For my first entry, I figure I should explain a little bit about my job and what it consists of. I am a Customer Service Representative in the billing department for a major American cable, internet and telephone company. I take inbound calls, mostly complaints from customers and requests to solve any issues they may have with their bills. I also have to explain their bills to them. This part of the job can be both entertaining and extremely frustrating.
Call centres in general have a high turnover rate. In a worldwide study on call centres done in 2006, it found the top three problems call centres face are:
a. Shortage of skilled staff
b. Uncompetitive salary
c. Location of contact center
Personally, the call centre I work at has all of these problems that we have to face on a daily basis. For example:
Shortage of skilled staff: In addition to the entertaining customers, I also work with the most diverse and entertaining group of people I have ever encountered. The types of people found in call centres ranges from students, to immigrants to the unmotivated individuals who have found comfort in their shift-working barely above minimum wage job. Some of these people I completely adore, but many make me question just how they are able to function in the real world. Call centres see all kinds.
Uncompetitive salary: Funnily enough, the issue at our place right now is that upper management feels a lot of us make too much money. Really? Really? Some of these people fall below the poverty line when you factor in all the Mandatory Down Time we're given, yet many people are being forced into new positions (out of positions they've held for 10 years or more) so the company can make more of a profit. Notice I said more profit and not *a* profit. Right now people are going crazy and threatening to quit. I go in with a smile on my face and do my job, because really, there's nothing else I can do.
Location of contact centre: Many people travel from places like Grimsby, Hamilton and Dunnville just to work at my call centre. Personally, I think they're crazy, but St. Catharines is definitely known for its abundance of call centres.
Despite this issue though, most days I love going into work and interacting with these people. They're the ones that have kept me coming back week after week for the last 5 years. Over the next few weeks I will share my stories and let you into our crazy little world.
I hear you. I find that many call centers are demeaning to the employees. The fact that there are so few managers able to actually make a call center work in the US shocks me. There are companies that have service go to "outsource" America but the pay is so poor that the cost of retraining is idiotic.
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