An initiative to let call centre employees at Prudential
Assurance take control of their own workload has led to greater productivity,
according to one of the company’s call centre managers.
Two teams of 20 employees were formed within the Life and
Pensions call centre. The members of these teams were responsible for
controlling their workload and drew up monthly business reports and action
plans.
The aim of the self-directed work teams was to reduce costs
and tackle low staff morale.
Prudential Assurance’s Clare Connor, said, “Employees didn’t
feel they had enough input into their work. A year after the pilot scheme, the
attitude of the employees had changed considerably.”
The initiative resulted in a positive change to the
employee’s role within the call centre, said Connor.
She said, “This initiative created a ‘can-do’ culture within
the team and employees had the freedom to put forward their own ideas.”
The scheme has also resulted in a decrease in poor
performance and disciplinary issues.
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But employees have found it difficult to provide peers with
negative feedback, said Connor.
Prudential plans to roll out this self-management principle
to all customer services teams within the company.
