Senator Wants Call Centers To Identify Location

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So you want to require that all call centers must identify their location? Okay, then what? How is knowing the location of the call center going to change anything?

"I don't know about you, but I have called for help sometimes and I can't get them to tell me where they are, (in cases) when I've been frustrated because there's been a language barrier," said McCaskill during a news conference on the floor of the call center at Missouri Book Services in Columbia. "I think (the legislation) gives a boost to American-centered call centers because I think most Americans would prefer to use a call center that's located here in the United States," she told the Missouri News Horizon.
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I agree to an extent. I would much rather talk to someone who speaks clear English and get the problem taken care of than saying "What? the enter time.
 
make that the same for all US-based telemarketers, and now you're talking.
 
Yeah...but just "knowing" where they are changes nothing. How about requiring U.S. based call centers for U.S. companies?

I'm sure everyone has a funny call center story so I'll share one of mine. I had a Dell monitor go out on me. No worries, it is new and is under warranty so I call the tech line:

*heavy Indian accent*

Thank you for calling Microsoft, this is Chip.

What?

*click*

Push redial

Thank you for calling Dell, this is Chip.

Real nice. :rolleyes:

Hey Chip, I have a Dell monitor that went out and I need to return it to be fixed.

Can I have your name sir?

Steven Lynch L-Y-N-C-H

Thank you for that Mr. Steven

Can I have the number off your service tag?

Service tag?

Yes, mmmm hmmm, the number from your service tag.

It doesn't have one. Do you need the serial / model number?

The service tag can be located on the back of your computer.

It's a monitor Chip. Just the monitor.

Mr. Steven, your service tag is on the back of your computer. Do you need time to locate it?

Chip, there is no service tag, I built this computer.

You built your own Dell?

.............FUUUUUUUU
 
as much as we all hate it. i think its more concerning your ssn and credit card numbers go to other countries for technical support than caring which race is supporting it.

if you have chase bank, your shit is in the Philippines.
 
Steve said:
It's a monitor Chip. Just the monitor.

Mr. Steven, your service tag is on the back of your computer. Do you need time to locate it?
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So.. he just ignored you?

Are you suggesting he knew such little English, he couldn't understand the word "monitor"?
 
I don't care where the call center is, as long as the call quality is reasonable*, they speak reasonable english, the hold times aren't horrible, and the reps are empowered to fix my problem. Just putting the call center in the states does not guarantee any of that.

* I've had the worst experience with audio quality on the support lines for AT&T, it sounded like the other person was under water; not sure why they of all people couldn't get decent lines.
 
Knowing where a call center is means squat.

It doesnt matter and will not bring the centers to the US.

If it DID.......the salaries that would be paid, would be too low to attract anyone intellegent......

and you'd be stuck in the same rut as ol' Chip up there.
 
Trackr said:
So.. he just ignored you?

Are you suggesting he knew such little English, he couldn't understand the word "monitor"?
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More like the guys so dumb or inexperienced, he can't do anything except follow the on-screen prompts. Anything off the expected question/answer path confuses him.
 
Really?? We need laws that state how PRIVATE companies customer service is reported to the customer?
 
I just think it's funny that those guys with the "heavy indian accent" can actually speak and write better english than most American's can. I guess learning a foreign language (like English) in elementary school achieves those kind of results. I personally think there is a lot of racism, xenophobia, and ignorance related to "issues" like this that people like the Senator are saying saying are problems.
 
Call centers here in the US are a nightmare to work for, they are lucky if average employee tenure is more than 2 years. Call centers work better in cultures that are more oriented towards doing what you are told.
 
sfsuphysics said:
Really?? We need laws that state how PRIVATE companies customer service is reported to the customer?
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Why not? We have laws that help PRIVATE (your emphasis) companies like copyright laws that lets you buy something yet not even own it enough to transfer it from a DVD to your HD legally. Laws that private businesses were completely in favor of. What's so crazy about laws that tell customers things instead?
 
At least the last time I spoke to a Tech Help Center, in India, the Phillipine Islands, or where ever, they always told me their location readily, but maybe they have changed their policy?
However, aside from the language problems, I have gotten just as bad advise from US Centers, as I have from foreign ones?
 
timta2 said:
I just think it's funny that those guys with the "heavy indian accent" can actually speak and write better english than most American's can. I guess learning a foreign language (like English) in elementary school achieves those kind of results. I personally think there is a lot of racism, xenophobia, and ignorance related to "issues" like this that people like the Senator are saying saying are problems.
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You must be talking to different call centers than I usually reach, or the one example Steve posted. Not only do you get the accent that makes you barely able to understand them in perfect conditions, but the line quality usually has horribly lag. They constantly start to talk at the same time as you, you pause, they pause, you start again, they start again at the same time. There's this delay that seems way worse than your average cell phone delay. Then they barely understand you and you end up having to repeat yourself over and over.
 
I'm all for having more jobs in the US, but this seems ridiculous.

Rather than do this, I'd rather have a central bank of numbers, kinda like the do not call list, full of numbers that simply never get routed to people on the do not call list. I get plenty of calls from numbers that are disconnected if you try to call them back. Reporting them to the FCC seemingly does nothing. I just want the numbers stopped before they even get to me. If I can't call you, don't call me.

That would be some change that might get congresses numbers up...
 
/Accent Mode: Indian/Pakistaini

Operator: Hello Sir, this is James from Topeka, Kansas

ME: OH really? Topeka, Kansas

Operator: Yes, Sir, very good sir!

/End Accent

What irritates me is the asshole CS Companies that try to make it like their CS center is in the states but you know its been routed to India.
 
How does forcing a call center to tell you their location work, if you can't enforce the law in another country. If you call and ask, and they refuse, do you just assume their not in the USA, or are they breaking the law? Also who gives a damn where the center is located as long as I get good customer service and my problems solved.

If it's cheaper for company X to do business in country Y and it saves me Z when buying company X's products and I still get decent customer support, I'm all for it.

What we need to make illegal are those annoying robotic automated phones that aren't human. I'll take someone with a thick Indian accent any day over those fucking annoying robotic call machines that *never* understand what I'm saying, and I have to rapid press 0 to speak to a real human being.
 
JosiahBradley said:
What we need to make illegal are those annoying robotic automated phones that aren't human. I'll take someone with a thick Indian accent any day over those fucking annoying robotic call machines that *never* understand what I'm saying, and I have to rapid press 0 to speak to a real human being.
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Protips:
1)Speak words like they are being read off a list, not like they are part of a sentence.
2)Say the words, representative and agent, you will often get to someone without going through a dozen IVR options.
3)Some IVR systems will also recognize other keywords related to bad service.
 
I understand the customer service and language problems and frustrations. With that in mind I still think this is a very idiotic and dangerous idea.

As a call center employee of five years. Including four years of it as an "escalation" team member or supervisor, I can tell you it is pretty common for people to use highly abusive, racial and threatening language against people on the phone.Much much worse then you see on forums with the worst troll you can imagine.

For front line associates this would be maybe every couple days to once a week. For the escalation team, who deals with the truly rude and obnoxious either because the first agent cant take them anymore or because they asked to go up the chain of command it is more like an hourly thing. Anything from I am going to call back and tell whatever lies I can think of to get you fired of you dont do X, to I am going to find where you live and kill you.

Trust me when I say management, at least at Bank of America, doesn't give a shit (and wont talk to them) unless they are threatening to blow up a bank.

So, does it sound like a good idea to tell the call center associate, who were just required to give out their real name first and last to the caller, what city they are in?

Yes, 98 or 99% of people are normal and as mad as they get dont cross the line. When you are expected to help customers in an average of 180ish seconds or less that is a whole lot of people you talk to in one day. Even supervisors who get more like 300 seconds average still take a whole lot of calls.
 
This would be unnecessarily harsh to people who work in a call center (even in the U.S.) and have an accent.

It would just be legislating thinly veiled racism and nationalism, and it won't improve anything. All it will do is encourage callers to be extra hostile toward anyone who doesn't speak perfect English.
 
Steve said:
Yeah...but just "knowing" where they are changes nothing. How about requiring U.S. based call centers for U.S. companies?

I'm sure everyone has a funny call center story so I'll share one of mine. I had a Dell monitor go out on me. No worries, it is new and is under warranty so I call the tech line:

*heavy Indian accent*

Thank you for calling Microsoft, this is Chip.

What?

*click*

Push redial

Thank you for calling Dell, this is Chip.

Real nice. :rolleyes:

Hey Chip, I have a Dell monitor that went out and I need to return it to be fixed.

Can I have your name sir?

Steven Lynch L-Y-N-C-H

Thank you for that Mr. Steven

Can I have the number off your service tag?

Service tag?

Yes, mmmm hmmm, the number from your service tag.

It doesn't have one. Do you need the serial / model number?

The service tag can be located on the back of your computer.

It's a monitor Chip. Just the monitor.

Mr. Steven, your service tag is on the back of your computer. Do you need time to locate it?

Chip, there is no service tag, I built this computer.

You built your own Dell?

.............FUUUUUUUU
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LMFAO :D
 
I love when someone calls in and automatically assumes I'm in India and my name's George. I always have to correct them and mention my location and they're usually floored that they're getting a local rep (Las Vegas) and then their attitude changes.

While I've heard a plethora of horror stories about them, the call center I work in is probably the best work environment (and best job) I've ever been in. I work for Cox Communications *ducks* they pretty much bend over backwards to make it the most relaxing atmosphere they can. They're constantly ordering food for all the employees (Memphis BBQ, Pizza Hut, Olive Garden etc), and have plenty of TV's and free movies for us to watch, and they give us long enough phone cords so that we can move around, stretch our legs, etc.

I just hope that never changes, because the horror stories I've heard would make me want to pull off a Foxconn employee maneuver.
 
I have only gotten an "indian" sounding person maybe 2 times ever. But one of them was with 1and1 internet hosting and the operator (a woment) was extremely helpfull.

Had to call customer service twice this week to Summit Racing and both times it was a very American sounding male. They are great company in my opinion.

But the real fact of the matter here is

DONT RELY ON THE GOVERNMENT TO SOLVE ALL YOUR PROBLEMS.

They are not our parents and never should be.
 
Elf_Boy said:
I understand the customer service and language problems and frustrations. With that in mind I still think this is a very idiotic and dangerous idea.

As a call center employee of five years. Including four years of it as an "escalation" team member or supervisor, I can tell you it is pretty common for people to use highly abusive, racial and threatening language against people on the phone.Much much worse then you see on forums with the worst troll you can imagine.

For front line associates this would be maybe every couple days to once a week. For the escalation team, who deals with the truly rude and obnoxious either because the first agent cant take them anymore or because they asked to go up the chain of command it is more like an hourly thing. Anything from I am going to call back and tell whatever lies I can think of to get you fired of you dont do X, to I am going to find where you live and kill you.

Trust me when I say management, at least at Bank of America, doesn't give a shit (and wont talk to them) unless they are threatening to blow up a bank.

So, does it sound like a good idea to tell the call center associate, who were just required to give out their real name first and last to the caller, what city they are in?

Yes, 98 or 99% of people are normal and as mad as they get dont cross the line. When you are expected to help customers in an average of 180ish seconds or less that is a whole lot of people you talk to in one day. Even supervisors who get more like 300 seconds average still take a whole lot of calls.
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Yep, the place where I worked always had at least 4 armed guards on duty. Real guards too, not some old guy reading a magazine next to a teenager watching TV. Customers have on occasion shown up at the call center and it has resulted in police involvement. Then again employees there have also been caught calling back customers on their personal phones and harassing customers.
 
It's just like a lot of other thing, if we know how many calories, we might put pressure on the supplier of the goods to improve the "product".
 
stupid senator. while a country native language may not be english and the accent is different, maybe she has a farking problem understanding anything that sounds non-american. Get out of the farking chair and see the world more, so you understand better. And just maybe she may see why people are out sourcing too!
 
stupid senator. while a country native language may not be english and the accent is different, maybe she has a farking problem understanding anything that sounds non-american. Get out of the farking chair and see the world more, so you understand better. And just maybe she may see why people are out sourcing too!
 
I don't care where the call center is located, what they should do is require companies to provide GOOD customer service.
 
Someone needs to tell McCaskill to get off the high horse. The great thing about America is the diversity it offers for all people, including Indians, Mexicans, African Americans and whites. I can say from experience I have worked with Indians with better English than most Americans, hell, I worked with a guy who was from India and spoke proper English without ANY accent, he also knew 5 other languages, a very educated person. These types of rants, especially from an elected official is just bigotry. Even in America you can visit Alabama, Texas or Louisiana and find out there is a language barrier exists in our own states. For some people its hard to convey that yes, the United States is unity between all races. I find it hard that this attitude between races can coexist in a country so prevalent for accepting that even pilgrims came over at one time as foreigners.
 
You want real change, put in place the same anti-outsourcing laws as exist in India.

We work with WiPro, and it is amazing how much business they are taking every year. They do the job piss poorly, but more importantly, the job is done and at a tiny fraction of the price. A technician in India making $10K considers himself well off, whereas here that is below the poverty line.

While opportunity cost would dictate that it thus makes sense to outsource that work, it makes absolutely zero sense when 10% of your working population is collecting unemployment twiddling their thumbs (and likely more than that not contributing to the US economy as they have simply given up looking for work and thus don't count in the unemployment statistic, which actually applies to many married women with working husbands).
 
Anyone that has worked in a call center can you tell how bad of an idea this is. The sanity level of most callers in well within normal, however when you talk to a thousand people a month your bound to run into a few whose sanity is below normal. take that handful each month that each employee deals with and mutliply it by the number of employees. no longer such a small number. take that group, combine it with threats of violence and THEN be legally required to tell them your location? no thanks.
 
Companies/Corporations: That's why you should build call centers here in the Philippines instead of India. There are no accents to talk about. :D

We're proficient in mimicking accents however. :p

I don't know about India's education system, but ever since we got colonized by the US English has been taught to everybody since pre-school (once the child can start speaking).
 
Steve said:
So How is knowing the location of the call center going to change anything?
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When I briefly worked for a local call center that did most of their business for Comcast internet, we were told if asked to tell people we were, "close to Buffalo, NY"...which we were, since this was next to Niagara Falls, Ontario. I told anybody who asked I was a Canuck but my English was good enough 'eh and it lightened the mood. We were also told, "the best people average their calls to 7 minutes so don't go over 7 minutes!" and were encouraged to help the caller but that the company was paid so many pennies for each call it took...

I didn't last long there. When I was there the trainers were bragging about how they were building a center in India and a couple of years after I fled they closed all their centers around here.

Not sure if Chip reading a script is any better then Fred reading his, although the thick accents grate on the nerves more. Most people there had no clue how to use Windows besides clicking the icons and just read copies of scripts.
 
timta2 said:
I just think it's funny that those guys with the "heavy indian accent" can actually speak and write better english than most American's can. I guess learning a foreign language (like English) in elementary school achieves those kind of results. I personally think there is a lot of racism, xenophobia, and ignorance related to "issues" like this that people like the Senator are saying saying are problems.
Click to expand...

I don't care how well they write it. IMHO, I don't disagree with what you said either. You don't enter a job that centres around communication without a fundamental ability to understand, speak and properly pronounce the language.
 
fattypants said:
This would be unnecessarily harsh to people who work in a call center (even in the U.S.) and have an accent.

It would just be legislating thinly veiled racism and nationalism, and it won't improve anything. All it will do is encourage callers to be extra hostile toward anyone who doesn't speak perfect English.
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Basically this. And I doubt there's any customer service studies that would show foreign call centers perform worse than American call centers.

My experience with Amazon representatives in India is much better than what I've received elsewhere. It's simply a matter of training.
 
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