Design Document for

PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training

By Team #4, Superior Solutions

Document Description
The purpose of the design document is to provide PJ Enterprises with a detailed
description and an outline of the PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training on
protocol, customer service, and using the electronic product guide to be delivered
the week of August 8, 2016.

Purpose of the Course

This course is designed to train the telephone operators at PJ Enterprises on
principles of telephone customer service, telephone etiquette, and using the
updated electronic product guide. This training is intended to reduce customer
complaints, decrease call duration, and provide telephone operators with skills to
remain confident during customer calls. The long-term business goals of the
course, along with production of an updated electronic product guide, are to help
increase sales and increase employee satisfaction as well as retention.

Audience Description
The audience for this training is the 25 telephone operators at PJ Enterprises, who
have the following characteristics:

Ages 18-60

All women

Various levels of experience in customer service; many have little to no

prior work experience

All have high school- or GED-level education; none have college

degrees

Experience ranges from new hires to seasoned operators.

The call center customer service supervisors from all shifts will also participate
in the training so that they can reinforce course principles in day-to-day
operations and evaluate telephone operator performance of course objectives on
the job. PJ Enterprises promoted all customer service supervisors from working
telephone operators, and therefore supervisors have the same characteristics and
background, except with a longer time in service with PJ Enterprises.

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PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training Design Document, cont;d.

Course Description
This course teaches telephone operators how to integrate principles of customer
service, sales, and using the electronic guide into different aspects of their daily
job, such as taking calls, using call scripts, processing orders, answering
customer questions, processing returns, handling customer grievances, and
transferring calls to a supervisor when necessary. To make the information
immediately relevant and usable to the learners, instruction embeds new concepts
in the daily tasks with which telephone operators are already familiar. Learning
will be reinforced with short refresher training exercises facilitated by PJ
Enterprises trainers at monthly employee meetings in the six months following
the initial course offering.

Course Seat Time

This course will include a total of 8 hours of training divided into two, four-hour
sessions.

Instructional Architecture/Strategy for Course

This course uses a directive approach. The goal of the course is for telephone
operators to improve their customer service skills and learn how to effectively
use the new electronic product guide. The trainer provides direct instruction and
demonstration on these topics, and learners have multiple opportunities to
practice the skills in job-specific scenarios, including with role-plays and
computer-based exercises.

Major Course Objectives

At the end of this course, telephone operators will be able to:

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Follow call procedures for greeting customers, determining purpose of

call, maintaining positive tone, and ending call accurately 100% of the
time

Select and use the appropriate script for each call with no errors.

Enter new orders efficiently with one or zero questions repeated to

customers per call.

Use the electronic product guide to answer customer questions and

inquiries with no errors.

Recommend appropriate products and specials to customers based on

customer queries and previous purchases.

Correctly identify and promptly transfer calls that require service from a
supervisor.

Resolve customer grievances using authorized protocols and remedies so

that 75% of customers who call with complaints end the call saying that
their issues were adequately resolved.
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PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training Design Document, cont;d.

Learning Assessment for Course

Each lesson comprises several learning activities that include practice exercises,
information scavenger hunts, and role-plays. These activities enable learners to
practice new knowledge and tasks and receive immediate feedback on their
performance, thus serving as formative assessments throughout the course. In
addition, several lessons end with a cumulative role-play exercise that requires
learners to synthesize knowledge from separate tasks into a realistic job
performance.
As a summative assessment in the last lesson of the course, trainees will
participate in small group role-play exercises. The role-play scenarios will reflect
realistic customer call situations that the telephone operators might encounter.
They will require the trainee playing the role of the telephone operator to apply
knowledge and skills learned in the course to respond to the scenario
appropriately. Each trainees performance in the telephone operator role will be
peer-scored and supervisor-evaluated using a detailed rubric. Please see
Appendix C for the role-play instructions, rubric, and a sample scenario to be
used in the summative assessment activity.

Course Outline
PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training
Lesson 1: Following General Call Procedures
A. Introduction
B.
Using a proper customer greeting
C.
Building rapport with client
D. Exercise
E.
Accessing scripts
F.
Exercise
G. Selecting appropriate script to identify type of request: new order, return,
grievances, etc.
a. Once you know what type of call it is, there are separate procedures
for each type, which well learn in detail in Lessons 2 through 6
H. Exercise
I.
Ending call
J.
Cumulative practice exercise
Lesson 2: Processing New Orders
A.
Introduction
B.
Accessing product guide
C.
Exercise
D.
Using electronic product guide to answer customer questions
E.
Exercise
F.
Using the hold feature
G.
Exercise
H.
Recommending related products/specials
I.
Exercise
J.
Cumulative role-play exercise
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K.

Review and summary

Lesson 3: Processing Returns

A.
Determining reason for the return
B.
Using standard return script
C.
Exercise
D.
Based on previous purchase, recommending related products/specials
E.
Role-play exercise
F.
Review and summary
Lesson 4: Handling Customer Grievances
A.
Introduction
B.
Assessing grievance situation using grievance/issues script
C.
Dealing with upset customers
D.
Role-play exercise
E.
Transferring to supervisor
F.
Role-play exercise
G.
Cumulative role-play exercise
H.
Review and summary

Lesson 5: Processing Queries on Existing Orders and Billing Questions

A.
Clarifying customers questions and inquiries
B.
Using standard script to address order/billing questions
C.
Exercise
D.
Using order entry system to answer query.
E.
Exercise
F.
Based on order, recommending related products/specials
G.
Role-play exercise
H.
Determining if customer would like to place order
I.
Exercise
J.
Cumulative role-play exercise
K.
Review and summary
Lesson 6: Review and Summary of training
A.
Summary of effective telephone operator skills
B.
Cumulative role-play exercise and assessment
C.
Feedback session
D.
Questions
Follow-up Materials: Refresher Training
A.
Facilitator instructions for interactive exercises to reinforce practice of
course objectives. PJ Enterprises trainers will facilitate these exercises
at monthly employee meetings in the six months following the initial
course offering.

Media
Course slides in the facilitator and trainee guides will include screen shots of the
order entry system and the electronic product guide. Instructors will demonstrate
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PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training Design Document, cont;d.

from an electronic product guide on the instructor computer that is projected in
the front of the room, and learners will use the electronic product guide on
trainee computers during the training sessions. Audio clips will be used to
demonstrate examples of both poor and outstanding customer service techniques.

Development Tools
This course will be developed using Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, and
the electronic product guide PDF. Audio recording and editing software will be
used to produce audio clips.

Development Time
Superior Solutions requires 400-450 hours to develop this training course. This
includes hours already used during the initial assessment and planning of the
project.
The development of the electronic product guide requires an additional 250
hours. Details on this part of the project are covered in a separate design
document.

Support Requirements
To deliver the course, Superior Solutions requires the following support from PJ
Enterprises:

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Provision of SMEs to provide input and review training materials

Access to the following:

o

The order entry system, for the purpose of taking screen shots

The call center, should further observations be required

Customer calls recorded on file

Use of the training room, projector, and trainee and instructor computer
equipment at PJ Enterprises to conduct the agreed training sessions

Scheduling the telephone operators and supervisors to attend the training

sessions

Printing facilitator and trainee materials for the training sessions and the
facilitator instructions for the refresher trainings

PJ Enterprises staff may be requested to assist in recording audio clips

for preparation of training materials. No voice recording will be
conducted without the persons written consent.

During training sessions, PJ Enterprises staff attending the training may

be asked to participate in role-plays in which they act like a customer or
a telephone operator.

PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training Design Document, cont;d.

Ownership
Superior Solutions will maintain all training materials developed for PJ
Enterprises for 12 months after the initial training. After this time, PJ Enterprises
will be responsible for maintaining the materials. Should PJ Enterprises wish for
Superior Solutions to continue maintenance of the training materials after 12
months, Superior Solutions will provide a proposal defining the scope and cost of
services for approval.
Superior Solutions will not be responsible for any aspect of maintaining the
electronic product guide after August 8, 2016.

Project Sign-off
Please sign below indicating agreement with the proposed course plan and
approving start-up of the development phases.
_Sandhya Lakhanpal
Instructional Designer

Joni Grove
Project Manager
Jane MacKenzie

Project Manager/Sponsor

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16 May 2016
Date

17 May 2016
Date
20 May 2016

Date

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Appendix A: Job Task Analysis

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PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training Design Document, cont;d.

Appendix B: Detailed Course Outline

Mins.

Intro

4
CDE

10

45-60
(Each
group
15-20
minute
roleplay)

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Task / Topic / Key

Concept
Course Introduction

Handling Customer
Grievances:
Dealing with upset
customers in a threeperson role-play
among the telephone
operator, the upset
customer, and the
observer.

Objective

N/A

Given common
interactions and
issues with upset
customers in
scenarios, the
telephone
operator will
demonstrate the
use of proper
guidelines to
resolve the issue
to the customers
satisfaction, or to
transfer the call to
the supervisor if
necessary.

Instructional Method

Present:
-

Welcome

Administrative
details

Course purpose
and objectives

Course agenda

Presentation of
general
principles

Group
discussion of
examples of
how to apply
rules/principles
to specific
customer
scenarios

Audio clips of
effective and
ineffective
interactions
with customers

Assessment
Method

Assessment
Description

Visuals / Media
Support

N/A

N/A

PowerPoint
slides
containing
relevant
information

Demonstrate
rules and
principles in a
role-play, as
evaluated by a
detailed rubric
with a checklist
of guidelines to
use.

The telephone
operator will
demonstrate use
of principles for
dealing with an
upset customer.

PowerPoint
slides on the
rules and
principles for
dealing with
customer
grievances,
observer
checklists,
audio clips.

The observer
uses a checklist
to observe the
role-play and
determine how
well the
telephone
operator applied
principles.

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PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training Design Document, cont;d.

Mins.

2DE

20

Task / Topic / Key

Concept
Processing New
Orders:
Using electronic
product guide to
answer customer
questions

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Objective

Given a customer
inquiry, learners
will use the
electronic product
guide to correctly
answer the
question.

Instructional Method

Demonstration of
procedural task

Assessment
Method
Application of
procedure

Assessment
Description

Visuals / Media
Support

Learners will
practice using
the electronic
product guide
by going on a
scavenger hunt.
They will have a
series of
questions that
they have to
answer using the
guide. For
example, they
will have to use
the electronic
guide to answer
the question:
What are the
dimensions of
the Perfect
Picnic Wicker
Basket?

Demonstration
of using
electronic
product guide
on instructor
computer.
Hands-on
practice
exercises using
guide on
student
computers.
PowerPoint
slides on the
procedures for
using the
electronic
product guide.
These will also
be listed in the
student
handout.

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PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training Design Document, cont;d.

Appendix C: Final Assessment

As a summative assessment in the last lesson of the course, trainees will participate
in small group role-play exercises. The role-play scenarios will reflect realistic
customer call situations that the telephone operators might encounter. They will
require the trainee playing the role of the telephone operator to apply knowledge
and skills learned in the course to respond to the scenario appropriately. Each
trainees performance in the telephone operator role will be peer-scored and
supervisor-evaluated using a detailed rubric like that presented below.

Role-Play Lesson Plan for Facilitator

Description: Each of you will have the opportunity to practice handling a difficult
customer situation as a telephone operator using the skills youve learned in this
course.
Step 1: Logistical Planning (2 minutes)
Please divide into groups of three, and designate each person as either A, B, or C.
You will all have the opportunity to play each role using a different scenario.
Round

Person A

Person B

Person C

Telephone
Operator

Observer /
Supervisor

Customer

Customer

Telephone
Operator

Observer /
Supervisor

Observer /
Supervisor

Customer

Telephone
Operator

Responsibilities for each role

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Telephone operator: Receive the customer call as if you were getting a

real call during your shift. Using the tools provided and skills you learned
in this class, provide a positive service experience and resolve customer
requests and issues in a positive manner.

Customer: Use the facts provided in the scenario to put yourself in the
shoes of the customer and use realistic dialogue to make the customer
requests and react to the telephone operator.

Observer/Supervisor: Observe the telephone operator-customer

interaction. Score and make comments on each portion of the rubric.
Provide feedback to the telephone operator during the Review portion of
the activity. If the telephone operator chooses to transfer the customer to a
supervisor, play the role of the customer service supervisor. (At the point
of receiving the turnover of the call, you can end the role-play and dont
need to resolve the customer issue as the supervisor.)

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PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training Design Document, cont;d.

Step 2: Prepare (5 minutes)
Have everyone read the first scenario. Answer any questions trainees have. Explain
the sections of the rubric so telephone operators have a good idea of things to
consider and so observers understand what they will be looking for, without
showing the detailed rubric with answer to the telephone operator.
Give the trainees playing the telephone operator role 2-3 minutes to think about
how to respond to the situation, look up any scripts or course materials they might
want to use, etc., to prepare for the exercise.
Step 3: Role-Play (6-8 minutes)
Begin the role-play. Supervisors and facilitators should circulate to observe
portions of each groups role-play. Ask guiding questions if the group stalls out
early.
Step 4: Review (8 minutes)
In each group, review the following questions about the scenario and the telephone
operators performance using the following questions. Supervisors and facilitators
will circulate to participate in the discussion of each group briefly and provide
guidance if there is any disagreement in the group about correct procedures.

How did the telephone operator greet and build rapport with the customer?

What scripts did the telephone operator use? Why? Were there other
options they could have used instead? What are the pros and cons of the
different options?

How did the telephone operator work to answer the customer

question/issue? Were there other options they could have used?

How did the telephone operator implement grievance procedures and

cross-selling techniques, if applicable? Where else in the scenario could
the telephone operator have used these techniques?

If the telephone operator chose to transfer the call to the supervisor, was
that the correct decision? Why or why not?

What words, phrases, explanations, and techniques worked best, and

which did not work well, to make the interaction with the customer
positive? Why?

Step 5: Repeat Steps 2-4 with New Roles/Scenarios (20-25 minutes)

Switch roles and repeat the role-play steps with different scenarios for rounds 2
and 3, so each trainee has an opportunity to play each role.

Sample Scenario
A customer, Terri Klein, calls and is upset because of multiple issues she says she
has with her recent order:

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The order is five days late.

Terri ordered a Woven Peruvian Storage Basket, and it did not arrive.
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PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training Design Document, cont;d.

Terri ordered a Cape Cod Summer Sweater in size large Kelly green, but
received a size medium in mint green.

Terri has been a customer in the past, but now wants a full refund and is
threatening to never shop out of the PJ Enterprises catalog again.
The telephone operators goals are to address the specific issues with Terris order
in a way that makes the customer satisfied with the existing order and also leaves a
positive impression so that the customer will shop with PJ Enterprises again.
Here are some relevant facts about Terris order from the order entry system:

This order consisted of the basket and sweater mentioned above, as well as
a scented candle, which arrived with the sweater.

Because the woven basket is larger, it ships with a different carrier that
takes longer to deliver. The basket is en route and scheduled to be
delivered two days from now. This information was in the fine print of the
email confirmation for Terris order.

The sweater was scheduled to arrive two days ago, and it arrived today.

The sweater was ordered in size large Kelly green, and the pick scans
indicate that this was the size sent, but in the wrong color of mint green.

Terris order history indicates that she has made at least two orders in each
of the past two years, with an average purchase total of $200 per order. Her
most frequently purchased items are in the Womens Clothing and Home
Decorative categories.

Assessment Rubric
The following is a general rubric that will be customized for the skills areas
assessed in each scenario, with a detailed description of how proficiency can be
assessed within the specific scenario. This will aid the peer observer in assigning
points to telephone operator performance. For example, each scenarios rubric will
list the script(s) a telephone operator should use during a particular scenario. At
least 75% of course objectives will be assessed by performance of each scenario.

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PJ Enterprises Telephone Operator Training Design Document, cont;d.

Points
Available

Points
Earned

Skill Area

Demonstration of
Proficiency

Greeting and
Building
Rapport

Use standard customer

greeting and positive tone
of voice throughout.

10

Scripts

Select and execute the

script(s) appropriate to the
customer situation.

10

Answering
Questions
with Product
Guide

Efficiently identify and

clarify customer
issues/questions about
products and provide
answer using electronic
product guide.

Selling

Uses available
opportunities to
recommend related and
featured products to
customer.

Processing
Returns

Efficiently process
customer returns and
records all necessary data
for return.

10

Handling
Customer
Grievances

Efficiently and positively

resolve customer issue
using selected customer
service techniques.

Transferring
to
Supervisor

Transfers customer calls

to supervisor when
appropriate and using
correct procedure.

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Observer Comments

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