Performance Analysis Report

from Learning Gurus, Inc.

March 28th, 2018

Introduction and Background

This report is respectfully submitted to Best Products, Inc. representatives Jane
Mackenzie, Director of Catalog Sales and Mike Merrill, Vice President of Sales.
Best Products, Inc. has identified issues with the quality of customer service and
a lower than acceptable sales call volume rate, which significantly affects the
company’s annual revenue. Both of these issues directly affect the company’s
number of returning customers. Learning Gurus, Inc. has conducted an analysis
to address these issues and provide a report of recommendations.
The Learning Gurus, Inc. group has met with telephone operators, supervisors
and employees from different departments including human resources, sales,
information technology, training facilitators, etc. A performance analysis has
been completed in order to determine the correct recommendations.

Purpose of the Report

The purpose of this analysis report is to provide Best Products, Inc. management
with the results of our initial analysis and make recommendations related to the
identified performance gaps. While our recommendations in this report cover a
variety of department processes and procedures, we will specify specific
solutions that Learning Gurus Inc. can support.

Analysis Methods
Learning Gurus, Inc. completed a thorough analysis of Best Products, Inc.
processes and procedures and received feedback from relevant stakeholders by
using the methods listed below.
 Interviewed Jane MacKenzie, Director of Catalog Sales to gain more
information about the company overall, including goals, the structuring
of roles, and general department information.
 Interviewed Mike Merrill, Vice President of Sales to find out more about
the strategy to increase sales and expected challenges to completing the
sales goals.
 Interviewed Judi Thompson, Catalog Director and Sheena Perez,
Merchandising Manager to learn more about the current training and
materials provided to telephone operators and supervisors, and to identify
specific performance areas in need of improvement.

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  Interviewed Susan Turner, Head of Human Resources to gain insight into
the current company onboarding and training processes and efforts to
increase staff retention.
 Interviewed Information Technology group (IT), (Tsien Yung, Lucy
Feldman, and Ted Higgins) to learn more about the current state of IT,
the expected technology changes, and the possible impact of the
expected changes.
 Interviewed call center supervisors to better understand their role and
responsibilities and to find out more about their perceptions of customer
service.
 Interviewed telephone operators in focus groups to obtain more
information regarding their role and responsibilities, available resources,
their perception of customer service, and their current feelings about
supervisors and managers.
 Reviewed electronic survey results from managers and previous trainers
to learn more about the supervisor and operator responsibilities, the
support department’s processes, and the types of customer complaints
being received.
 Reviewed the survey results from telephone operators to gain more
information regarding current operator training, job aides, and job
expectations.
 Reviewed the survey results from call center supervisors to better
understand supervisors’ attitudes towards customer service and factors
that affect supervisors’ overall job satisfaction,
 Observed the physical work environment of supervisors and telephone
operators while they are working to identify any significant deterrents to
their productivity in their work setting.
 Reviewed data from recorded calls of telephone operators to evaluate
operator performance and etiquette for specific areas of concern.
 Reviewed data from previous company training materials to evaluate
prior training methods and identify areas for improvement.
 Reviewed data from employee exit interviews to identify a common
occurrence of specific complaints to consider when developing our
suggestions.

Data Summary: Catalog Sales by Month

This chart represents the seasonality of sales at Best Products, Inc. for the 2017
and the targets provided for 2018 based on information obtained in interviews
with Jane MacKenzie.

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 Best Product, Inc. Catalog Sales by Month
600,000.00
500,000.00
400,000.00
300,000.00
200,000.00
100,000.00
-

2017 Sales 2018 Target Sales

This data illustrated peak seasons of spring and the holidays.

Data Summary: Customer Service Call Duration

This graph represents the average call times per month in 2017.

Actual Average Call Times and Average Target Call

Times per Month, 2017
30
Call Time (Minutes)

25
20
15
10
5
0

Actual Average Call Times Average Target Call Time

This data shows the increase in call time when a new seasonal catalogue is
released in the months of January, April, July and September.

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Data Summary: Customer Complaints Breakdown
The graph shows the data obtained by telephone operators through customer
surveys. This data represents the three main customer complaints that will be
addressed.

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Current State, Desired State, and Recommended Solutions
The following table summarizes our initial findings of the current state of the company, the company’s desired ideal state,
and any recommendations we have for the company to achieve the desired state of operations.
Current State
Onboarding processes are
inconsistent. The information
covered in the current orientation is
not helpful or relevant to new
employees. Supervisors’ and
telephone operators’ job duties are
not supported by initial training.
New hire orientation and training
schedule and content are
inconsistent.
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Desired State
Consistent onboarding and staff
development plan for both
supervisors and telephone
operators.
A more predictable new hire
orientation and training that is
scheduled iteratively to allow for
proper time and resource
dedication, as well as simplify
long-term resource planning.
5
Recommendation to Achieve
Desired State
Create a staff development plan
that includes the company history,
mission and vision, a
comprehensive initial
supervisory/customer service/sales
training for new hires, a clear
outline of job performance goals
and metrics, a well-defined map of
ongoing training trajectory, and
clear paths for promotion.
Implement strategic scheduling of
new-hire orientation and training so
that it does not significantly impact
normal operations.
 Current State
Staff engagement is low and
turnover is high. Incentives exist
but are not well utilized by staff
and there are no raises for
longevity or performance.
Supervisors are not provided with
leadership training. They are often
promoted because they are top
performers in the call center, but
there is no clear direction on goals
or priorities in overseeing the call
center. They are ill equipped to
identify, address and resolve
performance problems.
Supervisors are paid the same as
telephone operators and are not
provided with a clear path for
promotion.
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Desired State
A more engaged, consistent and
stable customer service staff base
who are compensated with
incentive pay for longevity and
performance.
Clearer definition of supervisory
roles as well as support for
successful leadership and
progression in that role. Training
for management to recognize
leadership traits in potential
supervisors. Training for new and
current supervisors to identify,
address and resolve performance
problems.
.
Wages of supervisors continue to
be higher than telephone operators,
so telephone operators have
incentive to gain a promotion.
6
Recommendation to Achieve
Desired State
Offer incentives that employees
value (e.g., money, time off) to
drive employee performance or
reward time spent in the position.
Offer a variety of meeting times,
communicate purpose, structure
and importance of meeting to staff
to increase interest and attendance.
The company meeting can also be
used to recognize employee
anniversaries and high performers.
Record meeting for those who
cannot attend.
Require a leadership course for
supervisors that includes hard and
soft skills pertaining to employee
motivation, growth, teambuilding,
reviews, and conflict resolution.
Provide supervisors with additional
career paths beyond their current
supervisory role.
 Current State
Telephone operators are averaging
only three calls per hour, falling
short of the expected six calls per
hour.
Customers complain about a lack
of etiquette during calls.
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Desired State
Telephone operators are committed
to excellence and making as many
quality calls as they can.
Increased training efforts focused
on developing proper telephone
etiquette in telephone operators to
win repeated customers.
7
Recommendation to Achieve
Desired State
Management provides telephone
operators with regular feedback to
increase awareness of their call
goals and actual numbers.
Customer service incentives are
built in for representatives with a
higher number of calls that are
successfully resolved.
The telephone operator team works
to accomplish a monthly goal for
the average duration of calls and
positive customer survey ratings.
Compare call goals to industry
standards to ensure goals are
reasonable.
Provide initial training, following
new-hire orientation, on telephone
etiquette, management of call time,
and handling of escalated issues.
Conduct call listening sessions for
top performers.
Create scripts for standard
greeting/closing and frequently
asked questions,
Telephone operators and
supervisors engage in role play
activities to practice etiquette and
escalation scenarios.
 Current State
Product guides are not built for
efficient access of information.
Product information is limited to a
physical copy and there is no clear
organization (e.g., alphabetical or
by product number) to help
telephone operators find
information quickly.
There are no photos to accompany
the listings and no further reference
resources available to telephone
operators during their phone calls.
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Desired State
An efficient integrated order entry
and product search system with
accompanying photos to more
quickly and accurately assist
customers.
8
Recommendation to Achieve
Desired State
Prioritize the integration of the
product guide into the new order
entry system, linking products with
specific numbers and organizing
them by product type. This will
allow telephone operators to have
several options for searching and
accessing product information
quickly. Evaluate whether the
catalog website database can be
utilized for part of this.
Add more information to the
catalog website to aid telephone
operators in finding information.
If a system integration is not
achievable by the current deadline
for implementing the new order
system, create a new physical
product guide as a supplemental
aid that only focuses on new
products.
 Current State
Customers complain about call
wait time. Telephone operators are
spending too much time looking
for product information when
trying to answer questions.
Operator escalates issue to
supervisor if customer has a return
or there are questions they cannot
answer.
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Desired State
Increased telephone operator
proficiency in their ability to
immediately address customer
service issues and expansion of
operator skill set to include the
handling of returns and escalated
issues.
Supervisors’ role is defined in
handling escalated issues and
instances of call overflow more
effectively. Processes are outlined
to support this role.
9
Recommendation to Achieve
Desired State
Train telephone operators and
supervisors to learn order entry and
integrated product search system
efficiently.
Train telephone operators to initiate
returns and handle more customer
questions/issues independently.
Outline processes to support this
role.
Supervisors perform as telephone
operators when the call queue
becomes higher than acceptable.
Otherwise, while call levels are not
high, they manage escalated
customer issues that telephone
operators may not be able to
handle.
Supervisors initiate a follow up
session with telephone operators
when calls are escalated due solely
to unresolved customer issues to
close the learning loop
 Current State
The company does not offer
volume pricing discounts, despite
inquiries into it, and cannot
estimate shipping costs for bundled
items.
Current customer service data
collection processes are poorly
defined and results not used to
garner improved performance.
Methods for customer survey
results are not administered
anonymously.
Results are not to use to inform the
focus for future trainings or other
interventions.
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Desired State
The company may offer volume
pricing discounts at an order
volume set by the company, so that
the company still profits from these
sales.
The company’s telephone operators
can provide customers with the
correct cost of shipping for any
order or combination of orders.
The call center customer service
data collection method is
automated and anonymous, as not
to affect customer feedback.
The company has an ongoing plan
for how to review and implement
customer service feedback for
future training and process
improvement.
10
Recommendation to Achieve
Desired State
Decide offer volume pricing for
bulk orders. Make the decision
known in the catalog and website
so customers are aware of these
options.
Connect the order system with the
shipping system so that shipping
can be quickly determined for
customers.
Implement a system to automate
the customer feedback mechanism.
Design a specific plan for the
information the company hopes to
gain from the feedback and how
that information will be used.
 Current State
Telephone operators lack the
physical tools to adequately
perform their job. There are
problems with the current
workstations, specifically, the
equipment is outdated and slow.
The operator common workspace is
noisy.
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Desired State
An improved workplace
environment to minimize
distractions for the telephone
operators who have the operational
tools and equipment to perform
their job duties.
11
Recommendation to Achieve
Desired State
Provide telephone operators with a
high-quality headset.
Prioritize the purchase of new
workstations that include updated
software and a sound card for
future e-learning modules.
Ensure that work environment is
conducive for telephone
conversations to minimize
backgrounds noise, possibly by
adding cubicles for telephone
operators.
 Current State
The quarterly catalog training relies
on telephone operators retaining a
large amount of product
knowledge. A physical product
guide is the only post-training
reference. Further, training time
does not allow for coverage of all
new products, nor is adequate time
allotted for a Q&A session. Lastly,
there is no knowledge check
measuring product knowledge
retention.
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Desired State
Consistent catalog training of
telephone operators to address
customer questions on new
seasonal product information.
12
Recommendation to Achieve
Desired State
Revise the quarterly catalog
training content and format to
helping telephone operators
manage customer service inquiries
in a more efficient and effective
manner. Recommendations
include:
Provide a series of e-learnings to
staff prior to seasonal catalog
launches to cover an overview of
new products.
Provide product demos to staff
prior to seasonal catalog launch.
Training simulations and call
scenarios will also be used for
practical learning opportunities.
Post-training evaluation methods
such as knowledge checks and
training surveys will be integrated
into the process to ensure training
is effective and meeting current
needs.
Proposed Solutions for Consulting Firm to Carry Out
The following table lists our recommendations, relative to the scope of our
contract with Best Products, Inc. including training and learning materials, in
priority order.

Priority Solution Description

1 Customer Service Training (soft We will create a consistent

skills) customer service training
program for telephone operators
and supervisors. This program
will clearly define job
responsibilities for each role as
well as specific processes to
successfully perform in each
role. The training will be
designed to be interactive and
based on practical learning
experiences, relying on methods
such as role-playing,
simulations,

2 Leadership Training We will create a leadership

training for supervisors that
defines their management role
more clearly and includes hard
and soft skills pertaining to
employee motivation,
performance review, growth,
team-building, reviews, and
conflict resolution. This
training can provide the
foundational knowledge for
regular performance and salary
reviews.

3 Seasonal Catalog Item Training We will provide a series of e-

learning courses to staff prior to
seasonal catalog launches to
cover an overview of new
products. We will also conduct
live product demos to staff prior
to seasonal catalog launch. Post-
training evaluations and
knowledge checks will be
incorporated into the process to
ensure training is effective and
meeting current needs.

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 Priority Solution Description

4 Product Information Repository We will work to add more

information into the existing
electronic product guide to
enable reorganization by type
and product number. We will
also create a smaller and more
organized physical product as a
supplemental aid that only
focuses on new products. We
will work with management to
ensure that the new product
guide is read and used by all
employees, suggesting an
introductory meeting in which
games are used to further
familiarize staff with new
products in an interactive
environment.

5 Supervisor/Operator Training on We will train the operators and

New System supervisors on the new system.
We will develop a course that
will cover all aspects of the new
order entry system to find
integrated product information
quickly. We will use e-learning
tutorials, demonstrations,
simulations and Q&A sessions
to ensure learning of the new
and allow learners to practice
working with the system in a
controlled environment.

Evaluation plan
Learning Gurus, Inc. will work with Best Products, Inc. to evaluate the
effectiveness of the solutions recommended here, if implemented by the
company. We will conduct these evaluation techniques four times year at three-
month intervals, beginning the month after our solutions have been implemented.
Telephone operator soft skills and etiquette, will be tracked according to the
following metrics:
 Administer anonymous customer service surveys, in which will track
answers to questions that specifically focus on etiquette and politeness.

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  Self-rating survey of telephone operators with a way to rate themselves
on the desired etiquette skills. We will administer self-evaluation every
three months and track how employees rate themselves and whether their
ratings increase or decrease. If one skill is consistently low throughout, it
may signal the need for additional practice or roleplays.
Supervisor leadership training will be tracked and measured using the following
metrics.
 Supervisors self-rating survey that will be administered iteratively. This
data will track how employees rate themselves and include rating change
data. The data will be used to provide additional training if necessary.
 We will provide telephone operators with a leadership survey to gain
feedback on supervisors’ performance and evaluate the effectiveness of
our leadership training.
Seasonal catalog item training will be tracked and measured using the following
metrics.
 Supervisor and operator seasonal e-learning assessment scores.
 Anonymous customer service surveys will track answers to questions
specifically about knowledge of products and time to answer questions.
Product information repository, will be tracked and measured using the following
metrics.
 Customer service call time, call volume and throughput.
 Survey to supervisors and telephone operators that includes questions
pertaining to accessibility and correctness of the product information
repository.
Supervisor/operator training on new order entry system will be tracked and
measured using the following metrics.
 Call center employees achieve the required score on the assessment at
end of training on new order entry system.
 Telephone orders returns caused by products or information are incorrect.
This can be used to identify the individual who took the order so
additional training can be offered.

Request for Proposal

Learning Gurus, Inc. has provided Best Products, Inc. a thorough analysis and
review of the areas for improvement to help achieve company goals. Learning
Gurus, Inc. has a proven record of designing, implementing and evaluating
training solutions for your optimal success in the upcoming fiscal year. Learning
Gurus, Inc. would be pleased to submit an initial proposal for your review
addressing the top three proposed solutions outlined in this report.

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