Call Centers For Dummies

The world of call centers has changed and this book while helpful, needs to be edited and adjusted for what's happening in the market. Nonetheless this is a solid foundation. There's been a significant shift from the BPO industry away from India and into new markets like the Philippines. There are new technical adjustments and technologies that should be included, such as voip technology, small to medium size solutions if you want to start a call center. It might also want to add in that certain structures of management needs to be adjusted when you are setting up new call centers outside of North America.

The book is very helpful. Just a little over my head since I wasn't familiar with call centers.

This is an excellent, comprehensive overview of call centers, including specific metrics to be tracked and measured. Call center locations, set up and on-going operations are also covered.

I'm a new call center manager and this book did a great job of explaining a lot of the basics. I was even able to share the technology section with my IT department so they could understand how to better support the needs of our department. Plus my staff fought over the book - because the information was in an easy to read/understand format.

If you are like me, in business related to call centers, but not really in call center business, this book is the one. After reading it, I got a new level of appreciation for the processes and complexity involved. First part describes business aspect, goals, variables and how they influence goals. That's the part where I said, "It's not as simple as it seems". Next one, on technology, gives you a review of supporting technologies. I personally knew most of the stuff, but it's a light reading and gives you a perspective how the call center views the technology. Final two parts, on managing agent performance and call handling are valuable reading no matter what business you're in. Suggestions from the book can be applied outside of call centers, as well. And call handling... I think every employee that has a phone on their desk is the company's representative and should know how to handle calls. Dealing with angry customers, controlling the call, sales... it all goes beyond just call centre agents. To summarize, if you want to get the big picture, see all the elements, understand them and understand how they interact, this is where you should start. Doesn't dwell too much on any individual subject (and doesn't go too much in-depth) and therefore, it is an easy informative reading. And that's what books from Dummies series are all about, aren't they?