Application
The call centre sector is one of the most rapidly growing segments of the market. This strong growth combined with rapid turnover is resulting in great demand for staff in the sector. Call centre work is battling with a prestige problem that means that it is often difficult for companies for find and retain good workers. When this is the case it is particularly worthwhile to use a professional recruitment procedure that helps identify the right staff.
The growing shortage of skilled workers in the labour market means that it is no longer sufficient to appoint staff on the basis of the skills they currently possess. Only a small proportion of applicants will already have all the skills needed for call centre work. In view of this it is worth shifting the focus of recruitment: the emphasis needs to be laid not only on currently observable attributes such as communication skills and applied computer knowledge but also on characteristics that enable staff to adapt to the requirements of the job and rapidly acquire the necessary skills.
While other assessment tools such as interviews, assessment centers or CV analysis yield information about candidates’ behavioural repertoire either now or in the past, psychological tests focus on people’s longer-lasting and more fundamental characteristics. The information obtained from psychological tests can be used not only to explain present behaviour but also to uncover potential that may not yet have been realised. Success Factors – Call Centre thus not only helps to distinguish between candidates who are currently suitable or unsuitable but also identifies candidates who are likely to develop quickly in the direction of the requirements profile.
The Success Factors – Call Centre test set thus provides an economical means of obtaining important information about requirements that cannot be reliably obtained in settings such as an interview. It therefore makes an enormous contribution to the reliability of the decisions that are made. The strike rate is maximised, the turnover rate is kept low and employee satisfaction is increased.
Dimsenions
The Success Factors Call Centres test set comprises of the following dimensions and abilities:
|
Dimensions |
Ability Definition |
Duration in minutes |
|
Processing speed (performance level) |
Capacity to concentrate and work quickly and efficiently on simple tasks (e.g. data entry, or searching for information in the database) |
approx. 4 |
|
Multitasking |
Capacity to work effectively and maintain productivity across multiple task demands by efficiently coordinating, and prioritising the sequence of those based on importance and urgency |
approx. 17 |
|
Verbal ability |
Capacity to comprehend and draw upon lexical knowledge (i.e. vocabulary) in order to interact and communicate with customers in a coherent and clear manner |
approx. 7 |
|
Aspiration |
Objective measure of one’s capacity to realistically self-evaluate performance (i.e. striking a balance between achievement and result orientation, and the ability to deliver) |
approx. 4 |
|
Frustration tolerance |
Objective measure of one’s capacity to effectively handle negative feedback and criticism (e.g. capacity to self-manage and provide customer service while experiencing persistent technical issues or other disruptions) |
approx. 4 |
|
Conscientiousness |
Capacity to work diligently and to exert effort in a pursuit of a task (e.g. completing all reporting and filing duties at a high standard and in a timely manner) |
approx. 6 |
|
Resilience at work |
Capacity to work in unfavourable or difficult conditions (e.g. maintaining work ethic and effort in times of high stress such as increased call rate, reduced human resources, and slow computers |
approx. 17 |
|
Customer Orientation |
Personal characteristics associated with demonstrating customer empathy and pro-social behaviours, as well as willingness to assist and be customer-centric |
approx. 6 |
|
Total length of the test set |
approx. 65 |
|