Improving Performance through Learning, Coaching & Development Essay

Improving Performance through Learning, Coaching & Development - Essay Example Recruiting and retaining good performers in this industry is faced with much difficulty as the attrition rate is very high compared to other industries. So to retain and attract high performing employees, especially when there is high competition in this industry, it is important for the company to design and implement an effective training and development system which will help the company to support the employees growth and aspirations and also give the company a competitive advantage over the other players in the industry. Training and development plays a critical role in making a call center work successfully by ensuring a positive work environment and ensures the satisfaction of employees by supporting and guiding them and thereby providing them opportunities to grow. The report is being designed with the objective of improving the performance of the employees through an effective process of training and development in Endeavour, an outsourcing company operating in the UK and in India with approximately 5000 employees across the three sites maintained by the business. Identification of Training and Development needs The main drivers of a training and development program in an outsourcing business are new business opportunities, changes in customer requirements, management planning and changes in technology (Mayben, 1999, p.293). Taking up new business opportunities create the need for additional training and awareness. Often the launch of a new product or aiming at a new target group require proper training to be imparted to the call center agents. Industry issues arising newly also require additional training to review the processes and the work systems. Management planning is required in areas of resource management, specific technologies, queuing processes and real-time management. To support managers in these areas continuous training and development should be imparted so that the managers are aware of the new trends and developments in the industry. T he introduction of new technologies in the business often requires training to be given to the employees to make them skilled to operate new systems and use unique technologies like reporting systems, online desktop tools and specialized telephones (Holman, 2000, p. 69). Also the soft skills of pitching a product, selling through different media and customer service are taught to the employees through new training programs. The increase in the level of customer expectations may often lead to unsatisfied customers. Training should be given in these cases to redefine the processes and the systems. Political or regulatory changes often lead to customers asking questions and the agents are liable to answer. So, they must be trained to handle these concerns so as to save the company from any negative publicity or legal action (Solomon, 2001, p.17). The competition in this industry is high making it difficult to retain skilled employees. The need to retain talent within the organization i s another important driver for training systems. The key objectives of a call center training process include the alignment with the organizational objectives involving senior management guidance, improving quality and