In years past, the overwhelming majority of call center employees hailed from large cities. It only made sense; these large employers needed plenty of employees who could quickly and easily make it to their center for work every day. It was almost a necessity for these employees to live in major metropolitan areas to work for these companies.
Times have changed. This is especially apparent since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2019 and early 2020. With the very idea of the workplace changing rapidly, it is clear that life for call center employees and managers will change along with it.
If you have been working in the customer service industry for any length of time, you have probably noticed the trend toward these jobs and this industry moving into more and more rural areas. There are many reasons for this.
First, these jobs have a high turnover rate compared to many other industries. Most call centers are in a perpetual state of hiring, and moving their operations and hiring efforts into areas where people are more likely to be looking for this type of work is imperative to continue to find new call center employees.
Rural areas have larger portions of the population seeking the potential stability that these jobs bring. This combination is a winning one for call center managers, who always have positions to fill and are constantly looking for ways to reduce turnover. Bringing attractive, stable jobs out of the big cities and into smaller towns across America and worldwide is one way to meet this goal, as well as the employment goals of those areas’ citizens.
The modern workplace will likely forever be changed by the COVID-19 pandemic crisis of early 2020. While many areas of the world are in recovery mode now, many are still dealing with the full effects of this virus, and many workplaces are primarily offering remote employment to their staff as a result.
Remote work will only continue to increase in popularity and utilization as more and more companies realize just how simple it can be to use, as well as how much overhead operations savings there are to be had. With the rights tools and technology, a company can reduce its operating costs dramatically while maintaining equal or even improved productivity as a result of employing remote workers. That is a formula that is unlikely to change, now that so many businesses have given it a try out of necessity for health and safety and seen the benefits from themselves.
What does this shift toward more remote call center employees mean for hiring managers? It means that these employees can now be found just about everywhere, including in smaller towns and cities around the world.
Whereas employees once needed quick and easy access to the large facilities where customer service and other contact centers were based, they now only need a reliable internet connection. Training, quality assurance, so many aspects of the job can now be performed from home or wherever your employees may happen to be. There is no daily commute, no need for employees who don’t live close to your facility to drive or catch a bus; they simply log on and are at the service on your consumers within minutes, without ever leaving home.
Not currently working as a remote or blended contact center? The good news is, it’s easy to change that! If you’re looking to cash in on the wealth of potential employees living in remote locations around the world, all you need is the right training and technology.
With the tools you need to quickly and seamlessly launch your newly-remote call center, ChaseData offers solutions that can get you up and running without missing out on any productivity. Our goal is to help clients who have been with us for the long-haul and those who are just discovering what we have to offer enjoy the same top-quality, easy shift to remote operations.
Now it’s time to find those new employees. They truly are everywhere! In the current environment, there are people from all walks of life looking for new employment opportunities, and bringing them into the fold is easier than ever before.
Invest time and resources into remote hiring processes, including advertising openings in relevant publications and platforms. What once might have taken place in-person can now be conducted via video chat or other media. This includes everything from the interview and hiring processes to training and more. There are plenty of ways to test your new hires for their competence in a wide range of skills without ever having to speak face-to-face. This is a major benefit for both companies looking to maintain health and safety standards during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as those simply looking to bring employees from many remote locations onboard.
You may want to consider a brief trial period for conducting all of these processes on a remote basis. Make these small towns and areas your test market for this period, and see just how many valuable employees you can find there. You will likely be surprised at how many willing, capable and hardworking team members are just waiting to be hired!
Regardless of where your call center employees come from, and how you employ them, either remotely, in-person, or some combination thereof, you can trust ChaseData to make them more productive and efficient. We have been offering software solutions for contact centers of all kinds throughout multiple industry trends, and we continue to offer the best in the field today. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you maximize your staff’s output and keep them happier, healthier and safer in the post-pandemic business landscape.