I imagined their parents fighting with them to get them dressed in what the parents had picked out to wear. I could see the kids stomping their little feet and yelling, “No! We’re superheroes!” Parents must have agreed.
National Public Radio ran a story this weekend on superheroes of sorts. The story was about how one small company fought the evil forces of “employee burnout!” It focused on its call center and the long hours, repetitive work, young people in headsets hunched over long tables, talking eight to nine hours straight with customers. Customers calling with problems. Customers demanding solutions.
I can very much relate.
It’s not that such frontline jobs are “hard” that causes burnout. And it’s not the makeup of the employee. Research is pointing to the fact it's something about the situation, the social relationships, the makeup of job itself.
This company’s solution? First, hire a couple more people to reduce the workload. Seems obvious, right? But it took a while for company managers to believe that the added salary would pay for itself in NOT having to spend so much money in constantly training new employees. The second thing they did was start calling their customer service / call center workers “HEROES.” They even went as far as to have a hero-appreciation day. Everyone wore capes and, surprisingly, everyone go into it. After all, they are heroes to customers.
Sound juvenile and gimmicky? Sure. But today, that company’s call center, a classic burnout job, has zero turnover.
What about you? I know we all don’t work for companies that see us as heroes. But, that shouldn't stop us from stomping our feet and yelling, “No! We’re superheroes!” Yesterday, I picked up some superhero tv/movie theme music to listen to on the way to work. Why don't you try it? Cape optional.
Carpe Diem Life,
David Kuhn
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