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So we're on the same page: what is agent experience anyway?
"Customer experience", "customer well-being", "a positive customer experience" … these expressions are on everyone's lips today. We've already talked about the many faces of the customer experience ourselves, for example in our articles on human handover and conversational AI & CX. But … what's the other side of the coin? Who actually makes sure customers have a good experience and a good customer journey? Well, a large part of it is down to those behind the curtain: the employees – or agents. So today, it's all about agent experience.
From customer experience to agent experience
For a long time, customers, and only customers, were at the center of company goals. A few years ago, however, a new question arose: does the experience of contact center agents affect the quality of the customer experience?
After various analyses and speculation, the question was sent back into the shadows it came from: there wasn't enough data to claim one thing or the other. So the question of whether the employee experience affects business results remained open.
New evidence: employee and customer satisfaction are linked
Recent studies show, however, that there's a direct link between employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction. These studies provide data-backed proof that an employee's experience directly affects customer satisfaction.
What does agent experience mean?
So when we talk about agent experience, we're talking about a holistic view of how competent, efficient and effective agents are with customers and how agents themselves feel at work.
Contact centers caught between priorities – employees at the center
Contact centers are hit by a storm of (partly) conflicting priorities. Companies want to cut costs, grow revenue and be customer-focused. But to meet the demands of customers and managers, employees must be at the center. A team that is prioritized and supported is the building block that makes the difference for two pillars: the development and growth of the company and customer satisfaction.
Conclusion
It follows that the formula to adopt is simpler than it seems.
Happy agents = happy customers
CX & AX: obvious logic
Does that feel a bit clichéd? Yes, it does, but that's because the logic is obvious. For customers to have a good experience, they need to deal with employees who are themselves satisfied and in a good mood. In other words, with agents who have a positive agent experience.
Engagement, added value – how do you improve AX?
Agents who ensure a positive CX also create added value over time. The more engaged they are, the more willing they are to provide excellent service. And the longer they stay in their role, the more competent they become, which sets in motion a cycle of continuous improvement for themselves, their colleagues and customers. These experienced agents or experts, who know the product very well, can help train others internally or move up into higher positions themselves. They create tangible value with every interaction – value that can be harnessed and increased with the right coaching. So CX and AX go hand in hand. But how can AX be improved?
What to invest in to improve agent experience
Agent coaching
A one-size-fits-all metric is a mistake
A common mistake is setting a single measure of success and then tailoring coaching to it. In other words: a goal X is set, and agent coaching is aligned with this one and only goal X.
Coaching starts with understanding, not metrics
But effective coaching of front-line employees starts with understanding their current performance and engagement. That means you can't just look at these one-size-fits-all metrics.
Which data belongs in the analysis?
In fact, this can be more of a hindrance than a help. The dataset to examine should include both agents' experiential and operational skills. By experiential skills we mean, for example, abilities, attitude, willingness to listen and engagement – all the parameters that make up the individual agent's range of competencies in serving users. Operational parameters, on the other hand, include things like first contact handling, average handling time and escalation rate.
Trainable dimensions & scorecard
The parameters we've mentioned (which, don't forget, are just an example) can be trained. Every dimension is trainable and offers agents a clear path to improve, solve problems more effectively and satisfy customers. To keep track of their work and how they work, you can create a scorecard.
Better tools
The agent experience depends heavily on the tools available to them. If these are cluttered, hard to use, inaccessible, unsuitable for the system and so on, this will have a significant impact on the employee experience – and therefore most likely on the customer experience too.
This creates an opportunity to adapt the tools available to employees to the employees themselves. In addition to a clear assessment of what would be functional and useful in the company, agents can be asked simple questions such as:
- What isn't working in the technology processes? Are there too many systems to learn? Do you have trouble accessing customer information?
- Do you get enough feedback on your interactions to develop properly?
- How easy is it to switch between tasks and systems when helping customers?
- How many duplicate requests do you get from customers per day?
- Do you feel well connected and supported when working from home?
- How easy was it to learn to use the existing technology tools?
- How much transparency would you like on your service KPIs?
The answers to these questions are the guide for adapting existing systems or new ones. This way, everything will run more smoothly and the agent experience will be significantly better.
Outcomes over individual KPIs
Yes, that's right, we just said it: KPIs are important. But we should also say that while they're important, they aren't everything. The human element must always take precedence over KPIs. That's why it's necessary to create flexible processes and guidelines that allow agents to prioritize customer outcomes over individual KPIs.
Things to consider:
- Flexibility at work. Agents work in shifts based on customer needs. This makes it difficult (or at least more complicated) to attend a spontaneous appointment, such as with a doctor. If extra time is planned in for agents and close contact is kept with them, service standards will be maintained accordingly. Building in this flexibility will pay off in the results employees deliver.
- Empathy. Before we're customers or agents of X or Y, we're all human. And a good balance between people includes respect. In simple terms: changes, unforeseen events and needs must be communicated to employees and customers. If waiting times get longer, for example, that should be communicated. You should create ways to interact with the service center differently (e.g. with a chatbot). Emotional connections between agents and customers should also be encouraged. On the one hand, this relaxes customers by reassuring them; on the other hand, it gives the agents leading the conversation a certain ease.
- Simplify planning. Like work processes and tools, planning tools for employees and work requirements must be simple, understandable at a glance and functional. All obstacles to smooth, simple communication must be removed. Agents should get the information they need at the right time.
Conclusion – agent experience
In this article, we've seen that agent experience (AX) is just as important as customer experience (CX).
According to recent studies, there's a direct link between agent satisfaction and customer satisfaction. So when we mention agent experience, we're talking about employees' competence, efficiency and effectiveness in customer relationships and about how agents themselves feel.
The formula is simple ➡️ happy employees = happy customers.
To improve AX, you need to invest in three things:
- agent coaching, i.e. training agents
- suitable tools, i.e. the tools available to them
- outcomes before KPIs
In short: gold doesn't shine on its own. It has to be cared for and polished. Excellent CX needs excellent AX behind it.
