"We've been buying from Main Resource for 10 years now and have always received great looking equipment at a fair price. Main Resource is the first company we call when we are looking for refurbished Inter-Tel and Executone phone equipment." --Bill Green, Virginia Telecommunications, Richmond, Virginia.

Study Offers Insight into US Call Center Staffing and Retention Issues

Download Printable Version

In the Final Report of its recent survey on call center agent staffing and retention, Call Center Management Review includes detailed findings, charts and tables highlighting key data on current practices and policies regarding agent staffing and retention. Survey data, collected in April, was gathered from some 771 US call centers, with 186 managers participating. Respondents represented a variety of industries, including healthcare, telecommunication, training/consulting, manufacturing, computers, retail/catalog and insurance.

 Topics covered include:

• Common causes of turnover among agents
• Average hourly wages
• Current internal/external turnover rate
• Call center incentives
• Types of ongoing training, etc.

For instance, the study concluded that the average length of employment for full-time agents working at 34 percent of the call centers surveyed is two years. Agents working at 27 percent of companies surveyed left their jobs after only six months to a year. The top five causes of agent turnover were identified as:

1. Better opportunities outside the organization
2. Compensation issues
3. Better opportunities inside the organization
4. Lack of career opportunities
5. Handling complaints and problems all day

Taking into consideration the continuing increase in call center job openings, the rising demand for qualified agents and the low unemployment rates nationwide, the Call Center Management Review report offers management insight into today's world of call center staffing and retention.

Ninety-five percent of respondents (directors, managers and supervisors) reported they offered ongoing training within the organization while 60 percent said they have a specific career advancement path in place for their agents. However, 60 percent of the respondents said they encountered organizational or developmental obstacles in developing those plans. Statistics bear out that this is a problem with better opportunities outside the organization being number one on the list of top five causes of agent turnover.

Source this chart only: Service Quality Measurement Group, Inc.

For more information, or to order a copy of the 2000 Agent Staffing and Retention Study Final Report in full, visit www.ccmreview.com, or call 800 255-8110.

Sign up for our Email Newsletter

Startechtel.com, Inc.
206 N. Towne Avenue
Pomona, California 91767
Toll Free: 800-397-8417

Email Sales
Email Webmaster