Charter Leaked Internal Memo Reminds CSRs not to make up tech arrival times... Yesterday a former Charter tech gave the company a PR black eye in the St. Louis Post Dispatch by stating support reps lie to customers about missed appointment windows -- because their internal tracking systems stink. A Charter tech then stopped in our forums to confirm the problem, blaming it on outsourced call centers, sales reps promising too much and unreliable contractors. Today the Consumerist offers a leaked internal memo that reminds employees not to make up times for tech arrivals and avoid promising tech ETAs.
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 | | Do what we say, depends on who does the saying I recall working at a certain Auto insurance company where, due to Systems limitations, we were required to begin work at least 15 minutes before our scheduled start time in order to be up and running on the phones at our scheduled start.
I was at a general meeting once where the CEO of the company was giving a talk to staff.
A colleague asked about the requirement that we start work before our start time.
The CEO's answer was that Systems problems were the Company's problem, not ours, and if it took us 15 minutes after our start to be ready to make calls then so be it.
Within 48 hours we were given verbal feedback through our Supervisors to ignore what the CEO said, we were still required to conform with the early starts.
The Company was subsequently subject to a class-action suit for requiring people to work unpaid overtime in this manner... | |
|  |  morboComplete Your Transaction
join:2002-01-22
00000 | Re: Do what we say, depends on who does the saying as it should be. | |
| | |  JammerMan79Premium,VIP
join:2004-05-13
Prince George, BC
kudos:10 | Re: Do what we say, depends on who does the saying damn right! | |
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| | | said by King Duck:I recall working at a certain Auto insurance company where, due to Systems limitations, we were required to begin work at least 15 minutes before our scheduled start time in order to be up and running on the phones at our scheduled start. I was at a general meeting once where the CEO of the company was giving a talk to staff. A colleague asked about the requirement that we start work before our start time. The CEO's answer was that Systems problems were the Company's problem, not ours, and if it took us 15 minutes after our start to be ready to make calls then so be it. Within 48 hours we were given verbal feedback through our Supervisors to ignore what the CEO said, we were still required to conform with the early starts. The Company was subsequently subject to a class-action suit for requiring people to work unpaid overtime in this manner... Is this legal? Because as a student I work at shitty places when they require us to do the same, be there 15 mins before the work hour and we have to leave 15 mins after. This majorly sucks when you are doing a 3hrs shifts, you lose 30 min on the shift plus all the transport etc. I'm thinking it should be paid, I mean, I'm required to be there, why is it my fault your shitty system takes so much time to be ready? 
Anyone knows the law on this? | |
| | | | | Re: Do what we say, depends on who does the saying Laws are different in each state so you may want to verify, but I believe that the only thing a company can require is that you are available and prepared for work at the time you are scheduled to be there.
Now for the answer you don't want to hear - if they require you to be there 15 minutes early and don't pay you then your only real option is to pursue it legally either through the court system or the state employment offices. Both will probably be bureaucratic nightmares and time consuming. | |
| | | | | | Re: Do what we say, depends on who does the saying yeah though so 
Perhaps the anonymous ''note'' on the diner table that highlights the illegal part would be helpful. I can always try. | |
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| |  KrKHeavy Artillery For The Little GuyPremium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
 ·AT&T DSL Service
| said by warthunder2k:Is this legal? Because as a student I work at shitty places when they require us to do the same, be there 15 mins before the work hour and we have to leave 15 mins after. This majorly sucks when you are doing a 3hrs shifts, you lose 30 min on the shift plus all the transport etc. I'm thinking it should be paid, I mean, I'm required to be there, why is it my fault your shitty system takes so much time to be ready? Anyone knows the law on this? Transportation time and getting to work is on you. However if they make you work before you clock in or after you clock out then it's MAJOR penalties for them--- Completely Illegal and incredibly stupid because it's a super easy crime to allege and provide proof of... so they get caught and fined for it... Plus lawsuits, etc etc
Working off the clock is a no-no.
And it's really common.... When I was young I had jobs where I was told that X and X and X task must be done BUT you must leave at xx:xx time or else they'd "find someone else" (ie fire you). Problem is the tasks weren't possible in that amount of time. Of course their attitude is that you were a lazy slacker employee who didn't work hard enough. When I was told that by the manager I told him "You do it then" and walked. Ah, the good old days....
Anyway, I rambled off topic there. Yep, it's illegal.
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"Regulatory capitalism is when companies invest in lawyers, lobbyists, and politicians, instead of plant, people, and customer service." - former FCC Chairman William Kennard (A real FCC Chairman, unlike the current Corporate Spokesperson in the job!) | |
| | | |  sivranBack to Opera againPremium
join:2003-09-15
Arlington, TX
kudos:1
 ·RoadRunner Cable
| Re: Do what we say, depends on who does the saying Indeed. I know of a few places where they have strict rules against working off the clock. One of them, a callcenter, actually tied their timeclock system to their phones so that it would be impossible to be taking calls off the clock.
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Think outside the fox...Seamonkey | |
| | | | | | Yeah, I once worked at Goldman Sachs (AKA Goldman Sucks) in IT. I remember my boss there, Jim Gabriel, tried to pull that shit on me twice. I sent him an email asking him to confirm that what he'd told me to do was what he wanted me to do - that is, only book 40 hours a week, even though I was expected to, and did, work more than that. Of course, he declined to confirm in writing what he'd told me to do orally. Google says he's still at Goldman... | |
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|  NOCManMacChatterPremium
join:2004-09-30
Colorado Springs, CO | Yeah chip manufacturers were sued for the 45 minutes it took an employee to suit up for the clean room. They required them to suit up unpaid and then work their 8 hour shift and take the clothes off which took nearly as long unpaid.
They won so good luck with your suit.
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Mac Chatter
»www.macchatter.net | |
| | | | That lawsuit must not have been too long ago, if you're talking about the same auto insurance company that I'm thinking of. I know a sup at my current job who used to work there and when she left there roughly 4-5 years ago, that was the case.
I think the cavemen were the ones that filed that class action lawsuit. But then again maybe you're talking about a different auto insurance company. | |
|
 wdoa
join:2001-10-16
Spencer, MA
·Verizon Online DSL
1 edit | BS phrase "World Class Customer Service" I've found when any company uses the phrase "World Class Customer Service" get ready for long hold times and poor service. It's one of those "corporation speak" phrases that some consultant came up with sort of like "our people are our #1 Asset" | |
| | RadioDoc58ef2c0Premium,ExMod 2000-03
join:2000-05-11 | Re: BS phrase "World Class Customer Service" It's like "fine dining restaurant". If you have to call yourself that, you aren't one...
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Toolmaster of La Grange. | |
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1 edit | I think the same when I'm told my case "is a priority", certainly knowing thats just the default statement everyone gets.
Then again, this is the same company that redefined "unlimited" to mean "secretly, and variably, limited" | |
| | |  dvd536as Mr. Pink as they comePremium
join:2001-04-27
Phoenix, AZ
kudos:4 | Re: BS phrase "World Class Customer Service" said by Camelot One:I think the same when I'm told my case "is a priority", certainly knowing thats just the default statement everyone gets. Then again, this is the same company that redefined "unlimited" to mean "secretly, and variably, limited" yeah. if its such a "priority" why dont you pick up the phone instead of reminding me sixty times an hour how "important my call is".
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You can never be too rich, too thin or have too much Bandwidth | |
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| morboComplete Your Transaction
join:2002-01-22
00000 | i'm sure they offer synergy or a new paradigm also. | |
| | KrKHeavy Artillery For The Little GuyPremium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK | Our company: "We exist in business only to provide opportunities for our employees to succeed"
Yeah. I'm serious. Gag. Can you believe that.... | |
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| | That is the biggest pile of crap I have seen............ Who are they kidding? People want answers, not lies or broken promises.
CSRs keep apologizing for any inconvenience but do NOTHING to remedy the situation. | |
| |  DHRacerFire Survivor
join:2000-10-10
Lake Arrowhead, CA
·Charter
·Verizon Online DSL
| Re: That is the biggest pile of crap I have seen............ Maybe that's because that's all they can do? You don't see CSRs pick up the mantle and go grab a tool belt and come out to your house after you call all irate about the tech skipping out on you...
About all CSRs can do is apologize. Sucks, but I don't know what else is inside of their job description...
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"No one will believe you solved this problem in one day! We've been working on it for months. Now, go act busy for a few weeks and I'll let you know when it's time to tell them." (R&D Supervisor, Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing /3M Corp.) | |
| | | | | Re: That is the biggest pile of crap I have seen............ said by DHRacer:Maybe that's because that's all they can do? You don't see CSRs pick up the mantle and go grab a tool belt and come out to your house after you call all irate about the tech skipping out on you... About all CSRs can do is apologize. Sucks, but I don't know what else is inside of their job description... The problem is the CSRs are doing what managers are telling them to do. Managers don't deal with customers so they don't care what happens. They think an apology is all they need to absolve themselves of their incompetence. I bet if you forced managers to deal with every customer complaint, they wouldn't only say they're sorry. | |
| | | | sivranBack to Opera againPremium
join:2003-09-15
Arlington, TX
kudos:1 Reviews:
·RoadRunner Cable
| Re: That is the biggest pile of crap I have seen............ The problem is the CSRs can't do anything more in a good number of situations. If there's something wrong with the account and it didn't flow through Verizon's automated system properly, neither the front-line CSR or their sup will be able to do a damn thing about it except put in a ticket.
Fios CSRs and sups on the other hand, have a bit more power to fix things, especially the sups. It's just a matter of do they know how, and can they get in touch with the people that they need.
Both are of course required to apologize for your inconvenience.  "Any time the customer expresses dissatisfaction" they say.
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Think outside the fox...Seamonkey | |
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| | | Right On. My Verizon DSL installation was sheer hell,(which surprised the hell out of me because my other Verizon services and home DSL installs were smooth as buttah). I spent almost 5 hours (no exaggeration, I kept logs) on the phone with everybody and their non-English speaking sister. All they did was apologize "I'm sorry Mr. XXXXX, I apologize for the inconvenience". That doesn't mean a damn thing when you say it over and over and over and refuse to do anything to rectify the issue!! I was trying to give them my money, and they went wayyyyy out of their way to convince me that they didn't want it. If i would have had other options available to me, I would have jumped ship immediately.
Stop the apologies and get the problems fixed!!!!!
Pant....pant.....feeling lightheaded.. | |
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Asmodeus
join:2004-05-26
Spring Valley, CA | companies need to stop... apologizing and just get their jobs done... i'm tired of hearing about how sorry for the inconveniences you are creating... just get it done already and you won't have to apologize... | |
| | |  Consumers need to quit griping too
"Customers are always right" -aint the case anymore. | |
| | | | Re: Consumers need to quit griping too ya that is the case if you want a successful business... | |
| | |  FiLPremium
join:2005-08-16
Silver Spring, MD | Re: Consumers need to quit griping too do yall call the tech centers daily?
Bi-minute?
Every second?
Man! A phone rep is a phone rep is a...Theres no way around being behind a copper line; they can't do much but apologize.
;( | |
| | | | RayWPremium
join:2001-09-01
Layton, UT
kudos:1 | Re: Consumers need to quit griping too said by FiL:do yall call the tech centers daily? Bi-minute? Every second? Man! A phone rep is a phone rep is a...Theres no way around being behind a copper line; they can't do much but apologize. ;( No, because at least half of the time I get a script reading monkey (sorry if I insulted any monkeys out there), so I save my calls for when there is no other choice.
Although Qwest does have some good people, I actually had one that spent over 30 minutes doing phone tag until she found out why I did not have consistent DSL service (someone was doing "planned service" on the lines and it was affecting the remote).
Then I get the guy that could not understand the term "No one has Qwest telephone OR DSL service here in my neighborhood, I am using a cell phone" and kept wanting me to authorize charges if my inside wires were bad and by the way it will be at least 24 hours before someone can come out.
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I am not lost, I find myself every time. | |
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| | | | said by krayzie bone:ya that is the case if you want a successful business... Actually, the key to a successful business is recognizing who your important customers are and taking care of them. If "Customer is always right" attitude was applied in business, we would all be getting anything we want and not paying a penny for it, and that is clearly not the case.
The customers that you do need to take care of are the ones who bring in the big bucks and pay their bills on time. These are the ones whom you cannot afford to piss off. However, there is another category out there who are constantly unhappy and will complain about anything and everything, and when you pull up their billing history, you find out that you haven't seen a penny from them in the last 6 months. I personally wouldn't waste any of my time and/or efforts on this kind. If they are going to be a pain in the a**, then it's best that they be a pain in somebody else's a**, while I focus my attention to those customers who are in good standing.
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Ask me no questions, and I'll tell you no lies...
A MESSAGE to the RIAA and the MPAA: You shouldn't wound what you can't kill... | |
| | | |  NoelCD S L R BlissPremium,MVM
join:2003-09-03
Florida
kudos:1 | Gripe - When The Shoe Fits! I have to disagree with the first part of what you said.
If we had to pay a bit more and got top notch service, we'd be more than happy. We'd be ecstatic. Maybe some customers would abandon ship to go to the competition for the lower price, but they'll be back after they see what's happening on the other side of the fence. Something that actually works is worth something. I don't know why the industry seems to be forgetting that.
It's the management who gets a bonus for saving a buck on some report, regardless of what is lost for the business, who are to blame.
No particular offense intended to India, but think about it... What idiot ever thought that U.S. customer service could be handled by people who speak English as a second language, and who live in a completely different culture? It defies belief, yet there it is...
-Noel | |
| | | | | | | Re: Gripe - When The Shoe Fits! Noel.. Might want to Correct yourself. English is the a MAJOR language in India. Note the CIA World Factbook:
English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people; there are 14 other official languages: Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, and Sanskrit; Hindustani is a popular variant of Hindi/Urdu spoken widely throughout northern India but is not an official language
Hence, many / most Indians speak English. However, by speak I am not claiming they do it well. I am claiming they speak it to some degree. That said, I wish support was in the USA. Asking someone 10 times to clarify what their saying gets old VERY FAST. | |
| | | | | | | | Re: Gripe - When The Shoe Fits! said by jc100:Hence, many / most Indians speak English. However, by speak I am not claiming they do it well. I am claiming they speak it to some degree. That said, I wish support was in the USA. Asking someone 10 times to clarify what their saying gets old VERY FAST. Thanks for proving NoelC's point. Sure, they can speak english BUT can they speak it well enough to perform customer service to an english speaking crowd? In reality, they can't. To them, english is a second language and their accents show it. It's like the many Americans I listen to who try to speak spanish and butcher the accent. | |
|
| bigjimc
join:2003-04-21
Middleboro, MA | If they are your customers and you don't have a mon- or oligopoly and you want to keep them as your customer then they are always right.
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Just my 2 cents...Flame Lightly... | |
| | dvd536as Mr. Pink as they comePremium
join:2001-04-27
Phoenix, AZ
kudos:4 | said by ninjatutle:Consumers are overly pushy these days. "Customers are always right" -aint the case anymore. its customers that keep your doors open. customers wouldn't be on the phones if these companies got off their duffs and fixed issues.
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You can never be too rich, too thin or have too much Bandwidth | |
| | |
1 edit | Re: Consumers need to quit griping too Yes, and customers need these companies around too. Its a 2 way street. | |
| | | |  ThespisI'm not an actor, but I play one on TV.Premium
join:2004-08-03
Keller, TX | Re: Consumers need to quit griping too I don't need the company, I need the service.
I don't care a whit about where the service comes from as long as I get the service that I pay for. | |
|
 paulhaskewUnoffical Dominos Spokesman
join:2002-01-10
Vancouver, WA | spin me please oh spin the wheel of misinformation... Corporate says don't do it, local folks say tell em whatever... Corporate policy was only followed when it benefited the manager/lead/sup...
Charter you are a train wreck!
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Anything I say can and will be used against me in a court of law.
Somewhere over the rainbow lies the valley with gigabit fiber.
Dude, I got twin Dell 2007FPWs... | |
| |  Fangz
join:2000-10-11
Magna, UT | Re: spin me please As someone that worked in the VCC, that part is true between corporate and local management/supervisors. We had to get to our desks, start all the applications all on our own time due to the number of applications and crappy corporate computers.
Can't forget the mandatory overtime that was thrown at the reps due to poor planning on management to meet service levels. | |
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quatrixPremium
join:2005-02-11
Davie, FL
kudos:2 |  Who's the ass that's "leaking" memos?
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| |  tektronw'zup duck?Premium
join:2005-01-30
O Fallon, MO | Re: Who's the ass that's "leaking" memos? Yeah, but it doesn't rhyme with 'world class customer service'.
Sometimes the public's need to know why they're getting screwed over by 'world class customer service' outweighs the benefits of corporate confidentiality. | |
|
rradina
join:2000-08-08
Chesterfield, MO | Arrival Times only HALF the problem... CSRs don't know where their technicians are AND they have no clue about the status of the cable plant.
If Charter is listening, you need a new system that not only tracks technicians and arrival times but system status. There's no use going through the 100 question "CSR Wizard" if the customer premises device is not the problem. | |
| Reviews:
·Mediacom
| It's simple Make all appointments 8am - 5pm and problem solved. If people don't like it well that's too bad. Having 2 hour time frames is insane. I am a cable tech and there is no way to know how long a job is going to take. When I'm running late I sometimes get a message from my dispatch saying call customer X with ETA. Funny thing is I can't do that. I can tell them you're next but that can mean 10 min or 3 hours. | |
| |  xdeadhead220, 221, Whatever It Takes.Premium
join:2000-11-08
Mechanicsburg, PA | Re: It's simple from a techs standpoint, you are spot on.
spot on.
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I am not herbert. | |
| | ja78
join:2005-10-23
Springfield, IL | as a tech, you can tell within a few minutes of being at a job about how long its going to take you, if a customer wants to know an eta... that is ESTIMATED time of arrival, give them the eta and let them know you will call them back if the situation changes. that is good enough for most people, they just want to be kept in the loop, they are the ones who pay our salary and keep us working, (not to mention probably have other things to do.) plus, it cuts the csrs and dispatch out of the loop so that's one less phone call you need to answer. and yes, i've been doing cable stuff for a while, so believe me, one return phone call can go a long way. | |
| |  BOGBSPremium
join:2004-05-11
·RoadRunner Cable
4 edits | Verizon does that around here. Although it is a pain to wait around all day, you're right about the fact that you never know how long a job is going to last.
I work for a internet/phone company, and just today one of my jobs lasted 2.75 hours, and was scheduled in a 2 hr time frame. This sort of thing occurs at any given time, and is not easy to predict. I arrived at my last job of the day 30 minutes before the end of the 2 hr time frame. This is why 2 hr time frames drive me nuts. Generally my schedule is fine, but it's when my whole day goes awry, then it all goes downhill after that.
When I'm running late, I don't really want to stop and make a phone call to the customer in the middle of something I'm already working on. You can't really have a short phone call with them, for the most part. That, and it breaks my concentration when I'm trying to be efficient, and complete my work with as much quality as possible. What I will do is call my dispatch and have them advise the customer I'm running late, give an ETA, and that I would call if that changes.
Not all jobs last 2 hours, that's for sure. Problems can come up on the customer side of things, or having to troubleshoot a copper pair from the office to the prem. It can range from any given problem, and it's not like each task takes a specific amount of time. That would be great if they did. Of course you have the jobs that only last 30 mins as well.
When I setup an appt, I make sure I can be home for the whole time frame. I don't expect to be guaranteed a phone call, but it is nice to get one if someone is running late in the time frame, or will be past it. Maybe I'm just too lax on this, and don't care enough. That's how I've always been, even long before I worked for a company as a field technician. I do understand getting upset about a missed timeframe, and if it's a 4 hr time frame, and the tech shows up half an hour before the end of it without a call.
There are good points on both sides of this matter. It's just a matter of finding some compromise. | |
| | | | | Re: It's simple So it really seems like Dispatch is the ones that should be keeping the customer in the loop. If the tech is being delayed for some reason (traffic, a job that is bigger than thought) then he/she should let Dispatch know, and then someone in Dispatch can inform the customers of the delay. That way the tech is only dealing with people that won't ask lots of questions and the customer is kept in the loop. | |
| | | | Reviews:
·Mediacom
| Re: It's simple If a job will take a lot more time than planned I will let dispatch know. However I don't like making calls in the middle of something. Just like BOGBS  pointed out.
Most techs do the same, do one job at the time.
Having an all day appointment may be a problem for a lot of people but it's less frustrating than a missed appointment in a 2-4 hour time frame.
BTW I work for Mediacom and we do 3 hour time frames. It used to be 4 but people were complaining and guess what they still do  | |
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