Call-centers are the exemplars of a corporate organization, and ones which can benefit greatly from a corporate eLearning program. India, for one, is a country that is stereotypically known for the astronomical number of call centers present all over its map. But unfortunately, even though they’re the ideal corporate organizations that could benefit immensely from eLearning, not as many call-centers employ the benefits of this educational technology.

Call-centers require that their employees – the call-center executives or agents – answer calls quickly, resolve customer queries and problems efficiently and communicate information about products with ease and clarity. That doesn’t happen on its own. Call-center executives/agents require training, which is necessary for both new recruits as well as the old-timers, both to get them up to speed and upskill them from time to time. In this article we’ll discuss 5 tips to note and keep in mind when using eLearning for call-center training.

1. Offer Personalized Learning

Call-centers are organizations with a diverse workforce that hail from different professional and personal backgrounds. Thus, each employee is completely different, and has contrasting perspectives and ideas. Creativity is something that should be encouraged, and each employee should be given training in a personalized way by experimenting with different eLearning content types. For example, some learners respond better to only textual content, others text and speech, some to visual content which includes images, text, and videos, while others prefer highly-interactive content types, which offer the learner different learning paths based on their responses. You can even use gamified eLearning courses which use game dynamics within courses to engage the learner.

2. Create a Discussion Forum

A discussion forum is a must-have for a call-center, and should revolve around eLearning, the experiences employees had with it, and what could be done to improve it. This will generate valuable feedback that can be used to modify and refine the eLearning courses. Utilize the power of social media, and create such a group on Facebook or WhatsApp, as modern day employees use these regularly, and will relate to it more easily.

3. Use eLearning Simulations

The role of a call-center executive requires dealing with customers, most of which are usually confused or miffed either due to a problem they are facing, or because they were dissatisfied with a product or service. Handling such customers can be grueling job, and requires a lot of patience, practice and impeccable product knowledge. Implementing realistic eLearning simulations into your eLearning program will ensure that employees have enough practice before they deal with customers in the real world. Simulations serve two purposes: One, they improve employees’ decision-making skills, and two, they provide a safe space where employees can make choices without any real world consequences.

4. Explain The Purpose of Training

It is imperative that employees understand exactly why they are being trained so that they do not consider the eLearning courses to be a tiring convention or formality they HAVE to do, however half-heartedly. Explain to them its importance for their skills, for their career, as well as for the organization. Measure them using KPIs (Key Performance Indicators), and make them aware of these KPIs. Inspire in them the spirit of personal development, and dole out rewards to employees in the lead. This will help them get engaged and inspire healthy competition, which will make them strive harder to meet their goals and get better results.

5. Offer Them Freedom!

eLearning has evolved a lot since its genesis. Today, everyone has a smartphone, which can be connected to the organization’s LMS (learning management system) to deliver eLearning courses to employees anytime, anywhere. This saves time that would be spent completing courses in the office, while giving employees a choice to complete their courses from wherever they see fit, and whatever time they see fit! eLearning on mobile will lead to a much more relaxed atmosphere in the office, and work will not suffer!

Use eLearning regularly to train employees, and not just once or twice every year. Schedule eLearning courses to be completed every week, and supplement them with recorded calls and case-studies that help employees understand better as to what is expected of them, and what is an ideal conversation to have with a customer.