Gearing Up For Customer Service Training

Have you ever invested time and money into a train­ing pro­gram only to hear your employ­ees ask “Why do I have to go to train­ing”? Many times employ­ees do not see the true ben­e­fit of train­ing and merely see it as time con­sum­ing. As a man­ager, it is in your best inter­est to make sure the pur­pose and value of your train­ing are clearly com­mu­ni­cated to your employ­ees from moment they learn about it. Hav­ing your employ­ees’ buy-in from the begin­ning ensures that they go into the train­ing with the right mindset.

As a man­ager, you want to take time in the weeks and days prior to train­ing to get your employ­ees moti­vated. Here are some ways to piqué employ­ees’ inter­ests and cre­ate an atmos­phere of excitement:

• Posi­tion the train­ing as an invest­ment in your employ­ees’ career development.
• Man­age employ­ees’ expec­ta­tions by pro­vid­ing them the dates, time and top­ics for the training.
• Let employ­ees know that dur­ing the days of train­ing, the train­ing takes priority.
• Encour­age employ­ees to bring ideas and expe­ri­ences to the train­ing to share with others.
• Stick to a set date for train­ing. Chang­ing dates sends a mes­sage that the train­ing is not important.
• Have a rep­re­sen­ta­tive of senior man­age­ment kick off the ses­sion to show the impor­tance of the train­ing and the invest­ment the com­pany has made in the employ­ees’ development.
• Be excited about the train­ing. Your excite­ment will be contagious.

After fol­low­ing these tips, remem­ber to also take each indi­vid­ual employee into con­sid­er­a­tion. Every­one is moti­vated for dif­fer­ent rea­sons, so find out what moti­vates each of your employ­ees and reit­er­ate how the train­ing ben­e­fits them in particular.

So now your employ­ees are geared up for train­ing. Good luck and have fun!

Coach­ing Tip

Lead­ing by exam­ple is one of the best ways to show your sup­port for a train­ing pro­gram. When­ever your employ­ees attend a new train­ing, par­tic­i­pate in the class with them. Take part in the exer­cises and share your knowl­edge. Not only will you be viewed as an expert, but also as a part­ner. Your par­tic­i­pa­tion will rein­force the impor­tance of the train­ing and help you to build a cohe­sive team with your employees.