Profile: Tanya Miller, Main Roads WA
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Tanya Miller Number of years in role: 6 months |
What do you do?
My current role is managing a 24/7 Customer Contact Centre for Main Roads Western Australia. Our centre has been operational for 18 months providing ease of access to Main Roads services and a professional front-face customer service for the public and our staff and stakeholders.
The team consists of 11 Information Officers, a Centre Manager and a Co-ordinator. My substantive position is the Co-ordinator role and the transition from Co-ordinator to Manager has provided me with a fantastic opportunity to stretch my strategic leadership skills.
What results are expected in your position?
As a team, we have a number of key performance indicators relating to our customer interaction, the most important being the resolution of 80% of enquiries at either first point of contact, or referring calls requiring specialist advice to the appropriate area in the first instance.
Being a fairly new contact centre, one of the most significant aspects of my role is to build relationships with other departments within Main Roads. We want the centre to achieve cost and time savings for the rest of the organisation. There is also a need to manage the strategic direction and capability of the Customer Contact Centre.
What has been your biggest career highlight to date?
Being recognised with the WA Team Leader of the Year 2004 Award from the Australian Teleservices Association (ATA). Also from a team aspect, our centre was recognised as WA Greenfield’s Site of the Year 2006. Both achievements are a credit to the teams I have worked with.
What is the best and worst thing about your job?
The most enjoyable aspect of my job is working with a fabulous team in a 24/7 road network environment where anything can and does happen. We are often the first to find out about congestion, traffic signal outages, accidents, fires and cyclones. There is never a dull moment.
The most challenging aspect is providing telephony assistance at 2:30am when systems crash.
Any tips on how to get and stay ahead?
Always focus on delivering results through good time management and good staff interaction/management. Dress for the job you want, not the job you have. Try to maintain a positive attitude even through challenging times both personally and professionally. Focus upon what you can do to achieve excellent outcomes rather than what others are doing.
How do you encourage loyalty with your staff and clients?
Recognition for good work is key. Maintaining a consistent and professional image at all times while being upfront and honest. Also tackle any issues when they arise to avoid unnecessary escalation of situations which could have been quickly and easily addressed.
What do you think employees want from their employer?
Job satisfaction and engagement; a sense of purpose and direction and a bit of fun along the way. Not necessarily in that order
What does your company do for its staff that you feel is different from what other companies provide?
Main Roads focuses heavily on family values and flexibility. The importance of integrating and balancing personal/family, social and work life is at the core of the organisation and this is followed through in a multitude of ways including a free heath and lifestyle program, flexible working arrangements and social club interactions and events.
What are the biggest human capital issues your industry is dealing with…and what should be done about them?
Attracting quality contact centre professionals in the current employment market and selling the advantages of the work we do in the contact centre industry compared to other businesses.
Frequently young people embark upon a career path based on benefits they believe the industry can deliver them, rather than the concrete aspects of the role. There are so many paths that lead from skills developed in the contact centre world and marketing this would assist in providing a larger ‘catchment area’ for the contact centre industry.