pcl case study
Call centre retention using the MVPI the issue
Like most other call centres, our Leeds based insurance company clients were experiencing very serious staff retention problems for motor insurance telesales staff.
the solution
PCL conducted research to determine the reasons why people were leaving. One cause was quickly identified when exit interviews clearly demonstrated that many telesales staff were leaving to go to face-toface sales jobs. It seems that, although they viewed themselves as sales people, the telesales role did not match up to their expectations. Our research also showed a second discernible stream of people leaving the organisation amongst which there were a disproportionate number of people with high Tradition scores on the MVPI. MVPI Tradition is concerned with a preference for “good old fashioned values”, clear ideas about “proper” behaviour and a respect for tradition and well established ways of doing things. When we examined the prevailing team climate we found a high level of MVPI Hedonism within the group. Clearly these values will clash with those of the high MVPI Tradition people who are tending to leave the organisation; these people would view the behaviour of their hedonistic colleagues as potentially flamboyant and frivolous.
the results
Motives and values play a critical role in determining who gets along with who and, therefore, who is likely to stay. The findings described above are a typical illustration of the role of values in group dynamics. People who do not share the values that are prominent in determining group or team climate will feel isolated and unappreciated. This has nothing to do with their competence to do the job, or with the direct influence of values on job effectiveness. But it is everything to do with team climate and team fit. Returning to our example, it is likely that if MVPI Tradition had been the prevailing value, the people leaving the job would then have included a high proportion of staff with high MVPI Hedonism.
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