Tropical storm Ondoy is no longer in the country but its devastating effect on us is still being felt. I know a couple of people who are unable to work at this time since their houses are still flooded. Even our office building was flooded with waters reportedly filling the basement.
I don’t have a car so I don’t worry much on the basement not being accessible for parking. But the worse thing is the elevator is also not working. I don’t mind if my office is just on the second or third floor as it was before. But man, my office is now on the 7th floor!
When my office was on the 3rd floor, I don’t even use the elevator. I always prefer using the stairs as I consider it a form of exercise. That and brisk walking. I don’t go to the gym and I don’t have any special diet so I’m afraid that my sedentary lifestyle can take its toll on my health in the future. But to use the stairs to go to the 7th floor is a punishment!
Because of this, I also needed to limit the times that I have to go down or out of the office during breaks. We use to complain on how we can not rely on the elevator as it was taking forever to wait for it to come up or down which was very frustrating. But now I’ve come to miss the elevator dearly.
It’s so great to see the sunrise once again! Thank you God for this blessing!
I understand that there are people especially those who were devastated by the tropical storm Ondoy who may never see life the way it was. Those people who have lost their loved ones and their homes, those who are now in evacuation areas waiting for help from the government and their countrymen. But still, life has to go on for all of us.
I went to the office quite early today as I was expecting that there may be some streets that are still flooded in Quezon City. But that was not the case; there were no traffic jam on my way to the office.
When I arrived at the office, I noticed that there were only a handful people going in and out of the office building. There were two trucks situated in front of the building. Then I recalled that one of my officemates told me that the basement was flooded last Saturday. I wondered on how this will affect our jobs.
When I entered the building, I noticed a small notice posted on the wall informing all employees of our account to proceed to our site in Makati! WTF! I immediately called my team leader and she verified the information, I needed to go to Makati. It was now past 6 am and I am expected to log in at 6:30 am! She said that she’ll take care of it. Then I realized that my TL doesn’t have my celphone number.
So I reached our site in Makati at about 7:05 am, thanks to MRT. Then I hurriedly set up my tools and everything else. It was such a hassle but I can never complain. If there’s one thing that I’ve learned from the onslaught of Ondoy, it is to count our blessings. I still have a job, a house and more importantly, I’m alive. Why should I complain?
As of writing, the death toll after the onslaught of tropical storm Ondoy (international code name Ketsana) now rose to 73 based on the evening newscast. And the number is expected to rise as some of the municipalities affected are still submerged in flood water. Not to mention the number of people who were displaced by the extensive flooding in Metro Manila and nearby municipalities.
Earlier in the day, a state of national calamity has been declared over 27 provinces in 7 regions, as well as in the NCR. The provinces included are Mountain Province, Ifugao, and Benguet (CAR); Pangasinan, La Union, and Ilocos Sur (Region I); Isabela, Quirino, and Nueva Vizcaya (Region II); Aurora, Nueva Ecija, Zambales, Pampanga, Bulacan, Tarlac, and Bataan (Region III); Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon (Region IV-A); Mindoro Occidental, Mindoro Oriental, and Marinduque (Region IV-B); and Catanduanes, Camarines Norte, and Camarines Sur (Region V).
Early reports from weather forecasters said that the equivalent of one month’s worth of rain fell on Metro Manila in less than a day. Reports said that about 34.1 centimeters of rain fell on Metro Manila in just six hours, close to the 39.2-centimeter average for the whole month of September.
As of 11 a.m Sunday, the tropical storm has moved on to South China Sea but it left a number of areas still underwater particularly in Marikina, Pasig, the Camanava area and parts of Manila, Quezon City and Rizal.
The sight of people stranded on rooftops desperately waiting for help is heart-rending. Some of them are on their rooftops since the nine-hour deluge on Saturday. I even saw on TV and on Youtube how the raging flood swept away shanties and even automobiles.
If you are just like me who was spared by the tropical storm or the flooding, then you are lucky. It is now time to count our blessings and be thankful to God. But it is also the time to help our fellowmen who have lost their loved ones and their homes. The government is exerting its efforts to help in the rescue and recovery of the victims but we can also do our share. Media institutions and various NGO’s are conducting telethons and fund-raising activities to help the flood and typhoon victims. It’s now time to do our share.
God bless us all!
I’ve been to three call centers and I’ve worked with almost all kinds of people, call center employees in particular. And it’s not unusual for some agents to complain of the management’s inability to provide this and that to its employees. Let’s face it, we will always have complaints. That’s human nature, we can get no satisfaction!
Don’t get me wrong, I’m also a frequent whiner. I easily get irritated. But I try to be reasonable most of the time.
What I find amusing is when call center agents complain of receiving calls. Ironic, isn’t it? Don’t they know what they signed up for? We should be reviewing our job descriptions to find out that our duty is not simply to wait but to receive calls.
“Ang dami namang calls?
“Ano ba yan? Kaka-log-in ko lang may call na agad!”
“Ba’t nauna pa akong pinasukan ng call?”
“Hay, buntung hininga lang ang pahinga!”
Those are just some of the complaints that I’ve been hearing from my team mates everyday. Honestly, I sympathize with them. We are in a very stressful job. Fewer calls mean less stress for us. But, really, this is what we sign up for when we decided to apply for a call center job.
I suggest that we start counting our blessings. If you found a call center job with fewer calls, good for you! In my girlfriend’s previous account, the minimum calls that they were getting were 60 calls per day. I can not imagine myself receiving that number of calls. I may never show up the next day, lol.
The good thing is we still have jobs. If there are no calls coming in then we better start updating our resumes and begin job hunting again. No calls means no jobs for us! That is the bottom line.
My girlfriend Donna and her cousin had a very major disappointment when they applied for a call center job in Libis, Quezon City. They used to work in another call center also in Libis but they decided to resign and look for another company. Donna has been working in the call center for almost two years now but in various call center companies. So they are not newbies, they know what it takes to apply for a call center job, they’ve been in that position a couple of times.
So when they said that “naligwak kami sa interview.” (They didn’t pass the interview.) I couldn’t help myself not to laugh. So I asked, why didn’t you pass the interview? They don’t know. They were not told why; they didn’t pass the interview, period. What they were told was this company is the number one in India and they intend to do the same in the Philippines. Are they looking for applicants with Indian accent? That I can not answer.
If that was me, I will ask the interviewer why I didn’t pass. I need to know what I did wrong in the interview or what areas I should work on. For all we know, it may not be the interview why you didn't get the job. This is important especially for new call center applicants; you need to get feedback from the interviewer so the next time you will apply for a job, you can concentrate more on these areas. Maybe you need to work more on your pronunciation your accent or it could be your diction? You wouldn’t know for sure until you ask questions.
No matter what is the reason why you didn’t pass the interview, don’t take it against you. Take it as a challenge and continue to work on your communication skills. Fortunately, we don’t have a shortage of call center companies in the Philippines, so don’t lose hope. Just keep on trying.
Even before I applied for a call center job, I was aware that working the night shift can take a toll on one’s health. But this was not based on any medical findings or research, suspetsa ko lang. So I was not surprised when I stumbled upon this article entitled “Night Shift Makes Metabolism Go Haywire” from wired.com. This article just verified my suspicion: that working the graveyard shift is not good for the health.
Scientists said that working at night disrupts the circadian rhythm of the body. Ano ang circadian rhythm? Eto ang sabi ng Wikipedia: A circadian rhythm is a roughly-24-hour cycle in the biochemical, physiological or behavioural processes of living entities, including plants and animals… This rhythm allows organisms to anticipate and prepare for precise and regular environmental changes. Sa madaling salita, ito iyong body clock or biological clock.
Based on the study, scientists have known that people who work night shifts (about 15 million people in the United States ) are unusually prone to heart diseases, bone fractures, cancer, diabetes and obesity.
Ang ginawa ng mga researchers ay inobserbahan nila ang mga taong may di pangkaraniwang sleep patterns at naidokumento nila kung paano nagugulo ang metabolismo ng mga taong kumakayod sa gabi at natutulog sa araw.
Alam naman kasi natin na ang katawan natin ay nasanay sa day-night cycle. Napansin nilang sa mga taong inobserbahan, na may iba nang sleeping patterns, their levels of key metabolic hormones went haywire. Isang patunay na ang pagtatrabaho ng graveyard shift ay talagang may occupational hazard.
"Normally, the body clock prepares the body for certain activities at a certain time of day," said study co-author Frank Scheer, a Harvard Medical School neuroscientist. "But when it’s out of synchronization, it doesn’t prepare it properly."
This is not to discourage anybody from working in this industry. Dapat lang alam mo kung ano ang pinapasok mo. For some, benefits such as hazard pay, night differential and other allowances are enough to convince them to take a call center job despite the work hazard.
Para sa kabuuang ulat, you can visit the URL below:
http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/03/nightshift.html
Imagine that you are at the middle of a call with an elderly customer when you suddenly feel something different, your abdomen started to ache and you feel uncomfortable. You already feared this will happen even before going to the office but it was 2 days before the end of the month and you haven’t incurred any tardiness or absences yet. You simply shrugged your shoulders and exclaimed: Sayang ang attendance bonus!
So you went to the office praying to the high heavens that you will feel better in time. But now the abdominal pain is worsening. And your customer is not helping at all.
“Please right-click on the My Computer icon on your desktop,” sabi mo.
“Nothing is happening, oh well, it turns blue,” sabi ng matandang kausap mo. The customer is already frustrated.
With all the patience that you can muster, you said: “Sir, please make sure that you are right-clicking on the mouse button, don’t left click, right-click. RIGHT-CLICK!”
“So how do you right-click?” irritable na rin si lolo.
Pinindot mo ang mute button sa iyong AVAYA at nagpakawala ka ng isang malutong na mura.
Iba na talaga ang pakiramdam mo, butil-butil na ang pawis mo sa noo kahit na malamig ang aircon. Sobra na ang pagtitimpi mo. Si lolo ay kalahating oras mo ng kausap pero wala pang pinupuntahan ang inyong usapan. Hindi pa rin nya natututunan ang right-click at left click. Gustong-gusto mo nang pindutin ang release button at kumaripas ng takbo palabas.
Sa wakas ay sumuko na rin si lolo. Sabi niya’y tatawag na lang sya uli. “Kahit wag na,” sa isip-isip mo. Pero sige, binanatan mo ng napakahabang closing spiel.
So when the call ended, sumenyas ka sa supervisor mo. Halos tumakbo ka palabas, ni hindi mo pinansin ang crush mong agent na madadaanan mo ang station palabas ng room, dati-rati’y panay ang pakyut mo dito pero ngayon ay parang inidoro ang tingin mo sa kanya. Pakiramdam mo kasi’y di mo na kayang pigilan ang tinitimpi mo. Lalabas na….
Narating mo ang restroom sa 3rd floor. Maraming tao at puno ang lahat ng cubicle. Napamura ka muli. Takbo ka uli, sa 4th floor may restroom. Halos di sumasayad ang iyong paa sa pagmamadali. Walang gamit ang elevator. Sira ang isa, ang isa nasa 10th floor pa at ayaw pang bumaba. Dalawang hakbang lang yata ay nakarating ka sa 4th floor. Marami ding tao sa loob ng restroom, maingay ang mga mokong pero may bakanteng cubicle. Hindi ka na nag-aksaya ng panahon, mabilis kang pumasok na parang may nakikipag-agawan sa yo. Naririnig mo ang tawanan ng mga lalaki. Di mo sila pinansin. Naupo ka. Naramdaman mo ang malakas na pagsabog… at narinig mo din….
Pagkatapos ay nakakabinging katahimikan, natigil ang tawanan. Napangiti ka. Parang sandaling tumigil ang pag-inog ng mundo. Biglang gumaan ang pakiramdam mo, ang sarap ng feeling.
Tawanan uli. Parang ikaw na ang pinagtatawanan nila. You don’t care. Tangina nila. Ang mahalaga nakaraos ka. Pero wait, walang tissue. Asan ang tissue?
At pagbalik mo pa ng workstation, naghihintay na ang supe mo sayo at masama ang tingin. “Ten minutes ka ng naka-ACW!”
Bad trip, di ba?
I wake up at about 8 am today, quite late since I usually woke up at 4 am on weekdays to go to work. But today is an exception, as I’m on vacation leave for today until tomorrow. This is just one of the perks of being a regular employee in a call center.
I still have about 13 days left for my vacation leave allocation for this year. I have 20 days sick leaves and 20 days vacation leaves for the entire year. Not bad, huh.
Anyway, I spent the whole day outside. I went to a developer based in Makati with Donna to pay for the construction bond of our house in Bulacan. We went through different house plans with one of the engineers but since they only have limited designs and plans we settled for one that is close enough to what we really want for the house. They can prepare a customized plan but It will take some time and we can no longer afford to delay the house construction. We need to move to the new house in Bulacan as soon as possible because I have been paying the monthly amortization of the house for two months now and yet we are still living in (and paying) our rented apartment in Quezon City.
From Makati, we went straight to Bulacan to apply for a Barangay Clearance. We were told that all people who will live with me in the new house are required to secure a clearance from the Barangay. I don’t have any problems with it. We took a quick look at the new house and then went straight home.
We were both exhausted at the end of the day. And I’m supposed to spend my vacation leaves resting. Anyway, I still have tomorrow and the weekends to rest, to meditate perhaps.
Have a good day to everyone!
Filipinoisms, they say, are words or phrases that are usually grammatically incorrect or are mostly results of transliteration or translation. These are words considered “English” by Filipinos that may not be understood by native English speakers. Some of these words and phrases may mean differently than the intended meaning for non-Filipino listeners.
Below is a list of common words that every Filipino should be aware of and refrain from using. The earlier we correct them, the better our chances of improving our communication skills.
1. Already – expression of exasperation. Avoid using it at the end of the sentence. Literal translation is “na.”
2. Officemates - use co-workers or colleagues
3. CR or comfort room – better use toilet, restroom, washroom, bathroom, the john or the loo
4. Come again - use pardon me; could you say that one more time please? I'm sorry I didn't get quite get that; I'm sorry would you please say that again? (Hindi rin magandang pakinggan ito, as this could sound as 'cum again'.)
5. For a while - use please hold; Hold your line; One moment; One second for face-to-face situations
6. I'll go ahead - say, I have to go; "I'll see you there" or "See you tomorrow"
7. Bottomless - should be "refillable"
8. Rubber shoes use "sneakers" instead
9. Ref –refrigerator na lang o fridge kung gusto mong maintindihan ka.
10. I’m sorry – kung gusto mo lang ipaulit ang sinabi ng kausap mo, just say Pardon me? Or Say that again please?
Are you preparing for a call center interview? Preparation is your best ally to ace a call center interview. So I’ve come up with a couple of questions that are usually asked during a call center interview based on my experience and some resources in the web.
However, I can not guarantee that once you've mastered the answers to these questions, you will nail the interview. Hindi ko rin masisiguro na ang mga tanong na ito ang eksaktong itatanong sa iyo, depende yan sa nag-i-interview. And it will depend on how you deliver the answers. Some call centers don’t really care about your answers, gusto lang nilang malaman ang level ng English proficiency mo. Yung iba, titingnan lang kung may P and F defect ka, mahirap daw kasing ituwid iyon.
1. "Tell me something about yourself..."
More likely, the interviewer is trying to assess your communication skills and linear thinking. Baka tinitingnan lang ng interviewer kung paano ba ang magandang approach nya sa interview base sa mga sagot mo. You have to be prepared to talk for about two minutes about yourself. As much as possible, be logical and confident. Iwasan mo na yung mga detalyeng nasa resume mo naman. I think it’s best to simply describe one personal attribute.
2. Tell me about your work history.
Mas magandang magsimula ka sa pinaka-recent mong trabaho hanggang sa pinakauna mong naging trabaho pero mas bigyan ng emphasis ang mga job experiences mo na may kinalaman sa customer service.
3. Why do you want to leave your current employer and/or switch careers?
Kritikal ang tanong na ito at kailangan mo ng magandang sagot. But this is not an opportunity to bad mouth your previous employers. More opportunity, career growth, additional responsibility, are examples of good responses. Huwag mo nang banggitin na buwisit na buwisit ka na sa boss mo, o walang kwenta ang naging trabaho mo. Focus on the positive reason for leaving.
4. What did you like about your past job? What did you dislike about your past job?
No matter how tempting, stay away from negative answers. This is not the time to rant or to air your grievances on your previous employer. Relaks lang kung gusto mong matanggap hehehe.
5. Describe a major problem you’ve encountered and how you dealt with it?
Dapat handa ka sa tanong na ito. Mas magandang ibahagi mo ang isang problemang nalutas mo na magpapakita kung gaano ka kagaling. Pagkakataon mo ito para magpabibo hehehe. Ikuwento mo kung paano mong nalutas ang isang problema sa pamamagitan ng abilidad, kasipagan o talino mo.
6. Please describe your greatest strength or attribute? Describe one of your weaknesses?
Ingat lang sa tanong na ito. You need to give an honest answer but you obviously don’t want to present a major concern. I think it is best to focus on areas you’d like to progress further in. Sabihin mo na lang na gusto mo pang matuto sa bagay na ito at magbigay ka ng mga kaparaanan kung paano mong masosolusyunan ang kahinaan na ito.
7. What are your goals for the next 3-5 years? Or Where do you see yourself five or ten years from now?"
Of course, gusto mong patunayan na may ambisyon ka rin naman pero wag naman sobra. Pwede mo sigurong sabihin na gusto mong maging top agent o team lead o trainer kaya in 3 years time. Pero kung sasabihin mong gusto mong maging manager sa loob ng anim na buwan e baka hindi magandang idea yun. Baka isipin nila, masyado kang ambisyoso at hindi ka magtatagal sa trabaho kapag hindi mo naisakatuparan ang pangarap mo.
8. "Why should we hire you for this position? What kinds of contributions would you make?"
Eto yung time kung kelan mo ibebenta ang sarili mo. Magbuhat ka na ng bangko kung kinakailangan pero wag naman sobra. Idetalye mo ang mga magagawa mong contribution sa kumpanya in case na ma-hire ka.
9. "Describe what outstanding customer service means to you, and give an example of when you’ve provided outstanding customer service."
Obviously, the interviewer is trying to determine your customer service orientation. Dapat handa kang magbigay ng mga halimbawa o mga senaryo kung paano ka nakapagbigay ng magandang serbisyo sa iyong kapwa. Be prepared to describe your thoughts on the importance of customer service and give an example of action(s) you have taken to meet or exceed customer needs.
10. "Deadlines, frustrations, difficult people and silly rules can make a job difficult. How do you handle these types of situations?"
Sa lahat halos ng companies, ito ang mga makakaharap mong problema, kahit na sa call centers. Mahalagang mailahad kung paano mo iha-handle ang mga ito. Usually, perseverance, diplomacy and a lot of common sense will help you in different situations.
One more thing, kapag tinanong ka ng interviewer ng ganito: “Do you have any questions for me”? Mas magandang may nakahanda kang dalawang tanong na dapat ay iyong pinag-isipan. Nagpapakita lang ito na handa ka sa interview at talagang interesado ka sa trabahong iyong ina-aplayan.
This question struck me suddenly while waiting for an FX outside of our office in Quezon city. I was on my way home that afternoon, I’m working the day shift. Ang totoo, sumagi sa isip ko ang tanong na iyon kasi napansin ko ang iba ring papauwing gaya ko ring call center employees. The truth that they are working in a call center is screaming from their ID laces to their jackets and shirts bearing the name of the call center company. Looking at these people, I can tell that they are proud of their job. And they should be dahil marangal ang kanilang trabaho.
Marami na rin kasi akong na-encounter na mga taong mababa ang tingin sa trabahong ito. Kasi nga naman, tambakan daw ito ng mga taong walang ibang mapasukan. At kung college graduate ka at sa call center ka nagtatrabaho, malamang ay nasa statistics ka bilang underemployed. Ibig sabihin, ang trabaho mo ay hindi angkop sa iyong qualifications. Akala kasi nila ay ganun lang kadaling pumasok sa trabahong ito. Sa totoo lang, marami na rin akong nakasabay sa pag-aaplay ko sa mga call centers na mga graduates ng pinakamalalaking universities and colleges sa bansa at hindi lahat sa kanila ay pumapasa sa screening. “Ligwak” din ang iba, sabi ng isang baklang nakasabay ko sa training. Gayong may mga college undergraduate naman na pumapasa at kasalukuyan ng nagtatrabaho bilang call center agents. These people should be proud.
Ako? Simple lang ang pamantayan ko sa buhay. I don’t care what other people would say as long as I’m in peace with myself that I’m not doing anything wrong. Being a call center agent has given me the opportunity to provide for my simple lifestyle and to help in my family's finances. This job also gave me the opportunity to learn so many things and meet so many wonderful people. These are priceless.
And even just for these reasons, I can boldly say that I’m proud to be a call center agent.
I once saw this question posted on an online forum. Why do you want to work in a call center? Without batting an eyelash, most people will respond that “the work is fun and the pay is considerably high” or simply “the pay is considerably high” since the work is not always fun to be politically correct. Pwede rin siguro nating i-rephrase ang question: Why are you working in a call center?
Monetary considerations will still be the top answer if we will conduct a survey ala “Family Feud”. Pero hindi naman lahat ‘yan ang dahilan kung bakit sila nasa trabahong ito base na rin sa obserbasyon ko at sa mga taong nakasalamuha ko sa iba't ibang call centers. May mababaw at may malalim na dahilan.
May ibang nakikiraan lamang, ‘ika nga’y nakikitambay lang sa trabahong ito. Gaya ng isa kong naging co-worker na nag-resign sa pagtuturo para pumasok sa call center. The reason? She’s waiting for her VISA so she can work abroad. Pag nasa call center ka nga naman, madaling mag-resign. Marami nga dyan, di na nagre-resign, bigla na lang nawawalang parang bula.
Meron din akong kilala na graduate ng nursing, registered nurse pa nga yata pero nasa call center. Ang kuwento niya, kailangan nya ng panlakad ng papeles at panggastos sa pagkuha ng kung anu-anong examinations para makapag-abroad din.
Ang pinakakaiba ko sigurong na-encounter na sagot kung bakit siya nasa call center ay sa isang nakasabay ko sa training na hindi na ako kilala ngayon. You see, si kuya ay isa talagang photographer, freelancer nga lang siya noon. Pero ngayon, full-time photographer na daw sa isang kilalang dyaryo hehehe. Napapanot na itong si “kuya” at sa tantya ko ay nasa 40 something na ang edad. Ang dahilan nya sa pagpasok sa magulo at mapanghamong mundo ng call center? Gusto daw nyang magka-girlfriend. You heard it right, mga peeps. Obserbasyon kasi niya, marami daw mga magaganda at seksing babae na nagwo-work sa call center. O di ba? (wink sa mga bebot dyan.)
Another valid reason why some people are working in the call center industry is most companies do not discriminate people based on gender preferences. Nakita ko na yata lahat ng tao sa trabahong ito. Parang kabute lang ang gays sa dami at sa biglaang pagsusulputan (no offense meant) pero yung minsang nakatabi ko sa training na akala mo’y bodybuilder, bakla pala. Of course, open din ang mga tomboy.
Depende rin siguro sa handicapped ng tao pero as long as you can do the job, hindi rin nagdi-discriminate kahit na sa mga taong may disabilities. When I was in another call center in Cainta, I saw a lady there who goes to work in a wheelchair. And sa movie na “Seven Pounds” ni Will Smith, si Woody Harrelson ay gumanap bilang isang bulag na call center agent.
As for age discrimination, wala yan sa trabahong ito. Sa bawat call center kong pinapasukan, lagi akong may nakakasabay sa training na may edad na. Si Daddy Charles ay nakasabay ko sa training nung nasa call center pa ako sa Makati. I don’t know his real age pero I would guess at 55. He already has sons and daughters who are working in the same industry. May nakasabay din ako sa training na kung tawagin namin ay “tatay” for obvious reasons. I think nasa 50’s na rin ang age nya. Wala na rin sya ngayon sa call center na pinasukan namin pero balita ko ay nasa ibang call center na naman siya.
Kung tatanungin mo ako kung ano ang dahilan ko kung bakit ako nasa trabahong ito. Siguro nakikiraan lang din. Yung tipong kung may darating na opportunities sa ibang larangan ay iiwan ko din ang trabahong ito ng walang lingunan. Meron akong narinig noon na nakapagsabi na dapat ay 2 years lang ang itatagal mo sa trabahong ganito if you want to keep your sanity and health. Hehehe lampas na ako dun. Pero still, I don’t see myself working in the call center for another 5 or 10 years. This is just me. I know people who have been working in this job for 5 to 10 years and they are doing well. Some managers I know used to be agents.
Whatever reasons you have in choosing this job, since this is now our bread and butter, we are expected to perform with the best of our abilities. And this is what I hope I’m doing…
How about you? Why do you want to work in a call center?
I got this list from the Microsoft Small Business Center web site. I found the list useful to call center workers. Below are the 15 biggest sins of customer service employees today. Bato bato sa langit, ang tamaan ay wag magagalit hehehe.
1. You are having a bad day, and your foul mood carries over in conversations with customers. (Obviously, hindi lahat ng araw ay nasa mood tayo magtrabaho. We sometimes have bad days. Hindi tayo robots, dumadaan tayo sa problema, break-ups man yan o problema sa pamilya. Pero bilang mga call center employees, sarilinin na lang natin ang problema. Hindi rin kasalanan ng customer kung bakit iniwan ka ng bf o gf mo, so wag mo sa kanya ibunton ang bad trip mo.:)
2. You hang up on angry customers. (Hmmm Ito yung masarap gawin pag nakakainis at irate ang kausap mo. Pero kahit pa kating-kati ka ng pindutin ang Release button sa Avaya mo o kahit na anong button para ma-disconnect ang kausap mo (then later sasabihin mong di sinasadya), hindi dapat. Ito ang ironclad rule sa mga customer service agents: Never hang up on a customer.)
3. You don’t return phone calls or voice-mail messages, despite listing your phone number on your Web site and/or in ads and directories. (Very common ito sa kilala kong team hehehe. Nangangako sila ng callback pero hindi natutupad. Hindi ito maganda sa imahe ng clients natin or the company na ating nire-represent. Just imagine na ang mga customers natin also values their time. May nakausap akong customer before, naghintay daw sya maghapon at namuti ang mata sa kahihintay sa callback dahil sinabihan sya ng previous agent na tatawagan sya within that day. You can just imagine ang galit nya nang makausap ko. Unfortunately for me, ako ang sumalo ng galit ng customer because of somebody’s unprofessionalism.
4. You put callers on hold without asking them first, as a courtesy. (This is very basic. Ask customers politely if you can put them on hold; very few will complain or say "No way!")
5. You put callers on a speaker phone without asking them first if it is OK. (This is not much applicable in the usual call center setting as your Team Lead or Supevisor will be able to hear if you put a customer in a speaker phone. And wala akong nakikitang dahilan para gawin ito, naka-headset ka nga diba? Pero just in case: Ask first, as a courtesy.)
6. You eat, drink or chew gum while talking with customers on the phone. (Hmm, may kilala ako na talented pagdating sa bagay na ito. Kahit may lamang rice and chicken joy ang bibig, hindi halata pag nagsasalita sa phone. The problem is hindi tayong lahat my talent na ganito. And a telephone mouthpiece is like a microphone; noises can easily be picked up. Most call centers do not allow the practice of eating their meals on the floor, kaya nga may pantry e. Employees need to eat their meals away from the phone. And save that stick of gum for break time.)
7. You have call-waiting on your business lines, and your employees frequently interrupt existing calls to take new calls. (One interruption in a call might be excusable; beyond that, you are crossing the "rude" threshold. Do your best to be prepared with enough staff for peak calling times.)
8. You refuse or forget to use the words "please," "thank you" or "you're welcome." (Wala naman yata tayong quota sa paggamit ng mga salitang ito diba? Please use these words generously, thank you.)
9. You should hold side conversations with friends or each other while talking to customers on the phone, or you make personal calls on cell phones in your call center. (Maraming guilty dito, mas masarap kasing kausap ang katabi mo kesa sa customer e lalo na kung irate. Ang problema, we don’t get paid by talking to your seatmate but by talking to the customer at the other line. Para matapos na ang usapan, focus on the call, resolve the issue to get rid of the customer.)
10. You seem incapable of offering more than one-word answers. (You’re better than a robot. Bigyan mo ‘ika nga ng personal touch ang pakikipag-usap sa customer. Emphatize when needed. One-word answers come across as rude and uncaring. At least offer another option or an alternative.)
11. You do provide more than one-word answers, but a lot of the words are grounded in company or industry jargon that many customers don't understand. (If you sell technical products, for example, don't casually drop in abbreviations such as APIs, ISVs, SMTP or TCP/IP. If you need to then at least explain what these abbreviations mean.)
12. You request that customers call you back when the employees aren't so busy. (Customers should never be told to call back. Request the customer's number instead. If you need to, then at least deliver the request in the most polite way that you can muster.)
13. You rush through calls, forcing customers off the phone at the earliest opportunity. (I understand na worried ka sa AHT mo pero at least be a little more discreet. Politely suggest that you've got the information you need and you must move on to other calls.)
14. You obnoxiously bellow "What's this in reference to?" effectively humbling customers and belittling their requests. (Screening techniques can be used with a little more warmth and finesse. If a caller has mistakenly come your way, do your best to point him or her in the right direction.)
15. You freely admit to customers that you hate your job. (Alam kong marami ang ganito, we hate taking calls but we keep on going to work everyday. However, admitting this to customers simply makes the entire company look bad. And don't think such a moment of candor or lapse in judgment won't get back to the boss.)
In all fairness to customer service workers like me, some customers are rude too. And this job can often be thankless, with little motivation or incentive to do the job right. Pero kung gusto nating tumagal sa trabahong ito, then let’s do what needs to be done.
I understand that that life of customer service employees may not be fair. Customers can be rude and can get away with it. Unfortunately, we employees cannot if we want our companies to succeed and keep our jobs.
I stumbled upon this compilation of funny lines from actual interviews of aspiring call center agents. We all make mistakes and even seasoned call center agents pumapalpak din sa floor, marami pa ring bloopers. Pero once na nasabi na natin, di na natin mababawi, so why take it personally when we can just laugh about it.
So let’s release our stress and laugh out loud:
1. When asked why she/he wanted to work in a call center:
- “I want to learn more English words.” (Dictionary, gusto mo?)
- "I want to entertain and satisfy customers" (hmmm....interesting ...so...what are you wearing right now?)
- "I want to expose myself to the customers." - Flasher ba ito?
- "Haller???!!!??? (knocks on the table) THE SALARY!" (Tindi, lol)
- "I like to explore other people." (ay sus...maniac ka ano?)
- "I want to explore myself more." (Isa ka pa! Hehehe)
2. Do you have any extra ordinary positions that I can take for granted (Roughly Translated: Meron po ba kayong ibang position na pwede ko'ng apply-an?)
3. I am a flexible and I am perseverance person (when asked to describe her personality)
4. "Ten" (When asked to count from 1 to 40 to measure her articulation)
5. "I would choose IRATE CALLERS, Sir." (Answer to the question: If you will change the COLOR of the world, what would it be and why?)
6. "Is there an opening for a call center?" (Oh so you want to become a call center now huh?)
7. "Hi. Good afternoon, my name is _____, and I'M a call center from the Philippines." (solohin ba)
8. Chocolates, boys with tongue pierce." (An applicants answer to the question: What are your weaknesses?"
9. "I think Grade 3 and 4 students are very childish!" (Answer to the question: What do you think is the most difficult part of teaching Grade 3 and 4 students)
10. "I'm a married person, I have 2 children, the same boy"
11. "It's a colorful world." (Describe the shirt you're wearing.)
12. "It's a boomed industry." (So all agents are now dead, I guess)
13. "I was scheduled for an exam this morning....I wasn't able to make it...because I WAS TONSILITIS."
14. "Hi Maam, do you have an opening." (Lokong to ah!)
15. "I want to adventure into the graveyard..." (Langya, mahilig ka sa patay!)
16. "I would like to be a part of the graveyard..." (isa ka pa...thriller...thriller night)
17. "Do you accept walking applicants?" (No, we prefer flying ones)
18. Text messages from applicants:
- "Hu u? How did you get my #? Text me back, huri. Send me load." (The audacity of an applicant can sometimes appall you.)
- "Gd pm sir, im realy sri wen u call me I cnt hear clearly coz d raindrops of d rain is vry noisy. Rgrdng of wat u want 2 knw y u call me?"
19. Interviewer: So you're an undergrad. What year are you in right
now?Applicant: Oh I'm just here in the house. Interviewer: No, I asked you what year you're in. Applicant: Year? I'm 25 years old! (Malinaw ang usapan natin, pre.)
20. Applicant: Agency ba to? Interviewer: No sir, head hunting firm. Applicant (turning to friend): Egg-hunting daw pare! (Happy Easter!)
21. "In the middle of my study at Adamson, my father fortunately passed away." (FORTUNATELY???!!! May galit ka ba sa tatay mo?)
22. "Hello, i just want to inquire about the application resume that i planted in the computer..." (Magsasaka ka ba, tsong?)
23. "May inaantay ako na trabaho kaya gusto ko lang na may mapag LILIBINGAN." (Answer to the question "Why do you prefer a part-time job?" Tagalog na yun ha! Mahilig talaga kayo sa patay!)
Here's another installment of the call center booboos, these were taken from another call center forum. If you have other funny stories or anecdotes to add, feel free to comment on this blog post.
Have fun reading!!!
1. Agent: (gave an assumptive question to get the billing add) So ma'am, you are still living at P.O. Box...
Customer: Honey, I don't live in a box. I have a house.
2. Agent: Do u have an email address?
Customer: Yes. it's blah blah blah, and then the LETTER 2 @aol.com
3. Agent: I'm sorry ma'am but I'm not pulling up a listing for that exact match in my database. Not even for the address.
Caller : Can u give me credit for this call?
Agent: (checking service provider id) I'm sorry ma'am but you're using a payphone. I can't give u credit for this call.
Caller: I paid a goddamn dollar and fifty for this call! I want it back!
Agent: Well I can't make the coin go out of the phone ma'am.
Caller : I want my dollar and fifty!!!!
Agent: (exasperated) Please hold for the coin.
4. Cust: I have a problem with my internet, I can't connect.
Agent: What is your connection, is it a dial-up or a dsl
Cust: Its a dial-up.
Agent: When did you tried connecting?
Cust: Just now while talking to a friend.
Agent: How many phones do you have?
Cust: Just this one.
Agent: Have you tried connecting while not using your phone?
Cust: Do I need to do that?
Cust: Yes sir because your connection is dial-up.
5. Agent: What is your browser?
Cust: Internet Exploder.
6. Agent: Ok lets fix your issue here... Kindly do this and "press any key" to boot from CD?
Cust: ahh.. I missed it... where's the "press any key" in my keyboard?!
7. Tech: Thank you for callin'.... (customer butts in irately)
Cust: Why my keyboard is not arrange in alphabetical order?! (What? hehehe)
8. Agent: So sir, what seems to be the problem?
Cust: Help me remove YOUR SOFTWARE in my PC... YOUR SOFTWARE is slowly taking over my PC!
9. Cust: What's your supervisor's name?
Agent: darna
Cust: Spell that?
Agent: d-a-r-n-a...darna of team 4
Cust: And what's your name?
Cust: Ding
10. Tech: Thank you for calling ...., my name is Rick, how can I help you.
Customer: My screen is very fuzzy and out out focus. It was fine yesterday, but a download from your company caused this.
Tech: Well lets check a few things on your computer.
(Customers Wife in the Distance: Dam it Jim, you've got my reading glasses again. Use your own.)
Customer: Opps, sorry my fault, bye.
11. Agent: Thank you for calling .... how may I help you?
Customer: I could not print. My computer is telling me that it could not find my printer. I moved the printer and placed it in front of my monitor but it still could not find my printer.(Nyaaaah!)
If there are booboos during interviews when applying for a call center job, there are even more when you are already on the floor taking calls. After all, call center agents are just ordinary people who are prone to mistakes.
Here are some call center booboos taken from an email sent to me:
1. Sir, kindly state your first and last name starting off with your area code?
2. Sir, do you happen to remember your first name, please?
3. Agent: So how long is the camera?
4. Ma'am, please turn off all electrical appliances within the vicinity of your modem. This might be causing the interference.
5. Customer: So what do I do now?
Agent: Click on the OK button, and now let's keep our fingers crossed....
6. Customer: So are you a boy or a girl?
Agent: Well, let's just say a little bit of both...
7. Customer: Mr. Stanley just stepped out of the house. This is his wife.
Agent: Can you ask him to step back in again, ma'am?
8. Sir, let us not tamper with the Safe mode. It was placed there for a purpose!
9. Customer: So do I turn the camera over?
Agent: Yes, sir. You would have to turn yourself over. Right, Sir.
10. What are you talking about it?
11 . (client is going to Las Vegas ) is this your first time or your next time?
12. thank you for calling so much
13. thank you so much for calling to you (???)
14. I'm breaking up on you, too
15. for this one you have to sign up first before you have to be signed up,ok?
16. i can see that this is an unreserved reservation
17. i see here that this is just a reserved reservation
18. how age is your son?
19. (for an opening line..) thank you so much for that information...
20. would you like to reserve this for January nine or January tane?
21 . well, it defends...
22. (new dead air verbiage!) if i don't hear from you within 5 minutes, I'm afraid i will have to release this call...
23. I'm sorry but my supervisor is having a conversation right now...
24. OK you will be leaving 9am in the morning
25. how many passengers will be staying in the room?
26. I'll just tell him na lang!
27. what i can offer you is a one times courtesy void
28. let me just walk you to the set-up
29. i'm sorry but there is something wrong with the airplane... (passenger: what? my flight will still be in 2 months!)
30 . i need to verify this one so let me just hold you for a while, ok? (uy! very sweet na agent!)
31. i'm sorry but because of the queue that we are having, i'm afraid my supervisor is taking a call right now..
(customer asks how many calls are waiting) we are actually having 59 calls on queue...
33. customer irate. sup call. agent muted avaya and advised sup of situation while passenger was shouting and making agent's ears ring...
passenger said, "hello. hello. are you there?"
sandali lang po! (sup almost fainted!)
34. So, sir, you will be traveling with 1 children...
35. Yes, sir, you will be seated between the wings...
36. (for a closing spiel) a sige goodbye...
37. That is correct. What was that again?
38. Please, sir I hope you would listen to you first.
39. One moments please.
40. sure..sure I'll going to drop you a coupon. I'll going to do it right now.
41 . let me hold you, OK? So I can call the hotel for you.
RING RING!
CSA: Thank you for calling. This is Betty Speking how may I help you?
Caller: Okay, Miss "Peking" I would like an authorization code....
A call center job can be one of the stressful jobs that you can find. So the trick is, laugh at every possible opportunity. Here's a collection of call center booboos taken from various call center forums.
Have fun reading!!!
Interview:
1. What do you know about the call center Industry?
Applicant: The call center industry is booming out, side by side, somewhere else.
Applicant: The call center is a booming industry for the past few days and I want to become part of that boom!
Applicant: It's easy to be a call center, just looks arounds you, that why i want to become a call center!
2. Out of nowhere:
Applicant: Oh im sorry, i sit corrected.
Applicant: Im afraid to dead. I feel that im not ready to die.
Applicant: I usually play PS2 at night when there is no loud.
3. Recruiter: You look familiar. I think i already spoke to you before? Do you remember when you were last here?
Applicant: I think months from now.
4. Recruiter: Why do you want to work in a call center?
Applicant: From Manila Bulletin.
Recruiter: Ah okay, but my question is, why do you want to work here?
Applicant: Well, I graduated from CEU with a course of blahblah...
5. Applicant: I'm a work alcoholic.
6. Applicant: I'm the eldest and the only child in our family.
7. Applicant: I'm a hardworking...
I first heard this prank call when I was training for a call center job in Makati. This is really hilarious so laugh out loud and enjoy. However, please be warned that this conversation contains bad .. real bad words. Do not play it if you're easily offended by such languages. It is sick! It is bad. You've been warned! LOL.
This prank call is a classic. I've heard about it a few years ago.
Enjoy!
Here’s a funny video from YouTube about another call center agent (luckily not a Filipino). Is he just desperate to make a sale or he has totally gone nuts? You decide… lol.
Like I said from my previous post, I’ve been with the call center industry for about 3 years now. If you’re a call center hopper then you may consider it a big deal but if you have been in this industry longer than I am, then, good for you.
However, the 3 years that I spent in this line of work was not on one single company. I’ve been with 3 different call centers, one in Makati, one in Cainta and my current company is in Quezon City. These were the companies that will end up in my resume. But what will not be reflected in my resume is that before landing a job in these 3 companies, I also applied to 7 other call centers in Metro Manila. Three of which I voluntarily dropped my application, the rest, I flunked the final interview or the assessment.
So here is my call center statistics:
Hired – 3
Applied – 10
Failed – 4
Dropped out – 3
Longest stay in a call center – 2 years
Shortest stay in a call center – 2 months
Well, I’m not particularly proud of the 2 months that I spent with one company. It was even one of the best companies that I have worked with in terms of facilities and management. However, it was my first call center job and I get shocked with the culture and the job’s pressure is too much for me to handle then. But what the heck, I should even be given credit for lasting 2 months in my first call center job, some will just stay during trainings and then the next thing you know, they are at the neighboring contact centers applying for another job.
How about you? What are your numbers?