Call center articles by Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD It was a lazy summer afternoon, a Friday. Things were a bit slow at the office and upper management had all left to get an early jump on their weekend. I, being a front-line manager, did not have that luxury. Besides, I had work that I wanted to complete before […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Do you like spam? Does anyone? I’m not talking about the luncheon meat product SPAM, which is produced by Hormel Foods Corporation, but rather the inundation of unwanted messages that increasingly plagues us. Unless you happen to be one of those who delight in propagating spam messages, I am confident […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD In retail, the term shrinkage is euphemistically used to reference stock which “disappears” before it can be sold. In essence it is a product that the retailer bought, but can’t sell. To be direct, shrinkage is theft. While some of this occurs in the form of shoplifting, it also results […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD In the years between high school graduation and my first real job, I took on a variety of part-time work while being a full-time student. One job was at a machine shop, where my sole goal was to have all body parts intact when I left. Another job was laboring […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Last month, in part one of this article, we discussed Benchmarking. The premise was that there is value in being able to statistically compare your call center with other centers. Taking that concept to the next level, there is the more intense and equally more valuable Business Improvement Group. Business […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD North American culture salutes the solitary leader, the charismatic visionary, and the lone voice. It celebrates those boldly marching to the beat of a different drum. It is this perspective that makes for exciting cinema, painting an inspirational picture for viewers to admire and emulate; it successfully offers to fill […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Growing up I remember a commercial on the radio with the tag line, “Service sold it.” Even as a young child I was able to grasp the concept that this business provided such a high level of service that their mere reputation was sufficient for them to close sales and […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD When I write, there is often a fact that needs to be verified or supporting material to be gathered. My first recourse in such matters is my personal library, which is not small and often contains what I seek if it is business related. I also am prone to save […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD As the publisher of a trade magazine, I frequently travel to conventions and industry shows. And as a consultant, I frequently travel to my clients’ call centers. Therefore, it may surprise you that I don’t like to travel, especially to fly – the unpredictability, the impersonality, and the loss of […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD It was 5:45 am. My family and I were in a hotel room in Alpena Michigan; we were there for a hockey tournament. I had just awoke, but yearned to fall back asleep. After a few minutes, the futility of attempting to do so became apparent and I got up. […]