Module 2 Project Gap Analysis Strategy

for Team #3
July 9th, 2017

Project Description [CD]

A-Z Specialties sells high quality gifts, apparel, and home accessories on the
internet and in mail order catalogs. Last year, A-Z Specialties exceeded their
revenue expectations and have plans for continued growth in the coming year.
These growth initiatives include:
$8 million in catalog sales.
$15 million in internet sales.
40% increase in customer lists
Attain a 10% improvement on customer service scores.
Improve work environment, staff development and recognition.
In order to meet these goals, A-Z Specialties has identified some customer service,
equipment and personnel concerns that need to be addressed. These include:
Telephone operators respond to 50% of the required calls per hour. The
current phone system is used to 85% capacity.
Current surveys show two thirds of customers complain about the
telephone operator. Main complaints are lack of product knowledge,
telephone etiquette and call wait times too long.
Add equipment along with additional work stations and warehouse
technical support for projected sales increase.
High staff turnover rate, with an average of one resignation per month.
More than 50% indicated dissatisfaction with their jobs to the point of
leaving.
Based on these findings, A-Z Specialties is interested in re-developing training for
their customer service supervisors, and telephone operators in order to reduce
employee turnover, reduce the number of customer complaints, and increase
telephone operators job satisfaction. West of Eastern (WoE) has agreed to take
on this project.
A-Z Specialties would like WoE to develop four separate trainings to be conducted
before the mailing of each seasonal catalog. The target audience they identified
includes the customer service supervisors and telephone operators, with training to
focus on product knowledge. Prior to any training, WoE will conduct a
performance and training gap analysis. The purpose of the analysis is to identify
current conditions at A-Z Specialties and identify potential training and solutions
that need to be developed, to enable A-Z Specialties to meet its goals.

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 1

Information Needed [CD]
WoE is conducting this gap analysis at the request of A-Z Specialties (A-Z). The
purpose of this analysis is to identify the gap between the current state of processes
at A-Z and the desired state to allow for future growth and success. WoE will
collect and analyze data in the following categories:
The customer experience by placing mail-order catalog calls as part of a
secret shopper program and reviewing past customer surveys A-Z
collected.
Telephone Operator and Call Center Supervisor job performance, work
environment, tools, training and job satisfaction to include:
o Call data and statistics including calls per hour, dropped calls,
average call time, and recorded sales calls.
o All training material and job aids for new telephone operators.
Ongoing training programs for existing telephone operators
o Employee job satisfaction survey.
o Telephone operators work days and hours.
o Existing sales incentive programs.
o Company culture.
Human Resource department employee management processes to develop
a complete picture of employees and potential employee issues including
information from job interviews, exit interviews, employee data,
demographics, recruiting practices, and manager-to-employee ratio.
Interview with upper management about catalog production and sales,
merchandising, call center operations, training, the new sales system, and
internet and intranet operations.
Other considerations to include:
o Employer reputation management through websites like Glassdoor
and Indeed and the ability of A-Z to attract better employees.
o Accurate marketing descriptions in the catalog for use by the
telephone operators.

Team Strategy [SS]

The strategies that WoE will use to obtain the information needed for a gap
analysis include the following:
Conducting secret shopping simulations.
Making observations of telephone operators and supervisors.
Using employee questionnaires.
Conducting interviews.
Reviewing existing training material and processes.
Pulling existing customer survey data.
Reviewing HR information to include employee onboarding and job
satisfaction.
Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 2
Analysis Plan [Team]

Research Method Target Audience Information You Hope to Gain Team Member Responsible

1. Simulation - Telephone Operators From simulating a shopper, we seek to Sarah Sonognini

"secret shopper" gain understanding about the
experience of the customer. We also
hope to gain information on operator
knowledge, etiquette, and response
time.

2. Interviews Call Center From interviewing supervisors and Aaron Koepke

Supervisors, Jane management, we hope to gain
Mackenzie, Judi information on the following: catalog
Thompson, Sheena production and sales, merchandising,
Perez, Tsien Yun, call center operations, training, the
and Lucy Feldman new sales system, and internet
operations.

3. Questionnaire Telephone Operators Job satisfaction, work/life balance, Mary DuQuaine

(New and existing), company culture, work environment,
Call Center training experience, and understanding
Supervisors of job responsibilities.

4. Interviews Telephone Operators From interviewing Telephone Mary DuQuaine

Operators we hope to gain information
on the following: Job satisfaction,
onboarding experience, ongoing
training, job responsibilities, work/life
balance, company culture,
communication with management,
work environment.

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 3

 Research Method Target Audience Information You Hope to Gain Team Member Responsible

5. Observations Telephone Operators Work environment, sales call process, Chris Davis
and Call Center employee interaction with customers,
Supervisors, , call efficiency of work tools. Listen to
log statistics reordered calls of newer and seasoned
employees, along with employees who
have high sales volume.

6. Customer Survey A-Z Specialties Review customer surveys to identify Sarah Sonognini
customers. customer experience.

7. Review current Sheena Perez Training audience information Adam Johnson

training material
and employee Judi Thompson Current training delivery methods,
resources assessments and activities
Call center director
Current training content

Resources and reference material

available to employees

Employee engagement and retention

perceptions

Correlations of training and company

goals

8. HR Data Job Interviews, Exit interviews, Aaron Koepke

employee data, demographics, direct
recruit or job boards. Manager to
employee ratio

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 4

 Research Method Target Audience Information You Hope to Gain Team Member Responsible

9. Employer Former A-Z Reputation management-Glassdoor, Mary DuQuaine

Review Website employees marketing descriptions for products,
Data warehouse-time to get product to
customers.

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 5

Activity 1 Simulation, Telephone Operators [SS]
Details of Activity/Method

The simulation will consist of secret shoppers calling A-Z call center seeking
product information as well as making purchases online. Shoppers calling the call
center will request general product information and information not available
online (fabric type and washing instructions). The shopper will record response
time of the operator, knowledge about the product, and operator etiquette. Multiple
secret shopper phone calls will be made, regarding a variety of products to collect
enough data to determine trends.
Online secret shoppers will analyze the website shopping experience to determine
organization of product categories, account setup, ease of searching for specific
items, navigation function, and the purchasing process. Product delivery time will
be recorded on all secret shopping purchases.

Questions to Ask

1. What is the fabric made of?

2. How should the product be washed?
3. Will the fabric fade?
4. What are the dimensions of the product?
5. Can I track the shipping?

Activity 2 - Interviews, A-Z mid and upper management [AK]

Details of Activity/Method

Interviews are recommended with key stakeholders to obtain important qualitative

data about A-Zs current catalog production and sales, merchandising, call center
operations, training, the new sales system, and internet and intranet operations.
Interviews will be conducted with the following individuals:
Call Center Supervisors
Jane Mackenzie-Director of Catalog Sales/Director of Sales Support.
Judi Thompson-Catalog Director.
Sheena Perez-Merchandising Manager.
Tsien Yun-Manager New Sales Systems.
Lucy Feldman-Manager Internet Enterprise System.
Ted Higgins- Intranet Manager.
Key stakeholders will be interviewed individually and asked questions from
prepared question lists. During the interviews, the consultants may ask follow-up
questions to better understand the viewpoints of key stakeholders.

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 6

 Questions to Ask

Call Center Supervisors Interview Questions:

Describe situations in which you would be asked to speak with customers.
Are there any common threads that link those situations?
How often do you speak with customers who have questions, comments,
or complaints?
Describe your professional relationships with telephone operators. Are
there aspects of your relationships you feel could be improved?
Tell us about the hardware you and the telephone operators use. Does it
meet your needs? Are there enough work stations to handle the workload?
Are operators comfortable at their work stations?
Describe a typical day. What successes and challenges do you usually
encounter?
Please comment on factors that may contribute to telephone operator job
satisfaction. Are there factors that also contribute to your own job
satisfaction?
Tell us about the monthly employee meetings. What topics do you cover?
Do you have ideas for how attendance could be improved? What types of
incentives would encourage employees to attend?
What are your thoughts on the new HR policies and evaluation/self-
evaluation process? How were the changes communicated to you?
What types of resources do you need in order to perform your job better?
Jane Mackenzie Interview Questions:
What are your goals for the revamped training?
Are there components of A-Zs corporate culture that may be contributing
to the issues the company is trying to address?
What aspects of Judi and Sheenas trainings have been beneficial? Are
there aspects of the trainings that need improvement?
Judi Thompson Interview Questions:
Please describe how you came to be in your current position at A-Z.
Please tell us about the structure, format, and content of each training you
offer throughout the year. Are the trainings well attended? Which staff
members prepare the summary product descriptions? How are those
descriptions prepared? Do staff members typically ask many questions?
Why or why not?
Please describe how you and Sheena plan the trainings. Are there topic
areas you each typically cover?
Can you please provide us with any training materials you have used in the
past?
Please share with us any feedback you have received from Call Center
Supervisors and Telephone Operators on your training or their use of the
training materials during the course of their work.
Describe the process for assembling each of A-Zs four yearly catalogues.
Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 7
 Sheena Perez Interview Questions:
Describe for us how much you typically travel and are away from the
office each year.
Please tell us about the structure, format, and content of each training you
offer throughout the year. Are the trainings well attended? Which staff
members prepare the summary product descriptions? How are those
descriptions prepared? Do staff members typically ask many questions?
Why or why not?
Please describe how you and Judi plan the trainings. Are there topic areas
you each typically cover?
Can you please provide us with any training materials you have used in the
past?
Please share with us any feedback you have received from Call Center
Supervisors and Telephone Operators on your training or their use of the
training materials during the course of their work.
Please describe how you came to be in your current position at A-Z.
Based on your job description, it appears you have many responsibility
areas at A-Z. Can you give us a sense of what your workload feels like?
Tsien Yun Interview Questions:
Please share with us the historical background of the sales system at A-Z.
What is the timeline of the sales system installation project?
What types of issues did staff share regarding the old sales system? How
will the new system address those concerns?
How is product information accessed in the new sales system?
Lucy Feldman Interview Questions:
Please describe for us a customers typical interface with A-Zs website.
What types of customer feedback data have you collected in the past
regarding their web experience? What did the data tell you?
What types of improvements would you make to A-Zs web presence if
money, time, and staffing were not objects?
Ted Higgins Interview Questions:
Please describe how customer orders are entered in to the company order
system and how the warehouse receives the order information.
If money, time, and staffing were not obstacles, what improvements to
your intranet would you suggest and why?
What does the current order system look like? What does it include?
What parts of the order and shipping process does it cover? Can the
current intranet support additional order volume? Why or why not?

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 8

Activity 3 Questionnaire Telephone Operators (new and
existing) and Call Center Supervisors [MD]
Details of Activity/Method

A questionnaire will be given to all of the call center supervisors and telephone
operators. Each employee will be advised that they are required to participate in
the questionnaire and time will be given during each shift so that each person will
be able to participate. The data will be collected anonymously, but will contain
some questions to identify education level and length of time on staff.

The data from the questionnaire will help to understand the employee's point of
view on job satisfaction, work/life balance, company culture, work environment,
training experience, and understanding of job responsibilities. The main purpose of
this activity is to listen to the experiences of the employees in order to understand
their perspective. This will help identify any underlying causes of performance
gaps, and confirm or refute the need for the company to hire WoE as a consulting
firm to revamp the training program.

Questions to Ask

Job Satisfaction:
Please rate your current satisfaction with your job.
o Very Satisfied
o Somewhat satisfied
o Somewhat dissatisfied
o Very Dissatisfied
Please rate the level of support you receive from your supervisor.
o Very Satisfied
o Somewhat satisfied
o Somewhat dissatisfied
o Very Dissatisfied
Rate from Agree Neutral Disagree
o I feel happy and proud to have my job.
o I feel neutral about working here; it pays the bills.
o I do not like my job and plan to leave when I can.
o I am looking for a different job.
o I am in school and this job is just what I need for now.
o I can see myself working here in 5 years.

Work/Life Balance:
I feel like my work supports my life.
o Agree

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 9

 o Somewhat agree
o Somewhat disagree
o Disagree
I feel like my work interferes with my life.
o Agree
o Somewhat agree
o Somewhat disagree
o Disagree
Short answer:
What would help you to achieve a balanced lifestyle between work and
your personal life?
What rewards do you get for meeting call quotas? Is there an incentive
program for sales volume? Is there a recognition program for positive
customer reviews?
Company Culture:
I feel like a member of the team when I come to work.
o Agree
o Somewhat agree
o Somewhat disagree
o Disagree
o I am comfortable talking to my supervisors.
I feel like I belong here.
o Agree
o Somewhat agree
o Somewhat disagree
o Disagree
o It is hard to get to know people here.
I would recommend a friend to come work here.
o Agree
o Somewhat agree
o Somewhat disagree
o Disagree

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 10

 Short answer:
What aspect of working here could be improved so that you feel like you
share in the mission of our company and that you are one of the team?
How is your relationship with your supervisors? What could they do to
make you feel supported in your job?
Work Environment:
Please rate your comfort/satisfaction with these environmental factors:
Your work station.
o Very Satisfied
o Somewhat satisfied
o Somewhat dissatisfied
o Very dissatisfied
Your chair.
o Very Satisfied
o Somewhat satisfied
o Somewhat dissatisfied
o Very dissatisfied
Your technology.
o Very Satisfied
o Somewhat satisfied
o Somewhat dissatisfied
o Very dissatisfied
The break room.
o Very Satisfied
o Somewhat satisfied
o Somewhat dissatisfied
o Very dissatisfied
The hours.
o Very Satisfied
o Somewhat satisfied
o Somewhat dissatisfied
o Very dissatisfied
The room where you work.
o Very Satisfied
o Somewhat satisfied
o Somewhat dissatisfied
o Very dissatisfied

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 11

 Short answer:
What could be changed to improve the work environment?
Training Experience:
Rate your first week of training.
o Excellent
o Good
o Fair
o Poor
Have you received enough training to do your job?
o Excellent
o Good
o Fair
o Poor
Do they cover all the system you will use on the job in training and give
you adequate time to practice using those systems?
o Yes
o No
Do you have a manual for how to use the telephones? For the order
system?
o Yes
o No
Did you receive a training or procedures manual?
o Yes
o No
Did you receive any handouts as part of training?
o Yes
o No
Did you feel prepared when you were cleared to take sales calls?
o Yes
o No
Short Answer:
What could be improved about the way you are trained for your job?
What would you like to learn to help make your job easier?
What do you like about the monthly meetings? Do you attend them? Why
or why not? What would motivate you to attend the meetings?

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 12

 Understanding Job Responsibilities:
Do you have a good sense of what your job responsibilities are?
o Yes
o No
Do you feel like you were trained to handle these responsibilities?
o Yes
o No
Is there any time when your responsibilities feel like too much?
o Yes
o No
Are there any problems that you have a hard time being able to solve?
o Yes
o No
Additional Comments:

Activity 4 - Interviews & Telephone Operators [MD]

Details of Activity/Method

Interviewing Telephone Operators will provide information on the following: Job

satisfaction, onboarding experience, ongoing training, job responsibilities,
work/life balance, company culture, communication with management, work
environment. The main purpose of this activity is to listen to the experiences of
the employees to understand their perspective. This will help identify any
underlying causes of performance gaps, and confirm or refute the need for the
company to hire WoE as a consulting firm to revamp the training program.

Three new and three long-term Telephone Operators and All Call Center
Supervisors will be invited to the in-person interviews. Employees will be
assured that their answers will be kept confidential and that their cooperation will
be instrumental in helping the company to grow and improve.

Questions to Ask

Job Satisfaction:
How would you rate your satisfaction with your current position?
Do you feel like this organization cares for your well-being?
Are there any employee recognition programs? What kind of incentives
does the company offer for top performers? Do you find these programs
motivate you in your job? Why or why not?
What would help you to feel more satisfied with working here?
What are your hopes and plans for your career in the next year?
What are your career plans? Do you see working here as a part of your
personal long-term career goals?

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 13

 Onboarding Experience:
Can you describe your first week of working here?
What was the most helpful thing you learned in your first few weeks?
Is there anything you wish you had known then, that you know now?
Training:
How would you describe your training experiences?
Do employees look forward to training sessions
Do you think that you get enough training to be able to do your job
correctly?
Do they cover all the system you will use on the job in training and give
you adequate time to practice using those systems?
If not, what skills or information would you like to learn more about?
What tips would you give to someone who is new to this job?
Do you have a manual for how to use the telephones? For the order
system?
Did you receive a training or procedures manual?
Did you feel prepared when you were cleared to take sales calls?
Job Responsibilities:
Do you have a good sense of what your job responsibilities are? Were you
given a job description outlining your responsibilities and expectations?
How many phone calls should you be able to take in one hour? Do you
believe that is reasonable?
What is the average time you should spend on a phone call when you are
completing a customer order? Do you find any challenges in meeting
those job expectations? Do you feel like you were trained to handle these
responsibilities?
Is there any time when your responsibilities feel like too much?
Are there any problems that you have a hard time being able to solve?
What topics are covered at the monthly meetings?
What would make you want to attend the monthly meeting?
Work/Life Balance:
How do your job duties affect your personal obligations/home life?
Does your schedule and number of hours worked match your original
expectations of this job?
Do you have enough time to complete your responsibilities here at work?
At home?
Are you able to take breaks and lunch on a regular basis?
What would help you to find balance between your work and your
personal life?

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 14

 Company Culture:
How do you feel like you fit in here?
What things are positive about the company culture here?
What things could be improved to help everyone feel a part of the team?
Communication with Management:
Do you feel like you can communicate with your supervisor?
How has your supervisor communicated the expectations for your position
as Telephone Operator?
Do you feel like your supervisor recognizes your potential?
How have you been directed to handle customer service problems?
Do you feel like you can count on your supervisor to help you to solve
problems?
Work Environment:
Are there any things that you would change about the work environment
here that would make it easier to do your job?
Additional Comments:

Activity 5 Observation- Telephone Operators and Call Center

Supervisors [CD]
Details of Activity/Method

Observation is a good method for discovering job tasks, employee behaviors and
use of work space. Chris will make an appointment with A-Z Specialties to
observe call center supervisors and telephone operators on the job over a weeks
time, to include different times of day. He will sit with different telephone
operators and observe the sales call and order process. He will observe both new
and seasoned employees along with telephone operators who have high sales
statistics. All telephone operators will be notified ahead of time of the visits. They
will be told the purpose of observations is to improve call center training and
technology, thus making their jobs easier.
Chris will also observe the call center supervisors to note how they coach and
provide guidance to their staff. He will look at how they handle the daily
operations, their relationship to the telephone operators, tasks performed,
efficiencies and what incentive programs they have to motive their staff. He will
also look at ways to keep calls from being passed to supervisors in cases of
customer service for better efficiency. Chris will also review recorded phones
calls, operators provided A-Z does that, with supervisors to assess desirable call
traits from.
Observations
Chris will focus on observing the following for telephone operators:
Did the company have an approved greeting and was it followed? Was
there a script and was it followed?
Was the telephone operator enthusiastic and easy to understand?

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 15

 Were they helpful and informative allowing the customer to speak and ask
questions?
Did the telephone operator get to know the customer by name early in the
conversation and used their name throughout?
How accessible were catalog descriptions to the telephone operators? Was
there any delay to accessing product information that caused the customers
to wait?
Did the telephone operator recommend accessories based on the buyers
choices? Did recommended accessories come up in the order entry system
making it easier for the operator to upsell products?
Did telephone operators ask to close the sale with hesitant buyers?
Were most calls received for new orders, existing orders, or customer
complaints?
When asked a question, how quickly and confidently was the operator able
to answer it?
What kind of customer service is transferred to call center supervisors? Is
it complaints, order issues, or just placing the order?
How frequently are calls transferred to call center supervisors?
How much down time is there between calls? Are there other tasks
required of telephone operators?
How long does it take to place orders in the order entry system? Were
there any entries that took longer? What were they and why?
Did customers have to repeat information for the telephone operator?
Were the workspaces ergonomic? Did any of the staff seem uncomfortable
or have difficulty accessing phones, headsets, keyboards, and computer
screens?
What is the work dynamic between telephone operators? Between
operators and supervisors? How is the rapport in common break areas?
Chris will focus on these key items for the Call Center Supervisors:
What are the day to day responsibilities of the supervisors?
How do supervisors interact with the telephone operators?
Do supervisors take time randomly observing operators? When they do,
do they use those as coaching opportunities providing constructive
feedback?
Is there a means to record calls for supervisors to listen to customer
interactions and coach staff on how to improve? Listen to recorded calls
with supervisors to get their input on desirable vs undesirable customer
service.
What tools did the supervisors use to track and manage call volume for
optimum efficiency?
How do supervisors motivate and keep operators focused on providing
excellent customer service?

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 16

 Was the supervisor able to handle any system issues that came up? What
happened and what did they do to resolve it?
Did any supervisors have calls transferred to them by operators? If so,
what issues prompted the call to be forwarded? How was the issue
handled?
Chris will look at this data from the call logs:
What is the customers average wait time before a call is answered?
How many dropped calls were there?
What is the average time spent on each phone call?
What is the mean, median and mode of calls taken by telephone operators?
What is the average versus expected call volume per telephone operator?
Is call scoring used by supervisors? If so, analyze that data to better
understand telephone operators proficiencies and deficits. How does this
data mesh with performance scores given by supervisors to telephone
operators?

Activity 6 - Review Customer Surveys, Customers [SS]

Details of Activity/Method

Customer surveys that A-Z Specialties has collected will be gathered and analyzed.
WoE hopes to identify any trends from customer experience data. Customer
feedback that reveals both positive and negative experiences will be documented
and charted, along with any reasoning for those experiences. In reviewing this
data, WoE will look for reoccurring issues that are the root cause of customer
complaints.

Activity 7 - Review Current Training Material - Sheena Perez,

Judi Thompson, Director of the Call Center [AJ]
Details of Activity/Method

Through analysis of the current training materials, WoE hopes to determine more
specifics about the methodology used to deliver training, what content is covered
and to what degree, to gauge the engagement and retention of the content by
employees, and to better align training to company goals. Current delivery
methods and training environments will be examined and alternatives will be
discussed based on adult learning models. Content will be assessed in terms of the
cognitive load of the learner, and compared to customer service data to determine
what information is vital to employee success. Company goals will also be
considered when determining vital information. Discussions will be had with
Sheena Perez and Judi Thompson to gain perspective into employee engagement
(how active they are in the training sessions) and employee retention (how well the
training content is remembered and applied in role) and cross-referenced with the
same inquiries done with the director of the call center as well as TO feedback.

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 17

 Sheena Perez and Judi Thompsons participation and insight will be present
throughout as SMEs.

Questions to Ask

Audience
Are other employees (other than the call center) encouraged to take this
training?
Do you feel other employees benefit from taking this training?
Is training mandatory?
What happens if an employee cannot attend a training session (i.e. illness,
schedule conflict, etc.)
Methodology
How is training currently facilitated?
What factors contributed to this method being chosen?
Have other methods of facilitating training been considered?
Is on-going training available outside the four seasonal reviews?
Content
How much content is covered in each training session?
What is covered in the training?
How in-depth is each product discussed?
Are product features or product benefits discussed?
Is training product specific or sales specific?
Does any content repeat from season to season?
Engagement and retention
How much of the training is dedicated to employee participation
(excluding the Q&A session)?
o NONE
o less than half
o half
o more than half
Are review materials available to employees outside training sessions?
How do employees perform immediately after training? 2 weeks after? 1
month after? 3 months after?
How many questions are asked in the 30 minutes after each training
session?
Alignment with company goals
Are employees incentivized to complete training?
Are company goals and results discussed in training?

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 18

 Training Facilities
Where do you train your staff? How many can you train at one time?
Do trainees have access to the actual phone systems and computer
software?
Do you provide handouts and training manuals to the trainees?

Activity 8 - Interviews - Human Resources [AK]

Details of Activity/Method

Interviews with Human Resources (HR) staff are recommended to develop a more
complete picture of employees and potential employment issues at A-Z.
Information about job interviews, exit interviews, employee data, demographics,
recruiting practices, and manager-to-employee ratio will all provide important
information. Consultants will work with Jane Mackenzie to determine which
members of the Human Resources staff to interview.

Questions to Ask

The following questions will be asked of the HR staff.

Tell us about your new employees. What characteristics do they typically
possess?
Where do you typically hire new employees from? Job boards? Direct
recruiting?
Describe what your job interview process entails.
What is your current manager to employee ratio? How does this compare
to what the ratio has been historically?
What employee satisfaction data do you have? Are employees generally
happy to work here?
What are common reasons for employee dismissal? Resignations?
What types of strategies are employed when an underperforming employee
is identified?
Are there any new HR policies that were recently implemented? How were
these changes communicated to staff?
What is the basic demographics of the telephone operators and call center
supervisors? Age, gender, education, previous work experience?

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 19

Roadblocks & Dependencies [Team]

Potential roadblocks/dependencies and WoEs mitigation strategies for this gap

analysis are as follows:

Roadblocks / Dependencies Mitigation Strategies

Lack of interviews producing good Set times to interview more people.

data.

Staff observations may not produce Be discreet during observations.

reliable data, as staff will behave Continually insure the WIIFM is
differently knowing they are being communicated to the staff. Also,
observed. over a weeks time, staff will get
used to being observed.

Employees may be hesitant to give Have neutral people give interviews,

honest answers in formal interviews. give assurance of confidentiality.

HR may not want to reveal data or Work with Jane Mackenzie and other
data not available upper management to obtain data, rely
on qualitative data obtained through
interviews

Reluctance of staff to be honest in Cross reference data obtained from

interviews or share critical interviews; reassure interviewees that
information information will be kept as private as
possible

Newness of key stakeholders (e.g. Interviews with Mike Merrill and

Jane Mackenzie, Tsien Yun) may Bruce Bennett may be necessary
limit available historical data

Team 3: Module 2 -Gap Analysis 20