performers exit a call center, they leave behind a void that adds stress to the entire system. This negatively affects customer experience, which the call center was previously providing. 

This also has a domino effect. The more employees leave, the longer the wait times due to an understaffed operation. That leads to disappointed customers, which reduces customer satisfaction ratings. All of that eventually falls back on the agents because they are on the front lines, forcing them to leave their toxic workplace. For the call center stakeholders, low outputs may cost them a new or existing contract.

Furthermore, hiring new employees adds to the cost. It takes time and money to hire, train, and supervise recruits before they start performing optimally. 

Tips to Reduce Agent Attrition in Call Centers

Reducing the attrition/turnover rate is the only way forward for a call center to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of its operations. This can be done in several ways to cover different areas such as improving career paths, creating better training and development programs, offering more rewards, changing work culture to increase motivation, etc. 

1. Provide Good Training

One of the best ways to reduce call center turnover is to provide good training to employees. This will help them feel more confident and competent in their jobs, which can reduce stress and dissatisfaction. The training should be comprehensive and cover all aspects of the job, including customer service skills, product knowledge, and technical skills. It should also be interactive and engaging so that employees can learn and retain the information.

2. Offer Competitive Pay and Benefits

Call center jobs are often low-paying and offer few benefits, which can make it difficult to attract and retain good employees. Offering competitive pay and benefits can make call center jobs more attractive to potential employees. This includes offering a living wage, health insurance, paid time off, and retirement plans.

3. Create a Positive Work Environment

A positive work environment is one where employees feel valued and appreciated. This can be created by providing a supportive team atmosphere, flexible work arrangements, and opportunities for growth and development. It is also important to have clear and fair policies and procedures in place.

4. Encourage Career Development

Providing opportunities for career development can help employees feel more motivated and engaged in their work. This can be done by offering training and development programs, tuition reimbursement, and opportunities for advancement.

5. Listen to Employee Feedback

Listening to employee feedback and taking steps to address their concerns can help improve job satisfaction and reduce attrition. This includes giving employees a way to voice their concerns, such as through surveys or anonymous feedback forms. It is also important to take action on the feedback that is received. This feedback may include reports of wrongdoing, so make sure you create a culture that encourages employees to report misconduct.

6. Minimize Stress

Call center work can be very stressful, due to the constant demands of customers, the need to meet strict call-handling goals, and the repetitive nature of the work. To minimize stress, it is important to provide breaks, limit the number of calls per hour, and offer flexible work arrangements. It is also important to have a supportive team atmosphere where employees feel like they can ask for help when needed.

7. Invest in Technology, Including AI Solutions

Investing in technology can help reduce stress and improve efficiency in call centers. This includes using call routing systems to distribute calls evenly, automated systems to answer common questions, and screen-sharing and chat tools to help customers solve problems. Solutions like Mosaicx offer conversational interactions without help from an agent, so you can reduce agent workload without sacrificing customer experience.

8. Celebrate Success

Celebrating success, both big and small, helps boost morale and reduce turnover. This can be done by recognizing employees for their hard work, giving out awards, and hosting team-building events.

9. Be Transparent

Being transparent with employees about the company's goals and objectives can help them feel more invested in their work. This includes providing regular updates on the company's performance, sharing information about new products and services, and explaining changes to policies and procedures.

10. Be Fair and Consistent

Ensuring that employees are treated fairly and consistently can help improve morale and reduce turnover. This includes having clear and fair policies and procedures in place and applying them consistently to all employees.

By following these tips, call centers can reduce attrition and improve employee satisfaction. This can lead to a more productive and efficient workforce, which can benefit the company in the long run.

In addition to the tips mentioned above, there are several other things that call centers can do to reduce attrition. These include:

• Using predictive analytics to identify employees who are at risk of leaving
• Providing personalized development plans for employees
• Offering referral bonuses for employees who refer new hires
• Creating a culture of continuous improvement

By taking a holistic approach to reducing attrition, call centers can create a workplace where employees are happy, engaged, and productive.

Reduce Call Center Attrition with AI

Conversational AI software has emerged as a powerful tool in reducing attrition rates in call centers. By handling more repetitive customer service calls, this software allows agents to focus on more valuable and fulfilling customer requests. This shift in workload not only alleviates the monotony and burnout that often lead to attrition but also provides a more satisfying work experience for agents.

With the implementation of conversational AI, call centers can address the high-stress levels associated with constant customer demands and strict call-handling goals. Moreover, by automating responses to common questions and utilizing tools that enhance agent performance, the software streamlines operations, reducing stress and increasing efficiency.

By investing in technology like Mosaicx and embracing the capabilities of conversational AI, call centers can create a positive work environment that values employee growth, development, and well-being. Ultimately, this shift in focus enables call centers to retain valuable agents, improve customer satisfaction, and enhance overall business performance.

If you're interested in learning more, check out this next article about how virtual agents support contact center staff.