CIPD Level 3CO04 Essentials of people practice Assignment Example

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This unit introduces the fundamentals of people practice, encompassing the employee lifecycle, as well as policies, regulations, and laws. It further explores a diverse array of specialist subjects such as recruitment, talent management, reward and learning and development, essential to a career in people practice. Importantly, this unit enables practitioners to apply their knowledge and skills, building their confidence and ability to practice progressively.

Case study

Part of an international group, Jemijo is one of the largest insurers in the country. Over five million customers choose home, car, travel, van and pet insurance products from Jemijo and expect high-quality customer service. To ensure that high standards are achieved and maintained, a large workforce is required, comprising more than 2,500 people who work for Jemijo. Locations of work vary; some staff are fully office-based at one of the five office locations, some are home-based, while some utilise a combination of office and home working.

Roles within Jemijo vary greatly, but the majority work in customer service roles selling insurance products, answering account queries, and dealing with insurance claims through call centres. Although more than 65% of sales, queries and claims now take place online, some customers prefer not to talk to a person or find their query requires human interaction. The call centre telephone lines are now open Monday to Saturday from 8:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. but closed on Sunday.

The exception to this is the emergency claims hotline, which is open 24/7. The emergency claims hotline deals with urgent claims such as emergency heating and plumbing, boiler breakdown, roof leaks at Jemijo are in insurance in underwriting, market analysis, as well as functions such as marketing, finance, IT and people. 

Task one – written answers (recruitment and selection)

Answer:

The following diagram illustrates the phases of the employee lifecycle with annotations on the roles that people professionals at Jemijo will play in each phase:

Contribution of People Professionals and Stages of Employee Lifecycle at Jemijo.

1.    Attraction and Recruitment

• Advertising vacancies related to the search for the right candidates for different positions in the insurance industry.
  
• Recruitment channels must be applied based on the diverse workflows of Jemijo (office-based, home-based)
  
• Adopt fair and consistent selection to recruit individuals with the appropriate customer service, underwriting, claims, and support functions.
  

2.    Onboarding

• Create onboarding programs that are unique to office employees and remote workers.
  
• Have new employees familiar with customer service standards and values at Jemijo.
  
• Training of insurance products, systems and emergency hotline procedures.
  

3.  Performance Management and Development.

• Provide ongoing learning and growth in terms of skills required in sales handling, claims and information systems.
  
• Operate the performance based on customer feedback metrics and individual targets.
  
• Encourage flexible working and professional development at Jemijo.
  

4. Retention and Engagement

• Measure worker satisfaction in different workplaces (at home and in the office).
  
• Design initiatives that encourage interaction and motivation, particularly in the front office jobs.
  
• Apply communication and reward strategies that are consistent with the Jemijo values and diversity in the workforce.
  

5.  Transition or Exit

• Resignations/ Retirement: Manage resignations or retirements with an appropriate exit interview as a way to acquire some insights.
  
• Provide easy knowledge transfer and handover within customer service and technical teams.
• Adhere to legal and organisational regulations in the process of offboarding.
  

This life cycle map indicates key steps through which people professionals at Jemijo can contribute value to the company to ensure that high standards are upheld through recruitment, onboarding, development, retention and transition of the workforce in their insurance services and workforce management.

Q2. Explain how job analysis can help to create an accurate job description and person specification for the role of a claims handler, at Jemijo’s call centre (AC 1.2)

Answer:

Job analysis is used to develop the correct job description and person specification of the position of a claims handler at the call centre of Jemijo through a systematic collection of information on the duties, responsibilities, skills, and qualifications of the position. People professionals can do the following through job analysis:

• Determine critical activities such as the management of claims effectively, contacting customers, and making urgent calls on the emergency hotline.
  
• Establish the required skills, including insurance product knowledge, good customer care, problem-solving skills and IT skills.
  
• Make working conditions clear, like the hours of work in the call centre, a combination of office and working at home, and the work rate based on the peak hours.
  
• Identify individual qualities that are needed, e.g. attention to detail, empathy and the ability to work under pressure.
  
• Write an effective job description based on this analysis, containing duties and expectations.
  
• Write a person specification outlining the qualifications, experience and competencies required to do the job well.
  

This process will help in drawing the right employees to the job advert, and the selection criteria will be relevant to the demands of Jemijo in terms of operation and customer service, which will aid in effective recruitment and quality service delivery in the position of claims handler.

Q3. Jemijo advertise vacancies through their website and on commercial job boards. Explain each of these recruitment methods and explain why these methods are appropriate for advertising call centre vacancies. (AC 1.3)

Answer:

Jemijo employs two primary sources for conducting a call centre recruitment: their own web-based platform and commercial job sites.

Jemijo Website:

It is the official online platform of this company. The job adverts that are placed here are open to individuals who are directly interested in working in Jemijo. It enables the sharing of detailed information on the company culture, benefits, and job positions, which facilitates the acquisition of applicants who share the same values as Jemijo. It is also a very cheap way of hiring people and can give first-hand control of the message being put across.

Commercial Job Boards:

They are websites which are outside and are involved with the advertisement of a vast variety of job opportunities in different industries. Indeed, Reed or Monster can be used as examples. Job boards are widely spread and have a huge amount of diverse candidates. This will heighten the probability of getting more appropriate candidates in a short time. Job boards can be used to provide an effective means of collecting a significant number of applications, especially in the case of call centre positions, wherein the requirements of the job can be quite high.

The reason these approaches would be suitable in the case of the call centre vacancies at Jemijo:

• The call centre needs a huge number of employees with diverse shifts (office, home, combined) and therefore, these far-reaching online approaches guarantee availability of a vast pool of talent.
• Online applications make everything faster and enable handling the number of applications.
• Both approaches cover various preferences of the applicants; some of them frequently visit the company site, and some visit the job boards.
• The positions need applicants who possess great customer service and communication skills, and these can be well emphasised in the job adverts on both sites.

In general, the employment of Jemijos' site and commercial job boards is aligned with the company's requirement of large-scale, efficient recruitment of call centre workers with flexible schedules and locations.

Q4. Explain why the content of the copy used in the job adverts on Jemijo’s website could vary compared to the content of the copy on commercial jobs boards. (AC 1.4)

Answer:

Jemijo may find the copy in the job adverts on its site to be different to commercial job boards since the two sites are used to do different things and target different audiences, and this means a difference in the copy of the advert.

On the Jemijo site, job ads may be more elaborate with detailed information on the company culture, perks, career enhancement prospects and even expectations on their insurance products and service quality requirements towards their customers. This will assist in getting candidates who have a particular desire to work in Jemijo and require more knowledge of the job and corporate values.

Commercial job board adverts, on the other hand, are usually shorter and less detailed, emphasising such points as the job title, its location, its primary tasks, and the necessary conditions. The reason behind this is that job boards are restricted in terms of space and reach a large audience that browses numerous opportunities. The adverts in this case must be able to draw attention quickly and give as little information as is necessary to prompt applications.

Further, commercial job boards can employ broader language to attract a larger talent pool and potentially include keywords and terms oriented at search optimisation to give more visibility.

Thus, Jemijo advertises jobs differently on both sites to produce the best results of attracting and attracting the right candidate: narrow and brand-centric on their site, short and appealing to a wide audience on job boards.

Q5. Explain why structured interviews and assessment centres are appropriate selection methods for call centre roles at Jemijo. (AC 2.1)

Answer:

Assessment centres and structured interviews are suitable selection techniques in call centre jobs at Jemijo, since it is a fair, consistent, and effective form of assessing the skills and suitability of applicants for the call centre jobs.

Structured Interviews:

• A set of questions, which are standardised and target the specific needs of the call centre position, i.e., customer service skills, problem-solving and communication skills, is used.
• Such consistency makes it less biased and more reliable when comparing the candidates.
• The structured interviews are predictive of future job performance, and this is essential because of dealing with customer inquiries and urgent claims, as in the case of Jemijo.
• They assist in making sure that the candidates are capable of meeting the standards of service of the company and their culture.

Assessment Centres:

• These give a virtual experience in which candidates can be viewed in real job activities by practising them.
• In the case of the call centre jobs, it may involve role-playing customer calls, difficult call-handling or small group activities.
• Assessment centres consider a variety of skills not captured by interviews alone, such as interpersonal skills, stress management, and decision-making.
• It is a more in-depth way of understanding how a candidate would perform and fit in the dynamic call centre atmosphere Jemijo is looking to hire.
• Combined, structured interviews and assessment centres assist Jemijo to choose those candidates that are technically competent, customer-oriented and can succeed in a high-paced insurance call centre environment.

Q6. Explain what records from the structured interviews and assessment centres at Jemijo should be retained. (AC 2.4)

Answer:

Structured interview records and assessment centre records at Jemijo must be retained in order to facilitate transparency, adherence and justifiability in the recruitment process. The records that are important to maintain are:

• Interview notes and scores: Detailed notes, scoring sheets of the structured interviews, which indicate the answers of each candidate and his/her evaluation against the measures.
• Result of assessment centre: Documents of the performance of the candidates in exercises, with the observation, ratings and comments by the assessors.
• Evaluation forms: The form that has been filled and gives a summary of the strengths, weaknesses and suitability of the role, which are used to compare the candidates.
• Candidate selection decisions: Records to demonstrate how candidates were selected based on the results of the interview and assessment centre.
• Consent and authorisation forms: Documents that prove the consent of the candidates to take part and their knowledge of data processing.

Any type of communication or correspondence to the selection process.

Maintaining these records assists Jemijo to defend its decisions on recruiting, address queries or complaints raised by the candidates, as well as the legal necessities of protecting information and providing equal opportunity employment. It also aids in sustaining the same standards of recruitment and enables the possibility of audit or review of the process in future.

Q7. Using an AI tool of your choice, create templates for a letter of appointment and a letter of non-appointment for the call centre customer service role. Once you have created the templates, critically review each template, and explain which elements you would keep and why, and which elements you would remove or change and why. (AC 2.5)  

Answer:

Here are template examples for Jemijo's call centre role, followed by a critical review of each:
Letter of Appointment Template
[Company Letterhead]
Date:
Candidate Name:
Address:
Dear [Candidate Name],

We are pleased to offer you the position of Call Centre Customer Service Representative at Jemijo. Your skills and experience align well with our requirements, and we are confident you will make a valuable contribution.
Your start date will be [start date]. Your working hours will be [hours/days], based at [location/home].
Your salary will be [amount] per annum, payable monthly. This role includes access to our employee benefits package.
Please confirm your acceptance by signing and returning a copy of this letter by [date].

We look forward to welcoming you to Jemijo.
Sincerely,
[Name]
[Title]

Letter of Non-Appointment Template

[Company Letterhead]
Date:
Candidate Name:
Address:
Dear [Candidate Name],
Thank you for your interest in the Call Centre Customer Service role at Jemijo and for attending the selection process.
After careful consideration, we regret to inform you that, on this occasion, we will not be progressing your application further.
We appreciate the time you invested and wish you success with your job search.
Kind regards,
[Name]

Critical Review:

1.  What to Keep:

• Both letters are written in a clear, polite and professional tone.
• Particular information in the appointment letter about the role, date of that position, salary, and acceptance directives brings about clarity.
• The non-appointment letter is a sign of gratitude, and this keeps the candidate relations positive.

2.  What to Change or Add:

• Two additions to the content of the appointment letter may help to make it more understandable, including the mention of probation period, training, and reporting line.
• It would be nice to provide contact information in both letters where questions are concerned.
• The non-appointment letter may be diluted by giving feedback or encouraging them to apply to future vacancies, which strengthens the employer brand image.
• It is preferable to use clear language to reduce the misunderstanding of the candidates or litigation.

All in all, these templates would be a solid foundation, but must be modified to fit the policies of Jemijo and the style of communicating with candidates to make it clear, positive, and legal.

Q8.  Devise selection criteria for the post of People Assistant using the job description already written (Appendix A). Use the selection shortlisting matrix (Appendix B) to shortlist applications against the selection criteria to determine candidates to be interviewed.  You must use the completed sample application forms provided in Appendix C (AC 2.2)

Answer:

According to the average duties and the overall job of a People Assistant, the selection criteria must be based on major skills, qualifications, and attributes that an individual should have in performing the job. These could include:

• Good communication and interpersonal skills to liaise with the employees and managers.
• Good organisational abilities are required to handle administrative work and keep proper records.
• Employment law, HR policies and procedures knowledge.
• Skills in using HR systems and databases.
• Effective problem-solving abilities to solve employee questions and problems.
• Skill to deal with delicate and sensitive information discreetly.
• Motivation for providing customer service.
• Practical academic credentials (e.g. a diploma or a degree in HR, Business Administration, or any other relevant sphere).
• Prior experience in administrative/ HR support activities is desirable but not necessary.

After defining the selection criteria, it is possible to evaluate the applications and rate them on the basis of the selection criteria by use of a shortlist matrix to determine the most appropriate candidates to be interviewed.

Task two – simulated interview

Q9.  Interview one applicant and decide whether they meet the criteria for the post. The interview could be a panel of no more than three learners from the same centre, or a one-to-one interview (as determined by your centre). The interview could be conducted face-to-face or by web conferencing (as determined by your centre). (AC 2.3) 

[If working as a panel, it is essential that each member of the team actively takes part in devising the criteria, shortlisting, interviewing and decision-making.

A copy of CIPD STARR Model Interview Questions (Appendix D) has been included, which can be used when developing interview questions.]
Answer:

Write interview questions that are in tandem with the requirements of the selection of the People Assistant job, which concentrate on:

• Interpersonal and communication skills.
• E administration and management skills.
• HR policy and confidentiality.
• Customer service orientation and problem-solving.
• Fit and Motivation in Jemijos culture.
• Interviews may be conducted either on a face-to-face basis or on a web conferencing basis with up to three interviewers or one-on-one.

When conducting the interview, compare the responses of the candidate with the selection criteria, indicating the presence of the relevant experience and competency.

The scoring system or shortlist matrix is to be used after the interview to score the candidate on suitability using the criteria.

Examples of interview questions:

• What was a situation where you were dealing with confidential information at the workplace?
• What are your priorities when you have more than one deadline?
• What is your response to a challenging employee request or complaint?
• Why do you like the idea of working in the HR support of Jemijo?

Decision example:
In case the candidate possesses good communication skills, organising ability, and shares the values of Jemijo, he/she is fit.

In case of absence of key competencies or poor responses to good fit, the candidate might not match the requirements.

This methodology assists in making sure that one has a fair and objective appraisal in accordance with the job requirements.

Task three – Written answers  (legislation and employment relations)

Q10. Explain, with reference to legislation, why it is important that call centre staff at Jemijo, working on the 24/7 claims hotline, have adequate periods of rest between periods of work and do not work excessive hours. (AC 3.1)

Answer: 

It is noteworthy that the employees of the call centre of Jemijo operating on the 24/7 claims hotline should have sufficient rest and should not work overtime hours in order to meet the legal requirements like the UK Working Time Regulations 1998. These laws rely on the European Working Time Directive and demand:

• At least one day of rest of 11 hours in a row between work days.
• Rest time is during working hours when the working shift is longer than six hours.
• Daily rest, besides a minimum of 24 hours of rest per week.
• The maximum number of hours to work in a week is 48, averaged out at 17.00 hours, except at the discretion of the worker.

These legal provisions safeguard employees against exhaustion, minimise the dangers to health and security, and advance their health and performance. The hours and lack of rest also increase the chances of errors, accidents, and stress too high and should be avoided at all costs in high-pressure settings such as the emergency claims hotline at Jemijo.

Compliance with the rest period and maximum hours laws will help Jemijo satisfy the duty of care, staff productivity, and employment law, which will protect its staff and quality service provision to customers.

Q11. Briefly explain what is meant by the term well-being, and explain why well-being is important in Jemijo’s call centre. (AC 3.2)

Answer: 
Wellbeing is the general health condition of a person, both in terms of physical, mental, emotional and social wellbeing. It consists of being healthy, comfortable, and happy in and out of the workplace.

The concept of well-being is relevant to the Jemijo call centre as the specifics of the job, including receiving customer claims requests, which can be urgent or stressful, might have negative effects on the physical and mental health of the employees. Well-being is associated with good health that enables staff to cope with stress, stay focused, provide high-quality customer service, and eliminate absenteeism and turnover. Wellbeing support within a 24/7 call centre environment is conducive to a positive workplace culture, and it leads to the success of the company as it helps employees to be motivated, engaged, and productive.

Q12. Henry, a call centre manager at Jemijo, is keen to attract and select young people to work in the call centre and suggests advertising vacancies for 18- to 21-year-olds. With reference to discrimination legislation, summarise why this approach presents a legal risk. (AC 3.3)

Answer:

Advertising vacancies to people aged 18 to 21 years is a legal risk to Henry since it amounts to age discrimination under the UK Equality Act of 2010. This law safeguards people against direct discrimination based on age, and cuts across the board.
Jemijo would be discriminating against other qualified individuals, older or younger, who would equally qualify to occupy the job advertised, thus direct discrimination is being applied. These discriminative recruitment decisions may result in legal suits, reputational losses and potential fines.

Rather, hiring needs to be competitive based on skills, experience, and job-related factors without using unreasonable age limitations to provide an equal opportunity and adhere to the discrimination legislation.

Q13. Explain how the terms diversity and inclusion differ and why diversity and inclusion are important in Jemijo’s call centres. (AC 3.4)

Answer: 

Diversity is a state of having differences in a workforce and the differences are in terms of race, gender, age, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation and cultural background. Inclusion, however, entails providing an environment that makes all these different individuals feel valued, respected and are actively encouraged to be involved and contribute to their full capacity.

Diversity concerns the question of who is in the room, whereas inclusion concerns the question of the welcome and engagement of people in the room.

Diversity and inclusion are significant in the Jemijo call centres since:

•    They encourage diversity of views and ideas, which may enhance the quality of problem-solving and customer service.
•    A diverse and inclusive workforce will be more representative of the customers of Jemijo, and therefore understand and communicate better.
•    Inclusion leads to a good working environment in which employees are motivated and appreciated, and this minimises the rate of turnover and absenteeism.
•    It contributes to the adherence to laws on equality and assists in developing Jemijo as a workplace with a good reputation as a fair and ethical employer.
•    Diversity and inclusion would enable Jemijo to provide high standards of services in a competitive insurance market.

Q14. Henry advises you that Megan, a Jemijo employee with five years’ continuous service, swore at a customer who was frustrated about the time taken to deal with their insurance claim. Henry informs you that he has not taken any action yet, but will dismiss Megan in a meeting today, and asks whether there is a form that they need to fill out for this to ensure Megan is not overpaid. You are relieved that Henry has contacted you, but you are concerned about his proposal and the legal risk of his approach. Explain why Henry’s approach is likely to be viewed as an unfair dismissal and how the approach differs from the approach needed for a fair dismissal. (AC 3.5)

Answer: 

The attitude of Henry to immediately fire Megan without conducting a fair process is likely to be treated as unfair dismissal, because it ignores the provisions of the law that require fair and comprehensive disciplinary procedure.
•    The UK employment law of unfair dismissal provides that the employer must:
•    Before any disciplinary action, there should be a proper investigation.
•    Give the employee a specific description of the accusations.
•    Give a chance to the employee to answer and make his/her case.
•    Adhere to the disciplinary measures put in place by Jemijo as well as give warnings where necessary.
•    Weigh all the situations and other sanctions before firing.

The intention of Henry to sack Megan in one meeting without investigation or giving her a chance to appeal may lead to a violation of these principles because Jemijo will be exposed to legal suits and possible compensation.

The legal dismissal process would encompass a formal disciplinary meeting, written evidence, the opportunity for Megan to give an explanation or apology and a decision that is in line with the misconduct. This practice honours the rights of employees, leads to the minimisation of legal risk, and facilitates good employment relations.

Task four – Written answers (performance management and reward)

Q15. The CIPD factsheet, ‘Performance management: an introduction’, states that performance management includes the following activities:

Establish objectives
Improve performance
Hold people to account

Explain how these activities could assist in the performance management of call centre staff at Jemijo. (AC 4.1)

Answer:

Measures to complete performance management, such as setting goals, stimulating performance, and holding individuals accountable, are important in managing the call centre employees of Jemijo effectively.

• Establish objectives: Clear, measurable objectives can assist the staff to know what is required, e.g. the required time to make calls, the level of customer satisfaction, and the correctness of the claims made. This transparency encourages workers and focuses on work with Jemij.
• Improve performance: Constant support, feedback, and training of staff allow them to acquire skills and overcome difficulties. As an illustration, the coach training on dealing with challenging customers or new IT systems assists in ensuring high quality in dealing with customers and effectiveness.
• Hold people to account: Accountability is achieved by monitoring performance against goals and dealing with poor performance by having constructive discussions or disciplinary measures. This helps ensure a stable level of service and equity and underlines one of the promises that Jemijo makes towards.

These activities combined make Jemijo have a driven, skilled and responsible workforce that delivers Jemijo operational and customer expectations.

Q16. Explain how the level of skill and the level of motivation of call centre staff at Jemijo could impact their performance. (AC 4.2)

Answer:

The performance of the call centre employees of Jemijo is influenced in many ways in relation to the level of skills and motivation of the employees:

Skill level: 

• Increased level of skills implies that staff are more competent in system usage, in the work with complicated queries and claims processing correctly and efficiently. 
•  Absence of skills may be a source of errors, increased call durations, and reduced customer satisfaction.
• Competent staff require minimum supervision and can deliver high standards even in a stressful and demanding environment, which will also contribute to the overall quality of service.

Motivation Level:

• Motivation makes one persistent in calling hard and ready to learn and improve.
• Staff who are motivated are more interested, passionate and dedicated to providing services to customers that are of high quality. 
• The lack of motivation can lead to a decrease in efforts, absenteeism, and turnover, which will hurt the performance and morale of the team. 

Therefore, high motivation and high skills are required in order to make Jemijo keep the customer service level high and operational efficiency levels high in their call centres.

Q17. At present, call centre staff at Jemijo have annual appraisals with their manager. Explain whether continuous reviews could be more beneficial than annual reviews (AC 4.3)

Answer:

This might be more advantageous to Jemijo for conducting continuous performance review rather than annual reviews of the call centre employees since:

• Reviews will give constant feedback and assistance, which will enable employees to rectify their work early enough instead of waiting until the end of the year. 
• They can enable the managers to detect and deal with any problems or training requirements in a very short time, and this is essential in a fast-moving call centre setup.
• The frequent reviews make employees more motivated and engaged by rewarding their achievements and creating short-term objectives. 
• They eradicate anxiety and uncertainty that is commonly associated with the annual appraisal since they result in continuous communication between the staff and the managers. 
• The culture of constant improvement, flexibility and responsiveness to business or customer requirements is encouraged through continuous reviews.

On the other hand, the effectiveness of the annual reviews in sustaining high service standards in Jemijo is likely to be delayed because they may take some time to provide feedback and performance improvement.

Q18. The CIPD factsheet, ‘Strategic reward and total reward’ (February 2025), sets out a range of elements that could form part of total reward. Explain why ‘Access to professional and personal development’ and ‘meaningful work’ could be valued by call centre customer service advisors at Jemijo. (AC 5.1)

Answer:

The aspects of professional and personal growth and meaningful work are essential to the call centre customer service advisor positions at Jemijo due to the following reasons:

Availability of professional and personal development:

• It gives the chance to develop and enhance the skills and advancement of careers, which may add to job satisfaction and motivation.
• Development programs also assist the advisors to better manage more complicated customer queries and enhance their confidence and performance. 
•  This helps in sustaining long-term employability and personal development, which is significant in the retention of such jobs that might be fully monotonous. 

Meaningful work:

• Advisors desire to feel their job is important, like assisting customers to solve stressful insurance claims.
• Having meaningful work raises the level of engagement, commitment and develops a sense of pride in providing high-quality service. 
• The feeling that work raised the level of engagement, commitment and developed a sense of pride in providing high-quality service. 

All of these reward components can be combined to form an inspiring, talented and retentive workforce that is in line with the Jemijo customer service objectives.

Q19. With reference to at least one motivation theory, explain how non-financial reward could support good performance in the call centre at Jemijo. (AC 5.2)

Answer:

The call centre of Jemijo can achieve good performance through non-financial rewards that will address intrinsic motivational needs as described in the self-determination theory by Deci and Ryan. This theory emphasises the fact that individuals get motivated when their need to feel self-directed, competent, and related is fulfilled.

These needs can be met at Jemijo by non-financial rewards, including recognition, personal development opportunities, meaningful work, and a supportive team environment: 
•    Autonomy: Providing some autonomy to employees makes them more engaged.
•    Competence: The development opportunities enhance performance by increasing skills and confidence.
•    Relatedness: Positive recognition and good working relations make one feel a sense of belonging.

These internal stimuli tend to cause an increase in the long-lasting motivation and quality of work as compared to monetary incentives. The non-financial rewards in a customer service environment, such as the Jemijo call centre, will prove to help foster a good culture in which the employees feel appreciated, motivated to perform better and also devote themselves to providing high-quality service.

Q20. Explain why it is important that the pay for call centre staff at Jemijo is equitable and consistent. (AC 5.3)

Answer:

It is noteworthy that the compensation of the employees of the call centre at Jemijo is fair and unbiased since:

• Regular payment policies can lower the chance of lawsuits concerning payment discrimination on the basis of such aspects as gender, race or age.
• Equal compensation will take care of the employees who perform similar tasks with the same skills and experience, whilst with fair pay, and this helps to develop a sense of justice and confidence in the employees.
• Just and open compensation helps in motivating employees, job satisfaction and retention, which result in performance improvement and reduced turnover in the busy call centres if Jemijo.
•  Inequlity or the imbalance of pay may provoke resentment and a decreased in morale, as well as damage the work as a team, which adversely affects the customer service as a whole. 
• Pay consistency produces a good organisational culture and reputation as a fair employer that would help attract good candidates.

As such, equitable and consistent pay is necessary to ensure that Jemijo complies with the employment law, enhances fairness, and ensures an effective operation

Task five – Written Answers (learning and development)

Q21. Explain the benefits to new starters and Jemijo of the call centre’s basic training programme. (AC 6.1)

Answer:

The entry-level training programme offered to new employees in the Jemilo call centre has several advantages:
For new starters:

• It provides the knowledge and skill they need to deal with customer enquiries and claims with precision and efficiency, minimising mistakes and increasing confidence.
• Basic training also orients new workers in systems, policies and customer services of Jemijo so that they adjust faster and become competent.
• It will aid new hires in knowing their expectations and handling difficult situations, and enhance their job satisfaction and lower their turnover upon hiring.

For Jemijo:

• Training also means that the quality of service is maintained throughout the call centre, which contributes to the reputation and customer loyalty of Jemijo.
• Trained employees are more efficient in operations, making it less costly to make an error and less time to resolve it is taken by customers.
• Training is a way of increasing employee engagement and retention, as it shows the investment in development by Jemijo.
• It minimises resources and time used in supervision and support, optimising the concentration of management.
• In general, the basic training programme of the call centre is essential in ensuring effective integration of new employees and high standards in terms of performance.

Q22. All new starters in the call centre at Jemijo undertake the basic training programme. Describe different types of learning needs that might arise once the basic training is complete, and describe why they might arise. (AC 6.2)

Answer:

Various forms of learning requirements that may be experienced by the Jemijo call centre employees after the initial training is over could include:

1. Skills Development Needs: As employees become experienced, they might need higher-level skills training, which can involve working with complex claims, solving awkward customer cases or learning new IT applications.
   
   
2. Knowledge Update Needs: The shift in the insurance policy, workflow or a law can initiate continuous learning to ensure that the staff is well-informed and compliant.
   
   
3. Personal Development Needs: The staff may want to be developed in other aspects that may include communicating better, time management, stress management, etc, to be more improve his or her performance and well-being.
   
   
4. Needs for Improvement of Performance: People might require specific training or coaching to overcome certain weaknesses that have been identified in the course of the performance reviews.
   
   
5. Career Development Needs: Ambitious workers may need to be taught skills in line with their career development, like leadership or administrative-related skills.

These needs come about as a result of the changing job demands, organisational dynamics, personal ambitions and performance feedback, which ensures that there is constant improvement and flexibility in a dynamic call centre scenario.

Q23. Provide a summary of how face-to-face training can be used to develop managers at Jemijo, and briefly summarise how blended learning, facilitation, coaching, and mentoring could also be used to develop management skills. (AC 6.3)

Answer:

Managers can be trained face-to-face at Jemijo through direct exposure to trainers and other employees to give them real-time feedback, practical training and role-playing, which will improve their communication skills, leadership, and problem-solving abilities. It is a networking tool, a confidence builder, and it allows trainers to customise sessions depending upon group dynamics and personal needs.

Blended learning is a mix of face-to-face lessons and online learning modules, which provide flexibility and enhance the learning process at the pace of the learner. Facilitation promotes participation and discussion during group discussions, which enables managers to share experiences and resolve problems through group discussions.

 Coaching is a one-on-one guidance and support to achieve a particular skill or overcome a challenge, whereas mentoring is a long-term career development and guidance of experienced leaders. Combined with face-to-face training, these approaches provide various and personalised learning opportunities in management development through continuous learning.

Q24. As the successful completion of the basic training programme is essential for new starters, explain how Jemijo can ensure that the basic training programme is inclusive and accessible for all new starters. (AC 6.4)

Answer:

Jemijo would be able to make sure that the basic training programme is inclusive and international to all the new starters by:

• Creating training materials that take into account the learning styles, abilities, and languages to accommodate the needs of various people.
• Making reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities, including the use of assistive technologies or other formatting.
• Provision of options for delivering training in a flexible manner that includes face-to-face training, online training and blended training to meet different preferences and conditions.
• The establishment of a friendly and respectful atmosphere that appreciates diversity and encourages equal involvement.
• Assuring effective communication and assistance to individuals with literacy, language, and cultural hindrances.
• Raising awareness and regularly revising and modernising training on inclusivity best practices and legal standards.
• These measures will assist Jemijo in the maximum training effectiveness and equality among all new personnel of the call centre.

Q25. Discuss a range of metrics that could be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the basic training for call centre staff at Jemijo (AC 6.5)

Answer:
The effectiveness of the basic training of call centre employees at Jemijo could be measured with the help of several metrics, such as:

1. Knowledge Retention: Tests or pre- and post-training to evaluate the amount of information that trainees have learned and retained.
2. Performance Metrics: Skewing of major performance indicators (KPI) like the average call handling time, the rate of first-call resolution and customer satisfaction score before and after training.
3. Quality of Service: Measures such as monitoring calls and customer feedback to determine the changes in communication skills and accuracy.
4. Training Completion Rates: Percentage of new starters who complete the basic training programme within the time taken.
5. Employee Response: Survey or interview of the trainee to elicit attitude as to the relevance and effectiveness of the training.
6. Long-term Impact: Determining the turnover rates, absenteeism, and continuous performance review to determine the sustained training benefits.

These metrics will help Jemijo to understand the effectiveness of training in its entirety and where it can make constant improvement.