Company: Nationwide
Industry: Financial Services
Solution: Customer Service Training
Training Programme Design - Challenge
"We know we need to improve Customer Service skills, but the team are already overworked and very stressed"
Training Programme Design - Research & Analysis revealed:
- Customers in highly emotional situations
- Customers who don't want to hear 'bad news'
- Employees who don't want to give 'bad news'
Training Programme Design - Experience
- 1-day programme changes little
- Multiple interventions essential
- Winning hearts & minds critical – employees need to believe it is better to hear bad news that have false hopes
- Learning in the medium in which you will deliver (e.g. phone training) makes a big impact on results
Training Programme Design - Approach
For Frontline Staff – specific customer service skills training
- Practical workbooks for each delegate
- Focus on long term customer benefit of giving a clear answer first time
- Phone Delivered Training™ in multiple short phone training sessions
- Special help with handling distressed or angry customers
- Building up of assertiveness skills
For Supervisors - coaching and performance management skills
- 2 day supervisor training programme a few weeks apart - classroom based
- Detailed review of desired new behaviours from front line staff
- Focus on coaching skills to support new behaviours
- Video practise in giving feedback
Training Programme Design - Impact
- Huge impact very quickly
- 60 % increase in first time resolution
- 80% reduction in written complaints
- 30% reduction in escalations
- Estimated 600% ROI in training in three months as supervisors now able to be deployed elsewhere
Training Programme Design - Roll Out
Key programme elements:
- Clarity of call purpose
- Increasing assertiveness
- New call structures to bring clarity
- Supervisor training providing coaching and performance management skills
Now rolling out across the business, adapted into each team's specific situation and current customer service skills
Training Programme Design - Feedback
- "Fantastically effective training – learnt more on these short phone training sessions than in a typical classroom day" Delegate
- "The supervisor training programme was the best training I have ever had. I've already started applying the skills – the video session really built my confidence." Supervisor
- "Very pleased – the skills delivered so much more than we expected and so quickly - A great blend of phone training and classroom training." Client
