This book looks at human resource management in call centres from an international perspective and uses research from leading academics in the field. The characteristics and features of working in a call centre are examined, followed by the effects that this type of work has on employees and their responses to it. It also looks at implications for employers and policy makers.

Includes contributions by many of the world's leading researchers in the field

List of Figures List of Tables Notes on the Contributors Introduction: The Nature and Management of Call Centre Work; S.Deery & N.Kinnie PART I: MANAGERIAL STRATEGIES AND EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES The Viability of Alternative Call Centre Production Models; R.Batt and L.Moynihan Call Centre HRM and Performance Outcomes: Does Workplace Governance Matter?; S.Fernie Tensions and Variations in Call Centre Management Strategies; M.Houlihan Managing Client, Employee and Customer Relations: Constrained Strategic Choice in the Management of Human Resources in a Commercial Call Centre; N.Kinnie and J.Parsons PART II: CHARACTERISTICS AND ORGANIZATIONAL FEATURES OF CALL CENTRE WORK Keeping Up Appearances: Recruitment, Skills and Normative Control in Call Centres; P.Thompson, G.Callaghan and D.van den Broek Professionals at Work: A Study of Autonomy and Skill Utilization in Nurse Call Centres in England and Canada; C.Collin-Jacques A Female Ghetto? Women's Careers in Telephone Call Centres; V.Belt PART III: EFFECTS OF CALL CENTRE WORK ON EMPLOYEES The Effect of Customer Service Encounters on Job Satisfaction and Emotional Exhaustion; S.Deery, R.Iverson and J.Walsh Employee Well Being in Call Centres; D.Holman PART IV: MANAGEMENT AND EMPLOYEE RESPONSE TO ISSUES OF WORKPLACE GOVERNANCE All Talk But No Voice: Non-Union Employee Representation in Call Centre Work; P.Gollan Call to Arms? Collective and Individual Responses to Call Centre Labour Management; D.van den Broek Index