Over the course of many years we have had the privilege of providing training to a wide variety of telephone service representatives, from individual coaching sessions to large group workshops.

We have also had many discussions with these service representatives and their managers about other training they have received. From this experience we have developed a list of the most common training errors, and what you can do to avoid them.

Training Error #1 - Not "Selling" the Service Reps on the need for Training.

Most telephone service representatives feel that they are doing a fine job (and many of them are) and they are not particularly interested in learning to do things differently. What they are doing now, and the way they are doing it, seems to be working pretty well, so if it ain't broke, don't fix it. If they are being honest with you, they will describe much of the training they have received in the past as "lame" or "a waste of time."

So don't assume that your team is motivated to learn new skills and techniques. Even if they tell you they are. They know the "right" response is to tell you they are excited about learning new skills, but the simple fact is that most of them are not going to truly engage in the training effort unless you inspire them to do so.

So how can you "sell" your team on the value of the training? Focus on what is in it for them - not for the customer. Talking to them about "improving the customer experience" makes sense to you, but not necessarily to them. Talk about improving THEIR experience with customers. Talk about increasing THEIR skills to help them in THEIR careers.

The opening of the Essential Telephone Etiquette course module is specifically designed to "sell" the program to the learner, emphasizing how the program will benefit that individual.

We have seen some managers do a great job of pulling their service team together to discuss the need for additional training, asking for their perspective on training needs, not only for themselves but for others on the team. By recording these comments on a flip chart and facilitating the discussion, these managers helped to motivate their teams to want to learn new skills, and to be more open to the training initiative.

Training Error #2 - Training "at" Them, not "with" Them.

Telephone service representatives have a natural pride in doing their job well, and effective training should involve them in the process, because:

  1. They are the real experts on what works in their job.

  2. They will respond more openly if their expertise is acknowledged.

Even if you are delivering an e-learning course or having your team watch a training video, involve them in discussions about the materials and solicit their input. One of the best practices we have seen is to have a team complete an e-learning course on the same schedule, then arrange for a team discussion  of the course, facilitated by the supervisor. These discussion can be very helpful and send the signal that you are training "with" them, not "at" them.

Training Error #3 - Not Providing Specific Expectations for Skill Application

If you expect your team members to fully adopt a specific set of practices, they need to be told this with no room for uncertainty or interpretation. If you want everyone answering the telephone using the same process, communicate this clearly. Do not expect that they will "get it" by completing a training session. The training is necessary so that they have the skill and knowledge needed. But we have seen many supervisors make the mistake of not communicating clearly what their specific expectations are.

Whether your training need is small and focused, or enterprise-wide, you can count of Frontline Learning to deliver. For more than 20 years we have been helping organizations achieve their business objectives with targeted training initiatives.