Voice process jobs have long been a staple of customer service jobs, and the business processing outsourcing or BPO industry.  Personal skills required for voice process jobs is the need for constant communication and socialisation. Less tangible, requirements for the position are emotional intelligence and adaptability. No matter if inbound or outbound, domestic or international, voice process professionals operate as an essential link between organisations and consumers by handling inquiries, providing solutions, and generally facilitating the consumer experience and providing customer satisfaction.

Common Challenges of Voice Process Jobs 

There are positives and negatives associated with voice process employment prospects. They offer terrific learning opportunities and vast potential for personal and professional growth, yet there are challenges that come along with these jobs too. Dealing with angry customers and maintaining consistent performance can be stressful, but voice process jobs can also be very rewarding. Some common challenges everyone experiences include the following:

Dealing with Difficult or Angry Customers

One of the hardest challenges of working within voice process jobs is handling difficult customers. Conversations with unhappy customers can be some of the hardest phone calls to take and can be stressful and have the potential to escalate quickly, especially if the customer is not willing to listen and the customer is using strong language.

How to handle them: 

Stay calm and professional: The most important thing to remember is not to take the frustration personally. Focus on resolving the issue, as ultimately that is the service you are there to provide. 

Use empathy and active listening: Express to the customer that they have every right to feel that way or experience two as a result of your company's behaviour. Using simple language would also help in de-escalating the anger. 

Follow the protocol: Most organisations will have scripts to follow in those situations. Following these protocols ensures a satisfactory resolution for the customer.

Dealing with High Work Pressure

For voice process jobs, it is normal to take many calls during a shift, need to meet targets, and also follow quality parameters. The three together can create an environment or cocoon of stress and burnout, if not managed.

Here is how to manage voice process jobs :

• Time Management: Always prioritise and complete the most important duties first. Don’t forget to take breaks; some recharge is crucial.
• Breathwork Techniques: Just one or two short breathing techniques between calls can be helpful in managing stress levels.
• Focus on Quality: Meeting the requirements and standards of performance consistently is more sustainable long-term versus fast-forwarding through calls.
• Communicate and Seek Help: Talk to your team leaders or HR if the nature of work is becoming overwhelming for any reason. There are support systems in place for a reason!

Emotional Fatigue and Burnout 

Constant interactions with customers and managing their emotions can be exhausting and cause fatigue over time. Emotionally fatigued employees not only have poor concentration and performance, but they also have a low satisfaction level in general.

Here is how to manage:

• Break Management: On your breaks in voice process jobs, when applicable, walk away from your desk and distract your mind.
• Engage in enjoyable activities: Meditation, reading or light music typically helps people relax after work. 
• Have balance with work and life: Don't let your work stress you out every night if you don't need to. 
• Support other peers: Talking and sharing experiences when times are hard seems to help as well.  It normalises what job fatigue is and creates a culture.

Language Clarity and Accent Neutrality

Accent neutrality and clear speaking in an international or non-Canadian voice process is vital to effective communication. If a customer can’t understand you because of pronunciation or because you are using slang terms, this can detract from customer satisfaction, as well as create a misunderstanding.

How to Approach: 

• Practice Pronunciation: Practice pronunciation regularly. You can use a language tool or online accent training resources.
• Slow it down: When someone speaks too quickly, they often cannot communicate clearly.
• Understand Cultural Nuance: Knowing cultural or regional expressions and etiquette can increase the quality of the conversation.

Adjust to Rotational Shifts 

Many voice process jobs, particularly international voice process jobs are either night shifts or rotational shifts to accommodate time zones, or customers in varied locations around the world. Rotational shifts and night shifts are known to disrupt normal sleep schedules, which can in turn disrupt health.

Maintaining Motivation

Since jobs which require voice process activities can be repetitive, losing motivation in such roles is easy.

Ways to combat this include: 

• Setting personal goals: You may want to challenge yourself to make one change about your job each week, whether that is cutting down the time on a call, getting more positive feedback, etc.
• Celebrating successes: No matter how small or inconsequential the success may seem, always celebrate and take pride in what you have achieved. 
• Learning and Developing: Whenever you have training opportunities, use them if you can or find ways through internal mobility to develop your skills.

Excel In Voice Process With Concentrix 

Voice process is a wonderful opportunity for fresh graduates to develop long-lasting, skill-focused careers. However, the competitive market makes it very difficult to land the perfect job. To help you with this and in overcoming the common challenges that it brings, we at Concentrix offer a complete range of solutions. We will help you navigate and understand voice process roles, help you get the right jobs and develop fulfilling careers that advance you forward in life. To learn more, contact us today.

Conclusion

Voice process roles are the most dynamic and skill-building employment options. They teach interpersonal, technical, and problem-solving skills that can be transferred into other industries as well. Although challenging, aspects like stress management and improving communication are equally manageable in the right frame of mind and with the right tools. By setting out to be empathetic, flexible, and a continuous learner, those who work in voice processes can build successful and rewarding careers, one voice at a time. Ultimately, success in voice processes comes from professionalism that is balanced with human connection; this is the foundation of great communication.