I have been working this shift now for over 2 months. I am still getting used to it. I think the hardest part is the sleep deprivation. It is really easy to lose track of time when you are watching a football game (as I did today).
I am trying EVERYTHING I can think of to stay awake. Here are some tips!
Make sure you drink plenty of caffeine. This is a no brainer.
Get the blood flowing. Walk around the campus on breaks. Get some fresh air. This will reinvigorate your mind.
Write blogs making fun of your insane coworker.
Watch every touchdown that Devin Hester has ever scored.
Check out the website http://www.surfthechannel.com
Chat with the few insomniacs on your buddy list.
Do your best to not think about the fact you have only gotten 3 hours of sleep in the last 48 hours.
When it is slow, take 10 min naps. This is essential.
Send mass text messages to the insomniacs on your cell phone.
Surf the web to find out ways to make money so you will never have to work this shift again!
Cheers!
Monday, November 26, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
4:23 am on my way to noon!
The inner workings of my company are pretty ridiculous.
We have a CEO who makes 35 million dollars a year, but is so sheltered from the company, he is flown in a private helicopter to his office. Undoubtedly, paid for by shareholders.
Some of my colleagues have been here for 15 years and have never met the man. And he works approximately 300 feet away.
That is, of course, if he actually appears for work. Usually he is out making appearances to show he 'cares' about the medical community.
What a joke.
Working on the front line, you want to know your management team is behind you; that they will go to bat for you.
I often feel that the second the fires starts, this place will burn to the ground and all my managers will running away shouting 'Don't worry Scott, just turn the nozzle! The water will soon flow!'
It's another day! Happy thoughts!
We have a CEO who makes 35 million dollars a year, but is so sheltered from the company, he is flown in a private helicopter to his office. Undoubtedly, paid for by shareholders.
Some of my colleagues have been here for 15 years and have never met the man. And he works approximately 300 feet away.
That is, of course, if he actually appears for work. Usually he is out making appearances to show he 'cares' about the medical community.
What a joke.
Working on the front line, you want to know your management team is behind you; that they will go to bat for you.
I often feel that the second the fires starts, this place will burn to the ground and all my managers will running away shouting 'Don't worry Scott, just turn the nozzle! The water will soon flow!'
It's another day! Happy thoughts!
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Technology vs Human Compassion
Technology is fluid. Human interaction, comparatively, is fairly static.
While working in an industry such as Information Technology, you tend to get swept up in the rapid change which dictates our business.
Quite frequently, you can leave your compassion at the door.
When you receive hundreds of phone calls a month, you tend to forget that the people on the end of the line are human, with real feelings, and real stress.
I wind up feeling like a big brother to many of the people who call me here at the support center. It is a role that is a very important part of being a call-taker.
However, most people don't appear to share the same opinion. It completely astounds me that an individual can work in this field and still have absolutely zero interpersonal skills.
The part that is troubling is I work with them on a day to day basis. Sometimes I feel really sorry for the people who have to call this support center.
While working in an industry such as Information Technology, you tend to get swept up in the rapid change which dictates our business.
Quite frequently, you can leave your compassion at the door.
When you receive hundreds of phone calls a month, you tend to forget that the people on the end of the line are human, with real feelings, and real stress.
I wind up feeling like a big brother to many of the people who call me here at the support center. It is a role that is a very important part of being a call-taker.
However, most people don't appear to share the same opinion. It completely astounds me that an individual can work in this field and still have absolutely zero interpersonal skills.
The part that is troubling is I work with them on a day to day basis. Sometimes I feel really sorry for the people who have to call this support center.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Tales from the Help Desk
Greetings from the third shift! My name is Scott, and I work as a analyst for a major medical / pharmaceutical company. I have been at this for 8 years now, and I have decided to start blogging about my adventures in help desk land. Along the way I will share personal tips for handling issues, review new technology, and relay humorous stories you only find working this job.
First off, I will tell you about my qualifications. I am a 29 year old from the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. Along the way to this position I have made made stops at the 2nd largest bank in America, the largest cell phone manufacturer in America, and the 4th largest independent payroll company. In addition to these superior (yeah right) technical skills, I was also a manager of a Taco Bell for three years (is this where I developed my amazing customer service skills?).
In addition to what I consider more tangible skill, I also have a knack for writing and decided to have a go at writing about this job.
We have all been there before. Some sort of technology that is supposed to enhance our life breaks; who do you call? Why, the help desk of course. Depending on what is needed, this could be the most painless or painful experience of your life. Personally, I would prefer your call is painless. Easy for me, easy for you. Some people, however, will make your life a living hell. And we could BOTH be on the same desk.
Enter Louis.
Louis is a 'rep' who works with me on the third shift. Now, they always say the crazy people live at night. I can confirm this 100 percent after working only a mere 2 weeks with Louis.
A little background. He is into conspiracy theories. He thinks the government is killing us all. He doesn't believe in shots or medical treatment and he won't buy a condo because of the paperwork.
He listens to the same replay of a political pod cast 2 times a night. I have it memorized.
Oh, and did I mention he listens to the song 'Bad World' by Gary Jules 30 times a day?
With that said..
Let me run you through a few average phone calls.
Ringaling ding......
"Support Center, this is Louis"
'Hi this is Anne Smith'
"SPEAK UP! I CANNOT HEAR YOU!!!"
(Author aside: Mind you, He is the ONLY person that has any difficulty hearing. In fact, our phone systems have a very nice setup utility that will adjust all your volumes automatically. He just doesn't really care to find out how it works.)
'HI! THIS IS ANNE SMITH!!!!'
"YOU HAVE TO SPEAK SLOWER!!!'
(Author aside: At first I thought he was just being a jerk to people on purpose. But I think he just doesn't compute things like a normal human.)
Now this interaction goes on about 10 minutes. First it starts with him yelling, and invariable ends with him insulting them somehow. After he hangs up the phone he will then mumble about how ignorant the person he just spoke to is.
I understand that occasionally you will meet a person on the other end of the line who is just a complete tool. That is one of the hazards of working with the general public. Either his percentage is just unusually high (like EVERY SINGLE PERSON HE TALKS TO) or he is just not cut out for this job.
Here is the clincher: these are people who speak ALMOST FLAWLESS English.
But we work on the third shift. Which means roughly 50 percent of the people who call here are international clients. All hell breaks loose on these phones calls.
Ringaling ding...
'Support Center, this (cough cough, no mute button) is Louis'
(in a thick Indian accent) 'Hello this is Naresh Paresh I need my password reset'
'HELLO? HELLO? SPEAK ENGLISH? HELLO? WHO IS THERE?'
(Author aside: He just told him who he was. I get the exact same calls. After about two seconds, I can figure out that he is from India and I can adjust myself to pick up what he is talking about. Is that a skill acquired? Sure. Obviously people aren't born with it. But after 2 weeks it should be a no brainer.)
(attempting to articulate better) 'Hello this is Narash Parash......'
'YOU NEED TO SPEAK ENGLISH!!!!!!!!!! COUGH COUGH COUGH'
(attempting again to articulate) 'Hello this is Narash..........'
'I CAN'T UNDERSTAND YOU! BUY A DICTIONARY OR LEARN ENGLISH'
'I'm sorry sir....'
'EMAIL INSTEAD OR PUT SOMEONE ON THE PHONE WHO CAN TALK MY LANGUAGE'
Now this goes on for what seems like forever. After he settles down, he starts to work with the user in order to get him to log on to a website that will assist him with his connection.
'Go to vpnaccess DOT company DOT com'
'(in Indian accent) did you say date?'
'DATE?!? DATE?!?! WHERE DID I SAY DATE! IT'S A DOT! DON'T YOU KNOW WHAT A DOT IS??'
(Author aside: Indian computer keyboards are laid out differently. You cannot really tell the person 'the key two away from the shift key. So you need to be resourceful. Call it a PERIOD. Maybe even a full-stop. Something that someone who ISN'T AMERICAN can understand.)
'WHO SAID DATE? IT'S A DOT. IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT A DOT IS I CANNOT HELP YOU!'
Click. User is hung up on.
Mumbling about how people need to learn to speak English and coughing some more.
First off, I will tell you about my qualifications. I am a 29 year old from the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. Along the way to this position I have made made stops at the 2nd largest bank in America, the largest cell phone manufacturer in America, and the 4th largest independent payroll company. In addition to these superior (yeah right) technical skills, I was also a manager of a Taco Bell for three years (is this where I developed my amazing customer service skills?).
In addition to what I consider more tangible skill, I also have a knack for writing and decided to have a go at writing about this job.
We have all been there before. Some sort of technology that is supposed to enhance our life breaks; who do you call? Why, the help desk of course. Depending on what is needed, this could be the most painless or painful experience of your life. Personally, I would prefer your call is painless. Easy for me, easy for you. Some people, however, will make your life a living hell. And we could BOTH be on the same desk.
Enter Louis.
Louis is a 'rep' who works with me on the third shift. Now, they always say the crazy people live at night. I can confirm this 100 percent after working only a mere 2 weeks with Louis.
A little background. He is into conspiracy theories. He thinks the government is killing us all. He doesn't believe in shots or medical treatment and he won't buy a condo because of the paperwork.
He listens to the same replay of a political pod cast 2 times a night. I have it memorized.
Oh, and did I mention he listens to the song 'Bad World' by Gary Jules 30 times a day?
With that said..
Let me run you through a few average phone calls.
Ringaling ding......
"Support Center, this is Louis"
'Hi this is Anne Smith'
"SPEAK UP! I CANNOT HEAR YOU!!!"
(Author aside: Mind you, He is the ONLY person that has any difficulty hearing. In fact, our phone systems have a very nice setup utility that will adjust all your volumes automatically. He just doesn't really care to find out how it works.)
'HI! THIS IS ANNE SMITH!!!!'
"YOU HAVE TO SPEAK SLOWER!!!'
(Author aside: At first I thought he was just being a jerk to people on purpose. But I think he just doesn't compute things like a normal human.)
Now this interaction goes on about 10 minutes. First it starts with him yelling, and invariable ends with him insulting them somehow. After he hangs up the phone he will then mumble about how ignorant the person he just spoke to is.
I understand that occasionally you will meet a person on the other end of the line who is just a complete tool. That is one of the hazards of working with the general public. Either his percentage is just unusually high (like EVERY SINGLE PERSON HE TALKS TO) or he is just not cut out for this job.
Here is the clincher: these are people who speak ALMOST FLAWLESS English.
But we work on the third shift. Which means roughly 50 percent of the people who call here are international clients. All hell breaks loose on these phones calls.
Ringaling ding...
'Support Center, this (cough cough, no mute button) is Louis'
(in a thick Indian accent) 'Hello this is Naresh Paresh I need my password reset'
'HELLO? HELLO? SPEAK ENGLISH? HELLO? WHO IS THERE?'
(Author aside: He just told him who he was. I get the exact same calls. After about two seconds, I can figure out that he is from India and I can adjust myself to pick up what he is talking about. Is that a skill acquired? Sure. Obviously people aren't born with it. But after 2 weeks it should be a no brainer.)
(attempting to articulate better) 'Hello this is Narash Parash......'
'YOU NEED TO SPEAK ENGLISH!!!!!!!!!! COUGH COUGH COUGH'
(attempting again to articulate) 'Hello this is Narash..........'
'I CAN'T UNDERSTAND YOU! BUY A DICTIONARY OR LEARN ENGLISH'
'I'm sorry sir....'
'EMAIL INSTEAD OR PUT SOMEONE ON THE PHONE WHO CAN TALK MY LANGUAGE'
Now this goes on for what seems like forever. After he settles down, he starts to work with the user in order to get him to log on to a website that will assist him with his connection.
'Go to vpnaccess DOT company DOT com'
'(in Indian accent) did you say date?'
'DATE?!? DATE?!?! WHERE DID I SAY DATE! IT'S A DOT! DON'T YOU KNOW WHAT A DOT IS??'
(Author aside: Indian computer keyboards are laid out differently. You cannot really tell the person 'the key two away from the shift key. So you need to be resourceful. Call it a PERIOD. Maybe even a full-stop. Something that someone who ISN'T AMERICAN can understand.)
'WHO SAID DATE? IT'S A DOT. IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT A DOT IS I CANNOT HELP YOU!'
Click. User is hung up on.
Mumbling about how people need to learn to speak English and coughing some more.
- Scott's 'Should-be-common-sense-but-apparently-people-forget-help-desk-tip' #1: Treat everyone with the respect you wish to be treated with. Here is the fact of the matter: Everyone, including those pesky and fiesty foriegners, have fingers (well, most of them). And those fingers WILL email your manager. You don't know when. But your treatment will make it back up the chain. And someday soon, Louis is going to find that out.
Okay. Customer Service 101 time. First off, if we don't receive phone calls from overseas clients, we don't have jobs. If I don't have a job, I can't go to baseball games. So that's problem one. They will stop calling us soon. I will be extremely upset when the Cub's make it to the playoffs next year and I'm not there. Secondly, their accents aren't that bad. Anyone who has grown up in a semi-cultured home or town would have no issue figuring out what this gentleman is asking for. But Louis doesn't care. He just hangs up the phone and goes back to listening to his political radio. At a loud volume. ANNOYING US ALL!
Oh, did I mention he thinks the Government is poisoning us from above by perfectly placed poison drops? Spread the word! We'll all be dead in 2 months.
Welcome to the third shift! God help us all.
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