Training to be a Work-from-Home Call Center Agent

As a work-from-home call center agent, you'll need to be trained to use your employer's computer system in addition to understanding their products and policies. The majority of companies that hire work-from-home agents provide training virtually through telephone calls, online meetings and online training modules.

Telephone Training

Telephone training can be done using a one-on-one or group approach. For some aspects of a program, an employer may prefer a trainer to speak with each agent individually. This is expensive and time-consuming for the employer, so it is not as popular with larger companies who have a sizeable work-from-home agent pool. Telephone training done via conference calls is more common as groups of virtual agents can be trained concurrently. Each trainee will dial into a conference call number. The trainer will join the call and lead the group session. Materials are often used to complement the training and may be provided prior to the conference call via email (i.e., for trainees to print hard copies) or online at a secure website. Once the trainer has completed reviewing the materials and concepts, which can take a few hours or a few weeks depending on the scope of the project, trainees may be tested via an emailed quiz or online test on the secure website. Generally, testing is open book, so trainees can refer to their materials and notes when answering questions as they would when taking live calls. Conference call training usually includes role-playing exercises where trainees have opportunities to practice handling various types of calls. Sometimes trainees may hear recordings of live calls or take live calls themselves during their virtual telephone training.

Online Meetings

The newest training method for virtual call center agents uses online meetings. Trainees and the trainer will dial into a conference call. At the same time, they will visit an online meeting host website and log into the online meeting. The online meeting screen includes an area where attendees are listed as well as an area for PowerPoint presentations to be shown or other documents to be displayed. The trainer can use their mouse to point to objects or text on the screen just as he or she would during an in-person training session. Additionally, a section of the screen is dedicated to inputting questions to the trainer. Sometimes, the trainer will verbally answer these questions, or the trainer may respond with a typed message (similar to instant messaging but all trainees can see the messages). The online meeting format is very interactive with all trainees and the trainer reviewing materials and communicating via speech and text messaging.

Online Training Modules

The most common training method for work-from-home call center agents uses online training modules. Trainees are given a website to visit and password to enter to access the training modules as well as a timeframe within which they must complete the modules and subsequent online testing (usually open book, multiple choice questions). This is a self-paced training method. Online training modules can be as simple as PowerPoint presentations trainees mouse click through or as complicated as interactive videos including motion and audio as well as quizzes. Online training modules are generally the most comprehensive training method if they are prepared well. They also give trainees the opportunity to print the materials they find most helpful to refer to when taking live calls.

Some employers will use just one training method while others could use all three. It's dependent on the employer and the client's demands (if the calls will be taken by a third party call center). The amount of training and the quality of that training also varies from one company to another. To be a successful work-from-home call center agent, it is essential that you take training very seriously. Listen, take notes and create cheat sheets to use as tools when you start taking live calls. Knowing your equipment, policies and products is the first step to being successful and providing best-in-class service to customers.