Top Features of Call Center Management Software

By Shauna Geraghty

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Call center managers seeking to be the best-of-the-best must leverage the most progressive call center management tools on the market. How do you know if you are using the best? This blog post. This blog post lists the top features of call center management software that the best call center managers cannot afford to work without. If it is listed here and you’re not using it, you are missing out.

Call monitoring

A must-have call center management software feature is call monitoring. Call monitoring allows managers to listen in on live calls without the agent or caller knowing. It is great for quality assurance practices, training and coaching and invaluable for call center managers who would like to keep a close eye – or ear – on their team.

Whisper coaching

When monitoring calls, if call center managers notice that the agent is struggling or if they would like to help them enhance their approach to interacting with the caller, they must have the ability to drop into the call and speak with the agent without the caller knowing. Whisper coaching is the call center software tool that allows them to do so. It is extremely helpful for training new agents, optimizing the performance of seasoned agents and helping out the team after a new product launch.

Call barging

When monitoring calls, if a caller asks to speak with a manager, call center managers must have the ability to drop in on the call to speak with both the caller and the agent. Call barging provides them with the functionality to do so. Call barging is helpful for reducing call transfers, increasing first call resolution and increasing customer satisfaction.

Conference calling

When a caller asks to speak with a manager, it is often more efficient and more professional for the manager to come to them, rather than transferring the caller blindly to a manager. Conference calling is an amazing tool that allows managers to speak with two or more people on a call. It allows call center managers to effectively interact with callers and agents so they can proactively resolve issues.

Call recording

Call center software that records calls and stores call recordings in the caller’s activity feed is invaluable for managers. With call recording, managers can monitor their team’s performance at any time. They can also use call recordings in agent training and coaching sessions to illustrate certain points. Finally, they can replay critical calls over and over again to gain a better understanding of the caller’s needs. It is a great tool for call center managers who need to listen to calls when it is most convenient for them.

Voicemail

For managers who receive calls day in and day out but don’t have a team fielding calls round the clock, voicemail is a must-have feature. Call center software that has agent, team and department voicemails and stores these voicemails in the caller’s activity feed allows managers to keep their finger on the pulse of the action at all times.

Voicemail transcription and notifications

More progressive call center software solutions offer voicemail transcription which transcribes voicemails and stores the voicemails in the caller’s activity feed. Once a voicemail is received, the transcript is automatically sent in an email to managers. Voicemail transcription and notifications help keep managers in the loop, no matter when their customers call.

Call disposition codes

Disposition codes are a great tool to help managers keep tabs on the outcome of all calls. They are descriptions of the final outcome of the call that agents can select from a dropdown menu. Not only can call center managers view call disposition codes in the caller’s activity feed, but they can also run reports on disposition codes to analyze how their team, product, or promotional event is performing.

Real-time call center metrics

Real-time call center metrics reporting is a tool that top managers cannot afford to work without. When they have access to call center metrics (i.e., service level, number of calls in queue, average abandonment time, longest wait time, etc.) in real-time they can make data-driven decisions that will have a measurable impact on their team.

Historical call center metrics

Managers aiming to gain a comprehensive understanding of their team’s performance, accurately forecast call volume and staff their call center accordingly must base their decisions on historical data. Historical reporting dashboards provide managers with the data they need (i.e., service level, number of calls in queue, average abandonment time and longest wait time) for the time frame that is most important to them. This call center software feature is key to effectively managing a call center.

Workforce management

The final must-have feature for call center managers is workforce management software. Workforce management software allows managers to accurately forecast call volume, schedule agents and make scheduling adjustments in real-time. It is essential for larger teams who need to staff and schedule optimally.

Call center managers seeking to be at the top of their game must leverage the tools necessary for them to do so. The aforementioned call center management software tools are the best on the market and are essential for managers aiming to be the best-of-the-best. If you don’t have them all — you’re missing out.

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Shauna Geraghty

As the first U.S. employee, Shauna helped to scale Talkdesk to over 1,000 employees in 7 offices globally. During her tenure, she has built Talkdesk's Marketing, Talent and HR functions from the ground up. Shauna has a doctorate in clinical psychology and has applied foundational knowledge from the field of psychology to help propel Talkdesk along its hyper-growth trajectory.