Employee-centred management in a call centre

Purpose - This paper presents the findings of research undertaken in a customer contact centre in Ireland in which a series of measures were introduced to implement employee-centred work practices. The paper examines the processes by which the measures were undertaken and considers the changes to performance that were attributed to the involvement initiatives. Design/methodology/approach - An action research approach was utilised in studying the problem and a variety of measures were utilised to identify alterations in employee perceptions and employee performance over the period of the introduction of the changes. Findings - The results of the interventions within the call centre indicated improvements in employee perceptions of their work situation as measured by the dimensions of the survey instrument. In addition, performance also improved during this time. However, while the thrust behind the change initiatives was one of involvement, at the same time decisions about which issues were open to an involvement process were made by management and there were indications of a dualist approach in the introduction of the employee-centred initiatives. Research limitations/implications - The research was confined to one organisation which limits the extent to which the findings are generalisable. Practical implications - Provides insights into the range of approaches to involvement that might be utilised within a call centre. Originality/value - The paper considers an array of techniques which are now being used to manage employees within a call centre environment.