DIAL-A-CAB STAFF TRAINING
Staff training is an ongoing process. There are times when little happens then suddenly
Tom and Debbie Carter are over here and there is a rush of new software enhancements
added. Quite often, the changes are fairly simple and self-explanatory, but there will
always be some changes that involve the staff needing some additional training. We are
lucky at DaC to have such good staff who pick things up very quickly, but good, ongoing
training is still an integral part of keeping an organisation such as ours working to
it’s maximum capacity.
Some enhancements actually come from initial requests or ideas by our
telephonists. As an example, one such idea - the ‘Do-Return’ button - was
suggested by a telephonist. This is a very simple idea, yet extremely useful. When a
client wants to order a return cab, instead of having to fill in another order, the
telephonists push the Do-Return button and a return booking reference appears so that we
know that a return trip is in the system - provided, of course, that the client is still
in the same place as they were dropped! Very simple, but also very effective - which is
what most computer software enhancements should be.
We have also changed our operating system from V4 to V6. This is a much more
user-friendly system but has involved substantial re-training. As an example, one of
the changes concerned ‘ringbacks’. Before this particular software change - much
of which was
There will always be errors because at the end of the day, we are all human. But as an example, let’s take last week (beginning of November…Ed). At a guess, there were probably something like 35000 jobs going through the system, yet errors totalled less than £300 in wastage out of an estimated ‘take’ of some £2.5 million.
USING LOGGERS
It isn’t just telephonists who need training updates. New innovations are coming all
the time and whoever’s job it is to have to use them will need some training. Using
loggers is just one example. There is very little occurring at DaC that cannot be checked.
It probably sounds rather ‘big brotherish’ but in a large organisation of this
type, you need to not just know what is happening, but to be able to prove that it
happened. This isn’t to trap someone - be it driver or staff - but to be able to shoe
someone that an incident either happened or didn’t happen. With so many trips passing
through our system each month, there will always be accusations of one sort or another.
There is very little that now cannot be checked out and proven.
Another side of my job is training Dial-a-Cab clients how to use their remote
terminals. Companies such as Lovell White Durrant, Rowe & Maw, Slaughter & May and
others, all use our remote terminal. This also includes a comprehensive manual for the
remote user and a 100 page customer service representative manual for the Call Centre.
developed by Roy Masterson - telephonists were able to pick any ringback that came onto the screen in any order. Now everything comes up in lines
NEW STAFF TRAINING AND NEW DRIVERS IN THE CALL CENTRE
Then there is the training program for new staff which involves a two week
intensive course in the Training Centre. That doesn’t just include learning their own
job, they are also shown video’s of how drivers operate their MDT’s so that they
can understand any situation from both sides. In addition, they are shown disability
videos so that they can become aware of the special needs for disabled passengers, the
different types of disabilities and the difference between the three kinds of taxi in
regard to what they can or can’t do ie taking different sizes of wheelchair etc. They
are also shown the video that was taken on the staff Awayday which shows three of our
large corporate account clients giving their views on the service we provide in addition
to their expectations from a transport provider.
One thing that I would like to see implemented is for new drivers to be given
a half-day course in the Call Centre. That should involve sitting with Dispatchers, Call
Takers and Ringback Telephonists. Then in addition to our staff understanding the
driver’s situation, drivers would also see things from the staff’s point of
view; the process involved when drivers do AAR’s or reject a job. Nothing happens by
magic, every time a driver requests something, someone in the Call Centre has to do
something that takes time. Giving drivers the chance to see these things in operation
would be extremely beneficial for both sides.
Melissa Khan
