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Author Kimmie Dicaire

BellSouth/Client Logic/ADSL and Linux

I recently had the unpleasant expierence of accepting a job for Client Login which is one of the main call center stations for ADSL and Bellsouth. The things that I learned in the two days I was there prior to quiting was just unbelievable. This essay/editorial is not done by a disgruntled worker as I was not even there long enough to be digruntled, disgusted is quite another story.

There was a massive hiring spurt here for Tech positions, and I use this term loosely as you will find out later why. They needed 700 people for this call center. Since this area (Oak Ridge, Tennessee) has so many technical people out of work it was easy to pick up employees dirt cheap $9/hr. It is required to take a 3 week class, supposedly to learn all there is to know about ADSL. In the first week of my class I recieved enough paper that alone could have killed the Rain forest. The classes had about 40 people per class. I thought WOW, gonna learn quite a bit about ADSL, had no idea there was that much to it. As I began reading all this paper that was passed out, not anywhere was there anything to do with ADSL, it was brainwashing material thats it.

It soon became clear this was not a technical position it was customer service. The brain washing began from day 1 and lasted the entire time I was there which was the first week. After the paper was passed out the next phase of brain washing began.........role playing, what a nighmare. I am still recovering and have a tough time saying "I am so sorry", or "Please" and "Thank You", I cringe everytime those phrases pass my lips or creep into a thought.

Well considering I have a tough time keeping my opinions to myself I began to ask lots of questions like "When will we learn about ADSL"? and "I thought this was a tech position?" "What about linux users?" Needless to say all my questions were answered with "I'll have to get back to you on this". The instructor had been brainwashed to perfection. My questions did however start to cause a low rumble with the others in the class, Thank God it wasn't too late I might be able to reach a few classmates before they are totally brainwashed.

Phase One of the brain washing began with how important it is to say at least once during the conversation with the customer "I'm SO sorry" and how points would be deducted from your scores if you don't say it at least once. All calls are monitored 100% and the call center agents are graded on some lame point system from 1 - 5 by how they use the brain washing material. It is required to tell the customer your FULL name when you answer the phone. I don't know about the rest of you but I prefer to choose whom gets to know my FULL name. My first name I have no problem with, but requiring to annonouce my full name, unless asked by the customer, is not what I'd even slighly consider doing. A few more phrases were "Please" which I don't have a problem with in itself. Then there was "Thank You", again I have no problem with in itself but using it in sentences like "Thank you for doing such a good job in explaining your problem to me", now thats where I begin to draw the line, and ask myself how can I say that phrase without sounding completely condensending? Oh the answer to that is quite easy..........more brainwashing.

Needless to say I was becoming quite sick as so far nothing was setting with me very well. Then came the rules. No surfing, No emailing, No outside calls, No snacking, No incomming calls except from customers and the list went on and on. The call center first line is who you get when you call in, they can not tranfer any calls even to other inside lines other than second line which will then transfer your call to billing, customer care, etc. But the first line is required to keep you online and babble all this brain washing material as being "NICE" is the object, fixing the problem is an added bonus if you happen to get a hold of a knowledgable agent, which is rare as those that are knowledgable do not stay employed there. Bathroom breaks well, you get 15 minutes in the first 4 hours and 15 minutes the last four hours and if you have to go inbetween you are basically out of luck, guess thats why they don't allow snacks and drinks at your desk. Come people even the President gets a glass of water when he does his speeches, agents are expected to do all this talking on the phone, which does make your thirsty, and yet can't drink? You get 30 seconds between calls to finish up any notes, if you take up to a minute or more a supervisor will be there wondering if you have a problem why you haven't accepted another call yet, a little militant if you ask me. If a caller is ranting and raving, cussing and screaming and totally out of control the agent has to take it, can't hang up, can't transfer without first asking the customer another brain washing phrase "I'm sorry Sir/Maam have I done something personally to you?" The agent MUST take responsiblity for all other agents, BellSouth and Client Logic including taking the brunt of everything. If all else fails, and remember you are being listened to so you must try EVERYTHING to calm down this customer and take whatever is being dished out then you can ask for permission from a supervisor to escalate the call, and the supervisors don't want these calls so guess what you are stuck, and the agents hands are if fact very tied as they are merely brain washed front people. The agent can however take off thier headphones, lay them on the desk and not listen to the rants and raves but this is only allowed in extreme cases and if you don't mind losing points. Client Logic only gets paid by BellSouth if the customer has called into the call center therefore no call backs are allowed. If a customer has a problem and you know its going to take a while/hours to fix you HAVE to keep them on the phone the entire time you CAN NOT call the customer back. If they do not wish to stay on the phone the ticket is closed and you must inform the customer they will have to call back and start all over with whoever picks up the call. The proper brain washing phrase for this is "I am so sorry this is taking so long, might I suggest if you have a intercom on your phone that you use it and we will get with you as soon as possible". It is required to make idle chit chat with the customer and make them feel all warm and fuzzy, which is as you will remember so much more important than actually fixing the problem. A student that happened to be in my class chewed tobacco, yes can be a disgusting habit. The student went into the bathroom, spit in the toliet and it was brought to our attention that spitting is a gross habit and not allowed on the premises. Now who the hell was watching in the bathroom this guy spit? And its a toliet for god's sake, I guess if you have to take a dump you should wash the bowl out afterwards? The list of rules just went on and on and got more and more rediculous, by this time I figured I won't be returning but what happened next was the nail in the coffin so to speak.

I happen to have a help channel or two for linux users. A ADSL bellsouth user came into the channel requesting help. After asking all the standard questions, what kind of modem, nic, distro so on and so on, my first question was why in the heck do you have a USB modem. Well apparently that is all the tech brought out when he installed. Of course my first response was call them back and tell them you don't want a USB modem but that was all the tech brought out and wish for it to be changed out. He called the call center immediately and was told the only way he could get something other than the USB modem was if he had a Macintosh. Of course the linux community has had to learn to be creative so he repsonded with "Yes I have just ordered one which will be arriving UPS", call center happy with that put in the request and sent a tech out with the NIC and Alctel. Naturally the tech arrived before the UPS truck with the Mac but left the new equipment anyway. Satisfied customer, chalk one up for this guy as he is the exception to the rule.

During class the following day I decided to find out just exactly what these procedures were. Question one...."If a linux user calls in.....", Answer: "We don't support linux and hang up." "But that is cutting out a large portion of users", "Not users we care to worry about". As the fire began to grow inside I relied on the previous days of brain washing to maintain and speak intelligently. The customers have caught on about the Alctel's and only in very special instances do we give them out. The customer must have Win95/98, NT workstation (NT server falls in the same place as linux), or a Macintosh. The USB connection is the one that is used by default and pushed. If a customer has several other things using the USB then you may get a special request from a supervisor to send out something other than USB and the customer has to talk directly to the supervisor before it can be approved, same thing if a customer claims their USB is broke. Alctel's are very expensive devices around $300 where the other methods are about $14 major cost difference to BellSouth. So I asked, "What should I tell linux users about using ADSL", "My advice is to tell them to use cable or a dial-up." That was the nail in the coffin I spoke of earlier. Of course this did not settle with me, so I continued to ask my questions, invoking participation from other classmates with thier own questions. After 30 minutes or better finally the fully brain washed instructor broke and the answers became "I'll have to get back to you on that" and she did, bascially those in charge at BellSouth want nothing to do with Linux users and will not be accomodating at all. The instructor ended her conversation on the subject with a statement that went like this "Linux users are the most gentle creatures on the face of the earth". I left that class and job and have not looked back.

This linux user may be a gentle creature but I have a voice, an opinion and a brain. When I call a call center or help desk of any sort my main concern is not how sorry someone on the other end is, I do not wish to engage in idle chit chat, nor do I care to be smothered with nice nice. My main concern is getting the issue resolved and I fully expect to talk to someone capable of fixing it or getting me to someone that is capable and quickly. I believe everyone has the right to choose their own operating system and if a service is capable of handling that operating system, not giving the tech support but just capable of providing the useage of, then users should not be forced to lie to get the equipment needed for that service. I believe if there are several different methods of using the connection then the company instead of eating the higher cost of the equipment should offer the selection and if a user chooses to use that equipment then they can pay an added fee. I believe I will take that instructors advice and suggest that linux users choose cable over ADSL.

One more thing before I end this particular rant. The instructor did happen to mention that repeat calls and high volume of calls that request the same things do get their way, its the old squeeky hinge gets the oil principle. So those of you out there that really do want ADSL and are running linux then start making those calls, someone WILL listen and it may take awhile but eventually the caller will win. Remember the moto, its better to keep customers and perspective customers happy than it is to fix the problem and if killing two birds with one stone works then Linux will win, if ADSL is winning.

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