Dynamic CSR Hiring and Fostering Even in Rural America! (3 easy steps)

If there’s one resounding challenge I hear when I visit agency managers, it’s that they’re struggling to hire and keep staff. I have an approach that I believe can enable anyone to hire not just someone, but someone dynamic, regardless of what job they’re hiring for or where their business is located. I’ll elaborate some of my theory behind it in the 3-step outline.

You need people and people are everywhere. It sounds simple, even ridiculously obvious, but don’t give up on me just yet. Let me elaborate. I believe that the way we staff our companies must adapt to embrace the many changes impacting life as we know it today. The tried and true standard for finding employees would be to post the position or contact a recruiter, which anyone reading this is probably pretty good at already, so my suggestion is to perhaps complete your hiring process with an alternative approach. And this technique starts with the recognition that you meet potential employees every day, because you have to interact with people every day. Why not slow down and engage with a few of these people long enough to gauge the potential value?

Let me break it down into steps and examples:

1. Define what you want in your next CSR. Again sounds simple right? I suggest you spend a little more time on this particular step, as it will not only help you find who you are looking for, but it will also help you foster the growth of your already established staff. Think about who would be the best customer service representative within your agency and then take a notepad (some old school practices are still my favorite) and write down what attributes or skills you want your potential CSR to have and then rank them according to its importance. , I’ve created a very simplified example below to use when explaining this concept:

1 Honesty

2 Positive attitude

3 utility

4 troubleshooter

5 Notice

6 licensed

7 Previous insurance experience

8 Respectful

9 fast learning

10 customizable

11 professional appearance

Defining your idea of ​​what you are looking for is half the battle. If you take your time and really think about this step, it will not only help you find an employee, but it will also help you reframe your approach and expectations of your current staff. Write it. Seriously, this is key.

2. Realize that the people you meet every day are your potential employees. Now that you have defined what position you are looking to fill, the fun begins. Yes, I said fun. Why does this process have to be tedious? You are looking to bring a person to your workplace with whom you will spend a significant amount of energy and time. Shouldn’t you enjoy the process of meeting people? I hope you will. Even those of you who don’t love meeting new people can certainly recognize the importance of the process I’m explaining in this article.

You meet people every day and these are your potential employees. When you run errands, buy groceries, go out to eat, go to the movies, attend social events, or go to church. You meet people and if you start to observe them in a different way you can start a preliminary interview of a possible new employee. Here’s an example:

Let’s say you’re at a restaurant with a group of friends, your server is clearly in a bad spot because the restaurant is full and they’re short 2 employees. Even so the experience is not horrible because of the way the waiter handles the situation. He maybe he communicates clearly, he gives you a snack to keep you satisfied until the food arrives, he puts down the water pitcher and maintains a good attitude despite the difficult circumstance he finds himself in because his coworkers don’t care. presented. In this example, his prospective employee has just shown him that he has a good attitude, is adaptable, and also a good problem solver… three of the items on her list (maybe four if his appearance is acceptable). . This person might be worth talking about some more. Dining at an understaffed restaurant could have given you a potential CSR. Seriously, this is really that easy. Is there a super friendly attendant at the dry cleaner you always look forward to seeing when he drops off the laundry? Because? What attributes does this person have that could make them a good employee for you? Think about all the interactions you had in the past week during your daily errands. You can probably recognize some examples even now.

The other wonderful part of this approach is that, figuratively speaking, you can dip your toes in the water without jumping in. You can engage this person in a conversation, ask him a few questions, and see if perhaps he employs even more qualities than he’s looking for. If you like what he hears, ask them to visit your office and see if they might be interested in working with you. Not everyone will be a perfect match or interested. This is the equivalent of posting an ad, but your odds are much better at finding the right one for your office.

3. Clearly define your expectations for the role of the new employee. Fast forward: Assuming you’ve successfully completed steps one and two and have now hired a new CSR, the process is not complete. It is equally important to structure the initial phase of bringing someone into a new work environment to ensure that both of you are communicating well. Clearly define your expectations within the role of the new employee and let them know what is most important to you and how they can meet your expectations. Commit to a specific time frame in which you will engage in new hire training in daily, weekly, and monthly increments and make it a priority. Encourage feedback so that the new employee can feel part of the new company quickly by engaging in constructive conversations with you and/or their supervisors. Finally, always keep a list of what defines the ultimate CSR handy, and continually guide your employees to improve in that role. Enroll them in classes, conduct training, provide constructive criticism, encourage them, and reward good behavior.

Simply put, in order for you to have employees who truly follow your company and your expectations, you must clearly define them and communicate them effectively and frequently.