Customer service call centers: managing rapid personnel changes

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Smith, William L.

Affiliations: MMFE Division, Campus Box 4058, Emporia State University, 1200 Commercial, Emporia, KS 66801, USA, Tel.: +1 316 341 5729; E-mail: smithwil@emporia.edu

Abstract: This paper examines academic and practitioner literature relative to service quality and the changing personnel requirements for customer service call centers (CSCC). From this review, propositions are developed which (1) may be useful to call center managers in meeting this critical need, and, (2) may be used to direct future academic research in this growth area. This review is organized around eight key human resource management practices consisting of: 1. Recruiting, 2. Selection, 3. Retention, 4. Teamwork, 5. Training and Development, 6. Appraisal, 7. Rewarding Quality, and 8. Employee Involvement. Propositions based on the literature review are developed for each key practice. Conclusions are drawn and implications for managerial and academic implications are discussed.

DOI: 10.3233/HSM-2001-20205

Journal: Human Systems Management, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 123-129, 2001