It is not uncommon for operators to find that in order to get away from their workplace, even for a short lunch break, they constantly have to ask their direct supervisor for a break. This causes some tension and often becomes the reason for the operators’ depressed state, because such elementary things as eating or going to the toilet are the inalienable right of every person. Nevertheless, the workflow in the call center should not turn, and to allow simultaneous outings for lunch managers, often, simply can not. All this very often causes discomfort and misunderstandings, especially if there are no clear schedules or agreement with their direct supervisor as to what is an acceptable operator break schedule. Thus, the time of operators requires some regulation, which should be paid attention to by the call center management and direct department heads.
How to organize the lunch time operators have without affecting the work process
So, such a problem is often relevant for young call centers, or for those in which staff turnover is associated with the wrong organization of work and lunch breaks. Thus, the working hours of an operator should include lunch breaks and other breaks (bathroom breaks, shorter breaks, and so on) necessary for every person. Otherwise, call center agents won’t be able to provide positive customer experience and customer satisfaction, and inability to effectively provide breaks to employees will have a huge negative impact on contact centers. Agent occupancy can also be decreased as scheduling breaks is one of the most important staff management practices in the entire call center industry.
Schedule of breaks and lunches.
There is an approach of clear planning of the operator’s time, when a personalized schedule of lunches and 30-minute breaks is drawn up for the specialist. This is done by his direct supervisor or a planning specialist, using special programs for this purpose. On the one hand, it is very simple and convenient – everyone has their own schedules, which at first glance seems to be a fair solution. On the other hand, this situation completely deprives the operator of freedom of choice – he can not go out for fresh air after a difficult conversation, can not leave at any other time in case of urgent need and so on. All this can cause the operator to feel a certain sense of dependence on the phone and limited freedom.
Setting quotas for breaks.
This approach will be relevant if there is a relationship of trust between the operators and the direct supervisor. This is crucial, because setting break quotas implies that operators can decide for themselves when they can leave the workplace. It is important to limit the number of operators who can leave their workplace in groups – for example, only two or five operators can be absent at a time, but no more. The number of break quotas should be fixed and it is up to the operator to monitor when they are exhausted, so trust is essential. The operator’s time is still controlled, but not as strictly as with a break and lunch schedule. At the same time, this approach has some nuances: for example, in the period when there are a lot of calls, quotas need to be revised or determine how many operators can go to lunch when there are, for example, more than five calls in the queue, and so on. Also, it is necessary to constantly monitor how many people left their workplaces for a lunch break. There is also another nuance – very active and hardworking employees can forget about quotas and work without a break, which can eventually lead to their emotional burnout or banal fatigue.
Break card
Small offices of call centers use such a system quite often. It consists in the fact that the manager puts break cards on the table, and until one or more employees return from a break, others can not leave their workplaces. Some return, after which other operators can have lunch. If employees see that there are no cards available at this time, it is an indication that they cannot go on break now. There are a number of nuances in this method: firstly, employees may start to form an informal queue – who will go on break next; secondly, there may be organizational problems – for example, when an employee took a card and did not put it in its place; thirdly, this method will be relevant only for small groups, otherwise the cards will simply not be in the field of visibility.
Lunches and forced breaks.
The management, which takes a loyal position, sets lunch breaks and does not limit operators in the amount of break time. This approach, on the one hand, allows operators to feel more at ease and free, but on the other hand, it is potentially dangerous in terms of the fact that such breaks may be misused by operators. It therefore requires the trust of the manager on the one hand, and the operators’ professionalism and sense of responsibility on the other.