Working from home in the contact center field is now possible.
Remote work has been a trend and in many cases, given the pandemic, an obligation. Whether for health reasons or due to a company’s own strategy, the market has noticed an increase in the number of remote teams.
At this moment, in Pluricall we have several teams working remotely from various points around the country and guaranteeing delivery of exceptional quality, as our clients have become accustomed to.
Many of our contact centre operations are already being managed remotely with our employees in the comfort of their homes.
This trend goes hand in hand with Pluricall’s investment in IT and development structures. While it sounds appealing enough for everyone, working remotely can easily become a huge challenge.
That said, given our experience with remote teams, these are the 5 golden rules for working from home in the contact center sector.
1) Define your workspace
When we talk about remote work we tend to think that we can work anywhere in the house. Indeed we can. However, our experience tells us that when we talk about regular work, we should choose a specific place in the house to work. This place can be your living room table or a desk in a secondary bedroom.
Ideally, it should be a quiet place that is tidy, clean and inspiring. Preferably a place with sunlight and where you can leave all the equipment you need to do your work.
Choosing a specific place to work also means that you should leave your workspace when you are not working. During break times or at lunchtime, leave the place where you normally work to tell your system that you are taking a break and resting. That way, when you return, the motivation and encouragement to work will return too.
2) Share work hours with other family and turn off notifications
The main challenge of working from home is undoubtedly avoiding distractions. It’s natural that your family or friends you live with will tend to interrupt you while you work.
Our advice is to share your schedule with your family, including your break times. Also explain that when you are in the place you have set as your workplace, it is because you are working and don’t want to be interrupted.
To reduce other interruptions and so you don’t lose focus, turn off all social media or messaging notifications.
3) Dress like you’re going out.
There is a myth that working from home comes across as synonymous with working in pyjamas, or at least from the waist down.
For us, taking off our pyjamas is fundamental. Dressing as if you are going out is a way of giving a message to our system that we are not “off duty” and are ready to work. Choose a comfortable outfit, but prepare as if you were going out.
Tip: How about having a coffee outside before working hours? Besides forcing you to take off your pyjamas, it activates your brain so that the day has already started!
4) Ask for help!
Working from home does not mean working alone. It is natural that during your day and especially during the period of adaptation to remote work, questions arise that in the offices you might not have had. Don’t hesitate to talk to your colleagues and even to share some “tips” on how they are adapting to this reality.
Communicate and maintain a human relationship with your team.
5) Plan your day well
The most important thing is to take advantage of the fact that you are working from home. Create a healthy routine, with a rich eating plan, where you take advantage of being at home.
The important thing is to create a balance between your work at home and your personal life. Focus on your personal life when you are working just as you focus on your professional life when you are working. It is extremely difficult to bridge this gap.
At Pluricall, since March 2019 we have started to encourage this possibility of full time or part time work from home. At the moment, we have around three quarters of our operation working from home with incredible results.
We challenge you to find out a little more about Pluricall and our open opportunities to join our team.
Find out more here.
We’re counting on you.
