An innovative approach to employee
development and training by the Co-operative Bank has cut the number of staff
leaving its call centres.
The company, which has
been chosen as an example of best practice by the Learning and Skills Council,
has seen its staff turnover reduce from over 13 per cent to 10 per cent since
it introduced a training and development plan, Project Leo, in 1999.
This compares with an
average staff turnover rate at UK call centres of about 25 per cent, according
to TUC estimates.
Project Leo ensures
that new staff are given three weeks classroom teaching, where they learn a
variety of skills from customer service to IT operations.
They are then given a
mentor who listens to telephone calls and offers guidance, so that by the end
of their first six months they have the skills to do the job well.
After this, the new
recruits concentrate on other aspects of their development to see which of
their abilities can be developed.
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Tony Britten, head of
human resources and planning for the bank, said, "We are getting more
value for money by supporting people to develop their capabilities to be more
effective in their jobs.
"People no longer
expect a job for life, but they do expect more than a wage. They want opportunities
to become more skillful and experienced, and they want that to be transferable."
