AnswerPlus is a Canadian Answering Service built on the reputation of our employees.

It is the voice of our Virtual Receptionists that our customers’ callers hear, so it is very important that our team is functioning like a well-oiled machine. 

So how does this 24/7 call center create a tear oriented culture in an already negative industry?

1. We put our Virtual Receptionists First and our Customers Third. 

Most call centers will focus on making sure that whatever their customers want is what they get. “You want faster? We’ll speed our employees up!” etc. 

Now, I’d never suggest that you ignore the requests of your customers. But I will stress the importance of considering how a customers request will impact your team before you answer.

2. Seriously, holidays don’t stop just because your employees walk into the office.

It’s well documented that AnswerPlus celebrates all holidays and the milestone events that happen in the lives of our team members. But I’m going to repeat myself because I can’t stress enough just how important this is if you want your team to get to know each other. 

Celebrating holidays and milestones will demonstrate to employees that you respect their time and the personal accomplishments in their lives. 

Think of it this way. Would you be happy if your friends and family didn’t to celebrate your retirement with you? At AnswerPlus we consider all of our employees family members, so we are going to put 100% into celebrating their accomplishments with them. 

3. Geography is a challenge but not an excuse.

AnswerPlus has call centers in Toronto, Hamilton and a bilingual call center in Montreal. Our Toronto and Montreal call centers work very closely with each other. Our staff recognize each other by voice alone and they know each others particular habits. But that simply isn’t enough because there isn’t any in person connection.

To overcome this geographical barrier we decided that we would start sending employees to each others award night. (You can read more about the Dolly’s here). By doing this we quickly saw barriers come down and friendships grow. 

Ask yourself. Are you really putting a sincere effort into your team?

Fostering a team environment is all about what you put into it. It requires an honest effort made with the humble intent of creating something new. You don’t expect a garden to grow overnight and team building is like growing a garden. It requires planning, hard work and follow through. It may not seem like much is happening at first but give it some time. Before you know it you will have a thriving culture and most importantly, a team.