Agent support manual

Communications - the basics

Communication is essential to human interaction. This is the way you get your ideas across to other people, and how other people form impressions of you.

Communication is an essential part of your role as a call centre agent. Everyone knows how to communicate, but some people do it more effectively than others. Being a good communicator will help you form better relationships with your colleagues, customers, and supervisors - you'll probably enjoy your work more as well!

So what makes a good communicator? Good communicators: bullet point.

care about how other people react to their messages , bullet point.
can explain complex ideas simply and directly , bullet point.
don't stereotype people , bullet point.
are aware of the non-verbal signals they and others send , bullet point.
can see situations from another person's point of view , bullet point.
make each person they communicate with feel important , bullet point.
are sensitive to feedback and can change their way of communicating to match the feedback they receive , bullet point.
are easy to work with as it is always clear what they want and how they want it done , bullet point.
make each individual feel that their message is heard and understood.

So you see, good communicators are great listeners, make others feel important and think carefully about their verbal, non-verbal and written communication skills. All of these elements will help you in all aspects of your work in a customer contact centre.

When you are communicating in the workplace you need to be aware of: bullet point.

Communication pathways , bullet point.
Elements of communication.

Communication pathways

A communication pathway is the method by which you communicate.

Here at Bushland Blooms, the following pathways, or processes apply.

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Each interaction you have with colleagues and customers will involve a type of contact, people and communication tools.

For example:

You receive an e-mail invitation to a team meeting from your colleague

Communication pathways: One way, e-mail, colleague

You attend the team meeting where your supervisor gives a computer presentation to your team.

Communication pathways: Interpersonal, verbal, graphic, colleagues, supervisor.

You can see how interactions can vary and, as a result, involve different communication pathways. Analysing the communication pathways used can help you identify the most appropriate form of communication to use in each situation.

Elements of communication

Each pathway contains different elements of communication, such as: bullet point.

context , bullet point.
sender , bullet point.
message , bullet point.
medium , bullet point.
recipient , bullet point.
response.

Look at the diagram below to learn more about the different elements of communication.

Context: The situation in which the communication happens. The context helps you to interpret the communication.

The sender has a message or idea that they want to send.

The message is encoded in language (or body language).

The message is sent using some sort of medium, such as the telephone, e-mail or face-to-face conversation.

The recipient receives the message.

The message is decoded by the recipient. The recipient uses the context to help them interpret the message.

The recipient provides a response to the message.

In order for communication to be successful, both the sender and the receiver need to understand a message in the same way. To be a good communicator, you need to think carefully about what you want to say and how you want to say it.

For example:

Context: You reply to a colleague's e-mail requesting your presence at a meeting.

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Considering and analysing communication pathways and communication elements will help you become a better communicator.

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