V-Flyer

BBC Story here.

I am not sure that this is actually 'off topic' given the regular bad press the VH non-UK call centres get here, but the above story struck me as interesting.

Personally, I am more interested in the competency of a call centre than its location, but maybe it is the start of a trend?


Nick

Better had be the trend to start shutting down Indian call centres. It's a nightmare at times ringing up National Rail Enquiries not long after they moved to India, so I now check train times and fares on the Internet.

About b****y time too. If you want to have some fun, ask the call centre what the local time is - they're basically under orders to give the impression at all costs that they're local.

Or ask them what their real name is, as it's not John Smith.

I agreed with Nick that I don't care where a call centre is, just that they can do their job efficiently. Trouble is, normally when I need to call, the answer is off the beaten path, and I've yet to find an out-sourced call centre that is anywhere near as impowered to actually do something about my problem as the actual company I'm handing my money over to. If they're working off a book, I can find that info myself on the Internet.

Don't care if they are in India, Edinburgh or Timbuktu, I have yet to find a call centre I am delighted to call. I wish they were all closed [n]

Excellent news, I am about to move my Gas to Powergen and I detest foreign call centres, every time without fail I have had to deal with one I had never come off the phone satisfied with the answer I needed. For me the best call centre staff are in Scotland (Abbey & Sky), friendly and helpful without fail[y]

Neil

I left Powergen because no-one could understand me for some reason. They drove me mad. As others have said, I don't care where they are as long as they are polite, efficient and understand you.

Originally posted by sailor99
Don't care if they are in India, Edinburgh or Timbuktu, I have yet to find a call centre I am delighted to call. I wish they were all closed [n]

Could divert all calls to you [:I]

Originally posted by jamie
I left Powergen because no-one could understand me for some reason. They drove me mad. As others have said, I don't care where they are as long as they are polite, efficient and understand you.

It's bad enough having to call one of thse centres - always fills me with trepidation and I always know it's gonna be a long call - but to get through and for them not to understand what you're asking is ten times worse - then you get them on a loop..... had this last week with BT and could have screamed. Maybe I did actually scream actually, or was it just in my head????[:0]

Originally posted by sailor99
Don't care if they are in India, Edinburgh or Timbuktu, I have yet to find a call centre I am delighted to call. I wish they were all closed [n]

Here here

Originally posted by catsilversword
It's bad enough having to call one of thse centres - always fills me with trepidation and I always know it's gonna be a long call - but to get through and for them not to understand what you're asking is ten times worse - then you get them on a loop..... had this last week with BT and could have screamed. Maybe I did actually scream actually, or was it just in my head????[:0]

I hear that BT call centres are not the best ones to deal with [:?]

Never really had a major problem one way or the other.....

Our work IT dept was based in the UK, then it got moved to India. A year or so later it then moved to Ireland.

Never noticed any difference as all anyone ever did when you had a problem was to suggest that you try "re-booting" After that you're on your own

Jon B

Originally posted by VS075

Originally posted by catsilversword
It's bad enough having to call one of thse centres - always fills me with trepidation and I always know it's gonna be a long call - but to get through and for them not to understand what you're asking is ten times worse - then you get them on a loop..... had this last week with BT and could have screamed. Maybe I did actually scream actually, or was it just in my head????[:0]

I hear that BT call centres are not the best ones to deal with [:?]

Certainly not good! I'm not sure that I deal with many others, come to think of it - BT is more than enough [:0]

Oooo! my very own company's "Global" IT support call centre really gets me.
I am in Korea, the servers and applications I generally access are in England, and all our network is managed from the US, with non US IT personel having limited "power".

So I have a problem accessing the apps and resources I want at the start of my working day (9 hours before my colleages in england will be working).
After much effort to track down a non us, non toll free number to contact IT, i get through to a non technical "call handler", where it is 10pm and they really don't care, and probably don't know where Korea is. I explain my problem (I am an application specialist, but not a priviledged memeber of the IT department, so I know exactly how to fix the problems, but don't have the passwords to do it remotely), my explanations go way over the call handlers head and they say they will pass my problem on to a tech who will call me back..... I give my phone number (in korea), only to be told that the techs can't make international calls from their cell phones.... Global Help Desk my 4rse!
So I politely tell them what i think of them, and go off and do something else until someone useful in england wakes up.

Originally posted by PVGSLF
Oooo! my very own company's "Global" IT support call centre really gets me.
I am in Korea, the servers and applications I generally access are in England, and all our network is managed from the US, with non US IT personel having limited "power".

So I have a problem accessing the apps and resources I want at the start of my working day (9 hours before my colleages in england will be working).
After much effort to track down a non us, non toll free number to contact IT, i get through to a non technical "call handler", where it is 10pm and they really don't care, and probably don't know where Korea is. I explain my problem (I am an application specialist, but not a priviledged memeber of the IT department, so I know exactly how to fix the problems, but don't have the passwords to do it remotely), my explanations go way over the call handlers head and they say they will pass my problem on to a tech who will call me back..... I give my phone number (in korea), only to be told that the techs can't make international calls from their cell phones.... Global Help Desk my 4rse!
So I politely tell them what i think of them, and go off and do something else until someone useful in england wakes up.

I don't know about anyone else here, but 'waiting until someone in England wakes up' isn't necessarily an option for us in the UK - when we call, we don't know which country we're going to be accessing...