Speak English 2

[ajetrumpet]

It wasn't long ago that I finally got sick of talking to people in call centers that *A)I didn't quite understand, or B)I knew were not on the same level as me as far as getting something done (or if it was an issue that needed immediate attention, taking a lacksodasical attitude about it-in their view though they probably thought it was no big deal). I've called many a corporation only because there was no other option for the topics I needed discuss. I remember the first time I called my credit card company, it took me about 30 minutes, 4 phone calls and 3 countries to get a even a SUPERVISOR to realize that a physical building such as theirs has a telephone number! This particular company is am referencing has centers all over the world, including Canada, CA and TX. I have the numbers to all 3 of those centers, but the people who seem to understand inquiries the best are those in Canada. I can call CA or TX and get someone that cannot communicate effectively. It doesn't seem to happen in Canada though, even if I am talking to a foreigner. Ever since this ridiculous experience I have been able to get the 800 numbers assigned to any call center I want. I just ask, but in their language, I can't just ask "what is your direct number"....here's the response...."Sir, there are no direct numbers". Here's my response (in my head only)....OK, let me tell you what the company DOESN'T tell you....

I had to set up a remote call forward service with a phone company for a business a while back too. My number was based in Oregon. I talked to the rep and asked what I wanted and she said, well, I can't do that, I am restricted to (blah, blah, blah). All I wanted was for her to perform a search for my desired 800 number choices. After 10 mintues of a three-way call with her supervisor trying to guide her through the SIMPLE process of data entry in a database, she finally gives up and takes my call off out of her hands. Folks, even you don't know anything about DBMS or even computers for that matter, work is so simple a CAVEMAN CAN DO IT! Why do these people think its so difficult!? Are they feeling insulted because they know its easy? If they are, why can't they relax and enjoy that fact....
Or are we really that stupid? Do they trust the computer systems they're using? Do they know how it works (I'm guessing not, since most people don't have a clue anyway)? Do they even know what they're doing?? Sometimes I feel bad for those people who cannot follow this crap fast enough, but then again, if you cannot think like a programmer or even understand the functioning of a computer system, who cares!!! You don't have to....all of it is virtually done for you anyway!

I say, I don't care how TECHNICALLY EASY your duties are in your workplace, if you're not knowledgable about the business you're in and the level of the organization you're at, what good are you!?

 

[Welshbird]

I do agree. I used to run a help desk for a company who provided pharmacy software. Every member of the helpdesk had to do the minimum technician qualifications, and they all went to work at a pharmacy for half a day every few months.#

We were just trying to make sure they could properly empathise with customers who rang with a problem.



Fee

The question should be [red]Is it worth trying to do?[/red] not [blue] Can it be done?[/blue]

 

[Grenage]

I find a lack of common sense to be the biggest problem. I'm constantly shocked by it.

Carlsberg don't run I.T. departments, but if they did they'd probably be more fun.

 

[lionelhill]

willif,

I saw a lovely newspaper article by someone who once worked for a major manufacturer of vacuum cleaners. They had loads of their vacuums laying about in their call centre so that when a customer said "you know the blue bit sticking out the side? It's gone all wiggly" the call-centre person could grab one and check how it ought to behave. It struck me as such a good way to work.

<rant>
My particular Bete noire is electronics/household gadget superstores whose staff have never so much as glanced at the instruction manual of a single thing they sell. You can always recognise this: ask the assistant whether the gadget you're buying will do something and he/she will look vague and say it does, "they nearly all do nowadays". It doesn't matter if you ask if a toaster has a USB port, 3Gbytes ram and a connection for hot water, they'll still agree it does, if they think it will make you buy the thing.
</rant>

 

[ajetrumpet]

The question should be Is it worth trying to do? not Can it be done?

Nice quote Willif, but I'm afraid for some people working in some of these facilities, the last part of that statement might cause a few heads to turn...no matter the difficulty.

-J

 

[mikeydidit]

In the first “Speak English” I went on my own personal rant about getting technical support people in India. The absolute worst part of our conversation had to be making me spell out my last name for them.

Me: Let’s see. That would be J O N E S.
Them: Let me make sure I have this correct J O N E S
Me: OMG you’re killing me.

Now I find myself in a little different position as my second to the oldest daughter (I have 4 kids by the way) has recently went to work for (you guessed it) a all centre. We are having a blast with this. She was initially supposed to just be taking calls for several companies with billing questions. But somehow she got into a technical support group for a major ISP. She has been in classes for this for about two months now and part of her training is taking calls with a mentor sitting besides her listening in. The mentor is guiding her through the troubleshooting as she is on the phone with the customer.

She will call me every other day and want to talk shop with Dad about what she has learned and throw a few technical terms at me. She also tells me about how many people she has helped that day with problems. I love it.

She has been telling me the procedures for how they troubleshoot network problems. She has a screen in front of her with a list they have to follow in order. She can also ping your modem that sort of thing from her terminal. I would think that 90% of the time the list would be a good thing. That would cover the most “Non technical users” But for us that do this for a living it is very frustrating to say the least. But regardless she has to follow policy.

So if your internet goes down and you get a really sweet little girl on the phone trying to help you, please be patient with her. She is just following policy. And tell her Dad is watching. ..


Hell, there are no rules here - we're trying to accomplish something.
Thomas A. Edison

For the best response to a question, read faq690-6594

 

[ajetrumpet]

We already know this stuff Mike, especially about companies prompting customer service reps with specific questions. But, if I call, say an ISP provider and I get a CSR on the phone and I say this, "I have seen that one of my friends shows "(ISP NAME)" with their IP address in IE6, but I know that "(ISP NAME)" is not an ISP, at least a traditional one. Does "(ISP NAME)" offer air cards or automatically built-in ports with certain computer brands, like Apple, for internet access? I might be looking to get one of those."

This is what I asked of a customer service REP one time...
This is the response I got - "....."

Does that surprise you!? =)

 

[mikeydidit]

Not at all. Thats the responce I got the last time a called a third level support person on a problem. Getting scary out there.

Hell, there are no rules here - we're trying to accomplish something.
Thomas A. Edison

For the best response to a question, read faq690-6594

 

[LadySlinger]

I was talking to one of our vendors about this (as they have a major call center for software support).

He was telling me that he had to go down to one of the main hubs for an inspection. Supposedly these people already had training in software troubleshooting, but what he found was that none of them had the PROPER training.

They were mainly hired for their customer service skills rather than their technical skills (if they had any).

He said that he spent 3 more days retraining everyone and on the next inspection (which he didn't do) they passed.

 

[ajetrumpet]

Does anyone think that some of the support people might not know what's going on because some of the calls they get present problems that are out of the ordinary for normal operation of the software, hardware, or whatever you're calling about...?

I'd like to hear the description of the problem too, some people can't explain worth a ****

 

[burtsbees]

I hear ya...
"Well, when I click it, the thingie goes away..."
"Ma'am, you must click it ONCE and wait a few seconds, not click it 8,000 times because it takes longer than 10 miliseconds for something to happen...and I'm sorry, but I can't to seem to find 'thingie' in the glossary...no, wait---here it is..."

Burt

 

[ajetrumpet]

it takes longer than 10 miliseconds for something to happen

Not anymore really...actually I think the speed of processors are keeping up quite well with the general demands of users. Heck, most of the processors nowadays can't process faster than we can think!! That really ought to be enough, wouldn't ya think?? But then again, how much more data are we going to have to store in our machines to comply with the laws??