Factors influencing employee turnover rates in an insurance call centre environment.

Abstract

It is vital to understand the nature of the factors that contribute to employee turnover in the call centre environment. This study investigates unique or industry specific factors that contribute to high turnover rates in the call centre industry with a view of suggesting and designing retention strategies. The research study was conducted in five insurance companies based in the Johannesburg area. As a result, five strata (A to E) are drawn from the population using a proportionate stratified random sampling technique. In this study, the questionnaire was used as the main instrument for data collection. The psychometric properties (validity and reliability) of the questionnaire was statistically analysed using Factor Analysis and Cronbach’s Coefficient Alpha respectively. The data was captured using Excel Version 2010 and processed using SPSS Version 22. For the analysis of data, descriptive and inferential statistics was used. The findings of this study indicate that supervisor support is the most significant dimension that has the potential to influence employee turnover. Compensation and career development have the most significant inter-correlations, which impact on the turnover intention, especially if both dimensions are below the employees’ required standard. Biographical variables (age and gender) have also been found to have the potential to influence employee turnover. The key findings and recommendations for reducing the potential for employee turnover are graphically presented to enable practical implementation by practitioners, particularly in a call centre environment.