March Madness reveals America’s best college basketball team and the super fans that stood behind them from the beginning. From rivalries to upsets, blowouts to buzzer-beaters; we anxiously wait to witness what will unfold between March 14th and April 3rd as the top programs in the country battle for a national championship and the rest of us battle for the best bracket.

What better way to motivate call center representatives than mirroring the enthusiasm in the arena with a little friendly competition in the office? Using March Madness to drive call center effectiveness is an opportunity to engage call center representatives through something relatable and relevant, college basketball. Introducing an office tournament bracket will incentivize call center representatives to overcome challenging campaigns, increase closes per hour, sales conversion rate, and average handle time. Although a national championship isn’t on the line, recognition, prizes and of course bragging rights will motivate call center representatives to exceed sales goals.

Each round will be based on one week’s performance. Call center representatives will compete head to head and the winner each week will move on to the next round. Scoring is based on the primary metric for each individual campaign whether that is closes per hour, average handle time, or conversion rate. Scores can be calculated based on individual call center representatives performance against the room average for each campaign and weighted based on time spent.

The promotional potential of a March Madness inspired tournament is endless. You can employ word of mouth teasers, post brackets in break rooms, hand out daily updates, post media through social channels or employee intranet outlets, and share shout outs from team leads.

As simple as it sounds, bringing March Madness into the office will have a significant effect on employee morale. In previous years, we've seen results range from a 15% handle time reduction in sales to an 18% conversion rate increase in sales. For a program costing roughly $1,200, revenue increase during the incentive could reach $13,000. Beyond these initial performance numbers, results will likely be sustained after the tournament ends. So what are you waiting for? Let the games begin!