Consensus started with a simple mission: To simplify the decidedly un-simple transactional process of selling connected devices, from point-of-sale through activation and beyond. Consensus, which became a subsidiary of Target Corporation in 2014 (their largest client of all time), serves as a support system of knowledge and resources throughout a complicated cell phone activation process — a role that takes an immense amount of employee training.

Where does Consensus fit in the buyer journey? When you set foot in a Target store, purchase a cell phone and can’t quite get the fancy device activated or complete your credit check. That’s when Consensus is called and an expert at the Consensus call center helps guide the Target employee in solving the issue at hand.

The problem for Consensus: Employee training for the holidays

Consensus has on average of up to 100 full-time employees and contractors in their Texas call center. However, during their peak holiday season, they ramp up the number of employees to 250. With a tight holiday training schedule and a growing number of people to train quickly, the pressure is on to ensure every employee is effectively trained and knowledgeable.

Consensus can receive as many as 10,000 activations and credit checks in one night. Employees must be prepared to handle high demands and sufficiently serve their clients needs at any given moment.

Training call center employees isn’t easy. From nimbly answering random tech questions to providing clear support guidance to Target employees, the job requires the ability to think fast on one's feet. There are multiple network systems they need to quickly become familiar with — for example, Verizon’s or AT&T’s. This requires knowledge of the actual hardware and tech systems, which can be confusing and vary from platform to platform.

Where Cerego stepped in: Empowering employees with the ability to effectively learn

Consensus began using Cerego in 2016 to train employees quickly, effectively and cost-efficiently. Before this, old-school training methods were used, including printouts and projectors in front of a classroom. Cerego has dramatically changed the way Consensus trains their employees, and they’ve seen exciting team and training results. Employees are still trained in a traditional classroom with hands-on instruction to start, but now they have the ability to continue learning outside the classroom using Cerego's adaptive quizzes and learning sets. Cerego’s reminders allow them to refresh what they’ve previously learned in their training and stay sharp as they start to accumulate more knowledge.

“When you get out on the floor, it is easy to forget training,” Brittany Knight, content specialist at Consensus, said. “With Cerego and the ability to have access to information at all times — that’s the success. When they forget something, they now have the ability to login and review a course.”

The quick access to material and ability to brush up on training is empowering for employees because they are able to feel confident in their knowledge. Time and money is saved because there’s less of a need to lean on a supervisor or ask other people for help — they can just log into Cerego and feel prepared. When employees finish training with Cerego, they feel ready to answer calls and can get on the phone to address client needs. If they get lost while on a call, employees refer back to their Cerego sets, streamlining workflows across the board.

Feedback and results

Employee feedback from trainees has been nothing but positive. Consensus found that their employee retention has increased with the use of Cerego.

Employees enjoy the easy-to-use interface, engagement triggers and personalized learning journeys, creating a positive experience for all. On the trainer and admin side, Cerego is easy to use and manageable when it comes to building questions or pulling analytics.

As a result, employees feel more confident and stronger in their roles, leading to a more positive experience at work.