Facing High Call Center Attrition? Here’s How to Retain Your Best Talent

Call center attrition in North America is shockingly high.

The pandemic triggered a wave of resignations across industries and roles, with customer service and support being particularly hard-hit. Unfortunately, this doesn’t appear to have been course-corrected. The latest data reveals the average call center turnover rate has now reached 60%. The impacts of this stretch from increasing recruitment costs to decreasing customer satisfaction. 

To even start addressing this issue, we firstly need to understand the root causes of call center attrition. While many assume they know the reasons, the latest surveys reveal the causes may not be as predictable as initially thought.

This blog will also explore the damaging impacts of high turnover and explore how interface.ai’s AI-powered phone banking can lower call center attrition with Generative AI automation, supported by real-world success stories along the way.

Understanding the root cause of high call center attrition

Before diving into solutions, it’s essential to understand why the average call center turnover rate is so high. A recent call center report interviewed managers and agents in the U.S and the U.K on their work and job satisfaction. This has uncovered some surprising results. (Spoiler alert: poor treatment by customers is not a top cause.)

Here are the top reasons cited for work frustration from this agent survey, which can drive high call center turnover:

• Restricted career progression: 35% of agents say a lack of career advancement opportunities impacts their decision to move on.
• Unnecessary or unprepared calls: 47% of agents say they often have to manage queries that can ostensibly be addressed online. 46% also say callers are often unprepared to help their own issue (ie don’t have their account number to hand).
• Importance of work arrangement: The type of work arrangement – remote, hybrid, or in-office has a demonstrable impact on call center employee satisfaction. 16% of those working remotely report being ‘very satisfied’ with their jobs, 49% for in-office agents, and 68% for hybrid agents.
• Poor work-life balance: Poor work-life balance ranks as the third highest reason for call center attrition, which may be driven by high workloads as well as remote working arrangements.

The impact of call center attrition on your business

The call center attrition rate sits at 60%. On top of this, 60% of agents report they are “very likely” to leave their job in the next six months, with 49% for women and 58% for men. This indication of an exceptionally low employee satisfaction has direct and serious consequences. According to a 2023 survey, call center managers believe low job satisfaction can decrease:

• customer satisfaction scores (62%)
• operational efficiency (56%)
• agent retention (39%).

And there’s evidence that call center customer satisfaction (CSAT) has dropped in line with higher turnover too. The benchmark average CSAT for call centers has long sat at 80% – which is to say 80% of callers are ‘very satisfied’ with the experience. However, more recent research shows that CSAT has now dropped to just 70%. This is undoubtedly having an impact on the average call center turnover rate.

How Interface.ai helps reduce call center attrition

To reduce call center attrition, you need to improve call center employee satisfaction. According to the aforementioned report, these are the four aspects that the agents said they love most about their call center job, in order of importance:

1. Gaining transferable skills to help progress their career (47%)
2. Helping people (42%)
3. Solving complex problems (39%)
4. Work-life balance (28%)

By providing these aspects to your agents, you can significantly improve call center employee satisfaction and reduce turnover. interface.ai’s Voice AI, or AI-powered phone banking, can deliver this for all financial institutions through highly intelligent Generative AI automation.

1. Lighten the load with smarter AI-powered automation

A poor work-life balance is cited by agents as the third most influential factor for call center attrition. This is most typically driven by a high workload, alongside overtime and a pressure to meet strict targets, such as average handling time (AHT) and after call work (ACW). 

IVR systems can help mitigate this issue, automating the most basic queries and deflecting them from agent overall workload. However, the level of automation IVR can offer is very low compared to AI. Take Great Lakes Credit Union as an example. Speaking in the U.S. Congressional hearing on AI innovation in financial services, GLCU explained how 60% of total inbound calls are consistently handled by interface.ai’s Voice AI during business hours, rising to 75% after business hours. This compares to less than 25% handling rate with their previous non-AI-powered IVR system.

interface.ai averages a 60% call containment rate, with 95% accuracy from day one. This significantly lightens agent workload and improves employee satisfaction. On top of this, because Voice AI is 24/7,  agents don’t feel pressured to work overtime, helping to establish a stronger work-life boundary.

2. Automate the mundane to elevate the role

There is a common strand throughout nearly all call center employee satisfaction surveys – the desire for a more rewarding work experience. As reported above, 47% of agents say they often have to manage queries that can ostensibly be addressed online. This significantly harms call center employee satisfaction as agents have to answer repetitive, mundane questions that can be easily and accurately automated.

interface.ai’s Voice AI automates not only common and simple queries. It’s also capable of handling more complex requests that are also repetitive for agents, such as loan application and approval, account opening, and debt consolidation assistance.

By automating these straightforward requests, agents can focus on resolving complex customer issues, leading to a more rewarding work experience. Furthermore, it supports career progression – the lack of which is a key reason for call center attrition. As GLCU put it, interface.ai’s Voice AI has:

“… elevated the job description in level for call center agents, as the role moved from providing transactional support for members, to providing more consultative, advisory support. This shift has resulted in a higher pay grade for staff and a better career path for our call center employees.”

Wrap-up

High call center attrition isn’t just a numbers problem – it’s a sign that something needs to change. The costs of turnover extend beyond recruitment expenses; they affect customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, and ultimately, your bottom line. But with Interface.ai’s cutting-edge GenAI Voice technology, there’s a powerful solution at hand.

By automating routine tasks and complex inquiries, Interface.ai’s Voice AI not only reduces the workload on your agents, but enriches their roles. This intelligent automation enhances job satisfaction by allowing agents to focus on more meaningful, consultative work. The result? A more engaged, motivated workforce that drives higher call center employee satisfaction and operational excellence.

To learn more about interface.ai’s Voice AI for financial services and see how it performs, why not try it out for yourself? Dial 888-320-3889 to speak with our virtual voice assistant, or click here.