Thanks to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, today it is understood that workplace accommodations must be made in order that disabled workers can join the nation’s workforce and do their jobs just as easily as anyone else.
In order to comply with this act and make a job at a contact center possible for disabled workers, there are several simple steps contact center managers can take.
1. Make sure your contact center is wheelchair friendly. This doesn’t simply mean designated parking spots, wide doors, elevators, and ramps. While those features are important aspects of any public building, it’s the inside set-up of a contact center that can pose the greatest challenge to a wheelchair-bound employee. Navigating through a maze of desks or cubicles can be tricky unless the aisles are wide enough. And don’t forget to create easy access to the break room, copy machine, restroom, and any other areas your employees need to visit in the course of their day. If major changes need to be made, and reconfiguring the entire office is not possible, the areas to which the wheelchair-bound employee will need access can be rearranged first, with the rest of the office following as soon as it is feasible.
2. Create a comfortable work station. Disabled employees may need to use a special desk that accommodates their wheelchair, or, if they are able to move to an office chair during the day, they may require a special chair that provides additional support. Talk to your employee about their specific needs to determine what the best set-up for their individual work station will be.
3. Consider employing disabled workers as remote agents. If major changes to the workplace are needed in order to accommodate a disabled worker, but cannot be made right away due to budgetary constraints or other reasons, one option to consider is to allow disabled employees to work from home. It is a simple matter to connect remote agents to the contact center through internet and phone, and this enables the employee to work from the comfort of home until changes can be made to the configuration of the workplace.
4. Invest in screen-reading software in order to employ blind workers. There’s a simple fix for the issue of a blind employee not being able to read the computer screen: screen-reading software. Computer software is now available that interprets and reads what is on the screen in one ear of the agent’s headphones, while the call comes through on the other ear. There is even software available that translates what is on the screen into Braille for easy reading by the employee during calls. And since this software is available to purchase or as a free, open source package, it does not have to cost a thing to accommodate a blind employee.
5. Provide an interpreter for a deaf employee. Deaf workers can easily take on the email, social media, and online chat work necessary in a contact center, and may not even need an interpreter for in-office communication with coworkers, if they can read lips. However, it may be necessary to find an interpreter who knows sign language to help facilitate understanding of team meetings, training, and conversations in the office.
The most important step any contact center manager can take, however, when hiring a disabled worker, is to sit down and have an in-depth meeting with that employee, to ascertain what they will need in order to make the workplace accessible and comfortable for them as an individual.
How many employees in your contact center range in age from 19 to 35? If your answer is “most of them,” you’re not alone. 58% of contact center employees are a part of Generation Y, born between 1977 and 1994. And as the media has been telling us for quite some time, this generation is different from those that came before. So it makes sense that members of Gen Y would also respond to different management techniques than their older coworkers.
Statistics demonstrate the different expectations that Gen Y has when it comes to work. For the most part, by the age of 26, a member of this generation will have already had six or seven jobs. And at this very moment, 77% of them expect to change jobs again within the next two years. Because this is such an ingrained part of their culture, it can be more challenging to retain a good employee from this generation than it would be to keep an older one.
In order to meet this challenge, and find ways to keep great Gen Y workers happily employed at your contact center, it’s a good idea to take a look at what motivates them. Here are 4 tips for managing members of Generation Y in your contact center in a way that benefits everyone involved.
1. Communicate. Members of this generation don’t want to be managed – they want to be mentored. Rather than doing what their boss tells them to unquestioningly, they want to understand why they are doing those things. And they don’t want this communication to be a one-way street, either. People in this age group like to update their manager regularly on how and what they are doing – and get feedback as to what they can work on to improve.
2. Be a coach! Generation Y is all about getting frequent feedback and coaching in order to improve their skills. Short but regular sessions in which their work is evaluated and constructive criticism is given will help you achieve this goal. But since this generation is also all about technology and efficiency, getting that feedback via electronic channels is preferred.
3. Allow for more work/life balance. This generation insists on working to live, not living to work. They prefer a work schedule that allows them flexibility. So try developing multiple part-time schedules throughout the day, instead of the standard 8-to-5 routine, so they can easily fit other activities into their day as well. Or you could embrace flexibility whole-heartedly, and let them work as remote agents.
4. Provide opportunities for growth and development. Gen Y is constantly on the lookout for ways to better themselves. If you give them the chance to do so, it will make a real difference in the way they view their job. Tap their creativity when you need a problem solved. Get them involved with projects. And then recognize them for their achievements.
When Gen Y contact center employees feel that they are getting sufficient communication and coaching, that they have enough flexibility in their work schedule, and that they are being given the chance to grow, they will be much more motivated to remain with your business. Contact KOVA Corp today to find out more about our Verint Media Recorder Workforce Optimization suite, which can help you with scheduling, coaching, communication, and eLearning – everything you need to keep your Generation Y employees motivated and performing at high levels.
