call centres etc debate from enaids BT thread

[Amethyst]

Re: enaids mums bt bill

Do we want a discussion on the benefits/disadvantages of customer call centres being located somewhere other than their main customer base ? I think its a viable discussion and would be better on its own thread so Nellys Bt problem can stay on this thread.

Theres a fair few discussions around in the media at the moment so why companies do it and how things might be improved could be worth looking at.

Feel free to start up a thread anyone and if you like we can move posts relating solely to that issue over there. Just shout.

[WendyB]

Re: enaids mums bt bill

Do we want a discussion on the benefits/disadvantages of customer call centres being located somewhere other than their main customer base ? I think its a viable discussion and would be better on its own thread so Nellys Bt problem can stay on this thread.

Theres a fair few discussions around in the media at the moment so why companies do it and how things might be improved could be worth looking at.

Feel free to start up a thread anyone and if you like we can move posts relating solely to that issue over there. Just shout.

Yep that's a good idea Ame, perhaps we could amalgamate it with a grammar discussion thread as well? i did suggest that on Nelly's other thread the other day.

[Sapphire]

Re: enaids mums bt bill

Oh I do love a good debate

[WendyB]

Re: enaids mums bt bill

I can hardly wait. Make sure you (and I) have our politically correct non-anything-ist heads on first though:rofl:

[Sapphire]

Re: enaids mums bt bill

Ok then how about a 'Debating Forum', any subject, no holds barred and no one is to take offence, basically everyone can air their opinions, without fear of being accused of something ending in 'ist all the time.

Perhaps in fairness to everyone though all that wish to take part should sign or put their name to a disclaimer to stop any upset later on.

Just an idea.

Ame, what do you think is there any chance of this ?

[WendyB]

Re: enaids mums bt bill

Ok then how about a 'Debating Forum', any subject, no holds barred and no one is to take offence, basically everyone can air their opinions, without fear of being accused of something ending in 'ist all the time.

Perhaps in fairness to everyone though all that wish to take part should sign or put their name to a disclaimer to stop any upset later on.

Just an idea.

Ame, what do you think is there any chance of this ?

Errrrmmmm - only if we can have a debate first about whether to debate or not.:tinysmile_twink_t2:

Seiously though, Thing is Sapph, even on a no holds barred basis, there will always be some things that people will take personally and get shirty about - that's human nature. And if there's no holds barred doesn't that just give a licence to people who are racist/agist/sexist/whatever ist to get away with saying what they like and getting away with it?

[argentarius]

Re: enaids mums bt bill

It is, rather obviously, untrue and clearly racist by your own measure.

According to data published by the CBI just last week, there are currently 10.1m graduates in the UK. There are around 500,000 workers in Indian call centres.

Do the maths.

I can do the maths, Cetelco. The problem is that the maths you are trying to do is the wrong maths.

Per your figures, around 17% of the UK population are graduates. Whereas almost ALL staff in Indian call centres, dealing with UK customers, are graduates.

Hence my comment that the call centre staff are better educated than most of those they are dealing with - it's a fact, not a judgement. And facts aren't racist.


Regarding the other comments, I agree that a separate discussion about the use of overseas call centres would be interesting. And ditto re grammar (and spelling, and punctuation ...) as it would avoid people getting criticised for correcting grammer/spelling/punctuation on other threads, perhaps.

I am about to leave working for a company which has no overseas call centres, to working for one which believes in them wholeheartedly. So I will have a better personal understanding of some of the issues involved, very soon.

[Happyolddog]

Re: call centres etc debate from enaids BT thread

Cricky this is a thread and a half, I have a spare newish phone Di, just give me an address and it is your parents for free.

p.s. I'm not racist either.

[Amethyst]

Re: call centres etc debate from enaids BT thread

Some Gumpf

http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file32884.pdf

Quote:
Customer attitudes to offshoring
Generally, UK consumers have a negative attitude towards offshoring, although most admit to not
having experienced it themselves. A significant minority have either moved or plan to move suppliers
away from those organisations which provide offshore customer service.
Although there are many surveys available on customer attitudes to offshoring, questions can be
leading depending on the agenda that the survey sponsor holds. Only a robust and ongoing survey of
customers’ actions can provide real insight into whether offshoring is succeeding or failing.


CIO Jury: Companies fear offshoring customer backlash - Research - Breaking Business and Technology News at silicon.com

Pru plays down offshore customer backlash - Research - Breaking Business and Technology News at silicon.com

http://www.cca.org.uk/documents/cca_...PhilTaylor.ppt

http://www.statistics.gov.uk/article...ing_Sept05.pdf

[Guest]

Re: enaids mums bt bill

I can do the maths, Cetelco. The problem is that the maths you are trying to do is the wrong maths.

Per your figures, around 17% of the UK population are graduates. Whereas almost ALL staff in Indian call centres, dealing with UK customers, are graduates.

Hence my comment that the call centre staff are better educated than most of those they are dealing with - it's a fact, not a judgement. And facts aren't racist.


Regarding the other comments, I agree that a separate discussion about the use of overseas call centres would be interesting. And ditto re grammar (and spelling, and punctuation ...) as it would avoid people getting criticised for correcting grammer/spelling/punctuation on other threads, perhaps.

I am about to leave working for a company which has no overseas call centres, to working for one which believes in them wholeheartedly. So I will have a better personal understanding of some of the issues involved, very soon.

This is becoming increasingly tedious and, since you have still failed to provide an alternative letter, increasingly pointless however, I should point out that I did not say anything was racist. You did when you decided that the comments in Sapphire's letter regarding call centre operators were racist.

I simply pointed out that, using your own measurement of what is racist, your own comments regarding the relative qualifications of Indian call centre operators versus English customers must also be racist.

Regarding your comment that it is my maths that are incorrect, I wonder how you arrive at the figure 17% for graduates in the UK?

According to the ONS the resident population of the UK was 60,975,000 during mid-2007. Given that it is unlikely that anyone under the age of 20 would be a graduate, we can safely state that your 17% is hopelessly incorrect.

Notwithstanding your straw-man attempts at playing with percentages, it is also unlikely that anyone under the age of 20 is going to be using Indian call-centres on a regular basis and so leaving behind the incorrect percentages you attempted to introduce, we have over ten million graduates in this country, being served by fewer than half a million graduates in India.

[Amy]

Re: call centres etc debate from enaids BT thread

Cricky this is a thread and a half, I have a spare newish phone Di, just give me an address and it is your parents for free.

p.s. I'm not racist either.

I probably shouldn't admit to this particularly on this thread, but I've just spent 5 minutes trying to work out what a jewish phone is.

I think I should have an alcoholic beverage.

[scoobydoo]

Re: call centres etc debate from enaids BT thread

Call I received today:

Hello I am calling about your BT line.

Me: Are you BT?

Are you the person who pays the BT bills?

me : Are you BT?

Why are you asking?

me: Well if you were BT you would know Mr XXX pays the bill - do I sound like mr XXX ( I am female by the way:tinysmile_grin_t

I am calling about your BT line.

me: Again - are you BT

Why

me :Because we are on telephone preference we dont take sales calls

What is TP? I am calling about your line

me: ARE YOU BT??

NO-then he slammed down the phone!!!!!

As a hint I have not implied the pidgeon english here.



By the way my husband has just been working in India on a very expensive building for a well known scottish bank where they ae going to employ indian graduates to do all their software progamming . And he agrees that we can not and should not generalise about the people who work in the call centres. However it does get frustrating to keep getting calls like the one I did today. Normally I put the phone down but this is the sixth time in two weeks and I am afraid I just wanted to wind them up.

[TUTTSI]

Re: call centres etc debate from enaids BT thread

I probably shouldn't admit to this particularly on this thread, but I've just spent 5 minutes trying to work out what a jewish phone is.

I think I should have an alcoholic beverage.

Amy, it is a NEWISH phone not a JEWISH phone...........

xx

[Xena]

Re: call centres etc debate from enaids BT thread

Amy, it is a NEWISH phone not a JEWISH phone...........

xx

I think she gathered that - you should know her sense of humour by now

[TANZARELLI]

Re: call centres etc debate from enaids BT thread

The problem with call centres is that the employee is often to scripted and doesn't have flexibility. This coupled with the fact that they often sound bored and like robots doesn't help when your angry about a product fault or company issue etc.

And before anyone gets on their high horse the term robots is linked to their sticking to a script and not a reference to any language. But I do find it hard to sometimes understand the accents on the phone especially if the line is P I Double S poor and I have a unviersity education even if only to a Dip HE level.