Customer Service

When I saw this popular cartoon strip in Times of India today, I could not help but realise that this just reflects the current state of "customer service" which is not infact a service really if you see closely. It mainly serves as a complaint box and sometimes is very effective in venting out your frustration (personal or professional) on an unsuspecting call centre executive.

The unsuspective call centre executive is "almost" at no fault. Hired by well established, big organizations at a throwaway price, trained inadequately in subject and almost to perfection when it comes to put your call on hold so that the required clarity can be obtained from the "Floor Manager".

The "Floor Manager" category of employees is a frustrated lot. The good english speaking + well mannered + a suitable degree for the profession guy is not a very happy employee when leading a bunch of untrained employees employed mainly to exploit the "cheap labour" scenario. There is little or no ownership of work.

Almost everyone ..... lets list down ->

1. The caller - frustrated because of the service rendered, from incorrect billing to firing for a spelling mistake.

2. The call centre executive - frustrated because the customer is yelling on the phone, he is untrained and to top it all, the boss is chatting with a PYT...

3. The floor manager - frustrated because of a non performing team, irate callers and the PYT is finally giving him "bhaav / attention" after all the months of pursuing.

4. The "big" organizations - frustrated because the billing for the calls which are most of the times TOLL free to the callers is getting higher and higher...

5. The telephone service provider providing the TOLL free service - frustrated because whatever which is earned in the "billing" goes in maintaining its own "customer service"....

I may not have covered all the bits and pieces of "customer service" but hell - we are one frustrated lot!!!! Not exactly a service, eh??!!!!