I feel you, Rob.

Call centers suck on a good day, but ever since many of the major ones moved to the Philippines and India so they can make more money, ("they" being CEOs and shareholders), it's all but a deterrent to even bother do call.

Last weekend I switched to Progressive Insurance and called Liberty Mutual to cancel my old one. They kept me on hold for 35 minutes and it went on and on.

I called the next day and it was faster but this cost saving to give the CEO a big fat bonus trick has gone on too long.

At least the OP is lucky he didn't catch a dude with an obvious Indian accent calling himself "Steve".

So they get less demand ms from customers as an added by us so have to handle less call volume and need even less cheaper staff, though I am sure that gets countered by the average call duration going way way way up. Not sure the value proposition is really there but I assume they have metrics that at least can be construed to indicate they come out ahead. Given health care is a soulless gigantic oligopoly effectively, they know their competition is equally as miserable to deal with.

No worries. A couple more years and you will get a conversant AI to help you in the regional language, dialect, and accent it calculates will please you most based on your personal information and past interactions and it will find what you are looking for much much faster.

infinity ag said:

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Last weekend I switched to Progressive Insurance and called Liberty Mutual to cancel my old one. They kept me on hold for 35 minutes and it went on and on.

I called the next day and it was faster but this cost saving to give the CEO a big fat bonus trick has gone on too long.

At least the OP is lucky he didn't catch a dude with an obvious Indian accent calling himself "Steve".

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These were Filipinos, more than likely, which would also explain the lag.

I finally got an obvious white Minnesotan, as I know the Minnesota/Iowa/Wisconsin accents well after living 11 yrs in Iowa and half of a year in M-SP.

As to meeting the CEO, you're damn right I'd give him a piece of my mind. As I would any CEO of any company that sucked at life.



ETA: I just got off the phone with them. That last lady was awesome, helped me greatly. Actually knew her stuff and spoke English, not "English".

rocky the dog said:

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I'm curious, if you select Spanish, do you get a native Spanish speaker?

Martin Q. Blank said:

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rocky the dog said:

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I'm curious, if you select Spanish, do you get a native Spanish speaker?

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I speak pretty honkified Spanish, as a non-native speaker who grew up with a military 2nd gen citizen Dad (raised by his 1st gen military Dad) who thought that - to be successful here you had to speak English, so I don't often do that. When I have, yes, you get Maria Juanita Conchita Fernandez.


Because getting some Minnesotan that had Freshman Spanish in college as a rep would be racist and wrong.

When AI replaces them things will be better. You will still struggle an hour and a half with customer support but at least you'll be able to understand everything they're saying.

BigRobSA said:

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infinity ag said:

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Last weekend I switched to Progressive Insurance and called Liberty Mutual to cancel my old one. They kept me on hold for 35 minutes and it went on and on.

I called the next day and it was faster but this cost saving to give the CEO a big fat bonus trick has gone on too long.

At least the OP is lucky he didn't catch a dude with an obvious Indian accent calling himself "Steve".

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As to meeting the CEO, you're damn right I'd give him a piece of my mind. As I would any CEO of any company that sucked at life.

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I give normal customer service 3 strikes and one hour of my time. After either are exhausted, I email the CEO of the company and start an executive escalation. It's amazing how quickly crap gets fixed.

i completely quit shopping at Lowes after the 4th time having to do this.

I had to call AT&T three times this summer to cancel business internet. Always keep the cancelation confirmation code.

infinity ag said:

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Last weekend I switched to Progressive Insurance and called Liberty Mutual to cancel my old one. They kept me on hold for 35 minutes and it went on and on.

I called the next day and it was faster but this cost saving to give the CEO a big fat bonus trick has gone on too long.

At least the OP is lucky he didn't catch a dude with an obvious Indian accent calling himself "Steve".

---

If you think that is bad, try calling any federal agency. IRS Is usually 2-3 hours and that is if they don't say they are too busy, please call again. SSA is automated and if you want to talk to someone, you have to schedule an appointment which where I live is 1-2 months out.

Further proof that CEOs do a much better job than not for profit government.

You think it is tough now, wait a few years when A.I. will completely replace call centers.

Quote:

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I completely quit shopping at Lowes after the 4th time having to do this.

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Lowe's totally **** the bed on a delivery and it set my project back a full month. I sent an actual letter to the CEO and they jumped through their asses to make it right.

The company who handles our employees and retirees benefits is in India. I've asked a couple times if I could speak to someone else because I'm having a hard time understanding them. I blame it on my hearing. LOL but they never get anything right.

Now do the TAs at Texas A&M.

doubledog said:

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You think it is tough now, wait a few years when A.I. will completely replace call centers.

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AI will probably be better than foreigners overseas.

Kansas Kid said:

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infinity ag said:

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Last weekend I switched to Progressive Insurance and called Liberty Mutual to cancel my old one. They kept me on hold for 35 minutes and it went on and on.

I called the next day and it was faster but this cost saving to give the CEO a big fat bonus trick has gone on too long.

At least the OP is lucky he didn't catch a dude with an obvious Indian accent calling himself "Steve".

---

If you think that is bad, try calling any federal agency. IRS Is usually 2-3 hours and that is if they don't say they are too busy, please call again. SSA is automated and if you want to talk to someone, you have to schedule an appointment which where I live is 1-2 months out.

Further proof that CEOs do a much better job than not for profit government.

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OK.
But it is incorrect to absolve something because something else is worse. They both suck.

PS: Never had to call IRS, I pay all my taxes fully and on time. :-P

Been this way with my company (Johnson and Johnson) for years. We routinly joke aboiut it, but still very frustrating each and every time we have to call "India"

I asked the last guy I was on with if he knew any Christmas carols.

The biggest problem (in my opinion) is that they are graded on their ability to resolve your issue first at their own desk, then within the call center and their immediate supervisor. So I think it grades against them when you call in with an issue that isn't within their problem matrix. The don't know anything about the actual system they're engaging with. They have a script they have to follow and when that doesn't resolve your issue, because you're calling them with an issue that you can't navigate online, they can't do that either. Then they reluctantly have to transfer you back to a rep stateside that actually knows the ins and outs of the system.

Here's the problem... About 90% of the callers are too stupid to have already looked online and see if they can resolve their own issue through a portal or by not being a brain-cell lacking moron of a customer.

That's what has forced the companies to offshore their call centers. The overwhelming majority of their callers are marginally functioning short bus riders that refuse to read the T&C.

infinity ag said:

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Kansas Kid said:

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infinity ag said:

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Last weekend I switched to Progressive Insurance and called Liberty Mutual to cancel my old one. They kept me on hold for 35 minutes and it went on and on.

I called the next day and it was faster but this cost saving to give the CEO a big fat bonus trick has gone on too long.

At least the OP is lucky he didn't catch a dude with an obvious Indian accent calling himself "Steve".

---

If you think that is bad, try calling any federal agency. IRS Is usually 2-3 hours and that is if they don't say they are too busy, please call again. SSA is automated and if you want to talk to someone, you have to schedule an appointment which where I live is 1-2 months out.

Further proof that CEOs do a much better job than not for profit government.

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OK.
But it is incorrect to absolve something because something else is worse. They both suck.

PS: Never had to call IRS, I pay all my taxes fully and on time. :-P

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So do I but their systems sometimes credit payments to the wrong SSN or claim income that you didn't have.

Saying the government is worse than business and CEOs is directly relevant to your thesis. If you don't want companies and their CEOs running business, the alternative is governement.

If you say employees can run it, good luck. Go show me the largest company that is employee run that doesn't have a President, CEO, or the equivalent at the top. You won't find one that is even close to being a major employer.

bmks270 said:

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doubledog said:

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You think it is tough now, wait a few years when A.I. will completely replace call centers.

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AI will probably be better than foreigners overseas.

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Or Americans on our own shores.

Quote:

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I've been on the phone for 40+ minutes now, with United Health Care

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I feel your pain.

We had to go on the Marketplace for my wife's insurance a few weeks ago as we refused to re-up her Blue Cross policy (it went up $750 per month). She settled on a United Healthcare policy.

We got the bill a week ago, but have yet to get her insurance information, which included her membership number (which we needed to pay the bill). I spent about an hour on the phone, getting transferred from individual to individual. Ironically, it was the United Healthcare worker in the overseas call center who actually knew what was going on and helped us. That said, the connection wasn't great and I frequently asked him to repeat himself as his English wasn't the greatest.

A big shout out to Atmos Energy, whose call centers are in Amarillo or Dallas. They're the bomb.

Kansas Kid said:

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infinity ag said:

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Kansas Kid said:

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infinity ag said:

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Last weekend I switched to Progressive Insurance and called Liberty Mutual to cancel my old one. They kept me on hold for 35 minutes and it went on and on.

I called the next day and it was faster but this cost saving to give the CEO a big fat bonus trick has gone on too long.

At least the OP is lucky he didn't catch a dude with an obvious Indian accent calling himself "Steve".

---

If you think that is bad, try calling any federal agency. IRS Is usually 2-3 hours and that is if they don't say they are too busy, please call again. SSA is automated and if you want to talk to someone, you have to schedule an appointment which where I live is 1-2 months out.

Further proof that CEOs do a much better job than not for profit government.

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OK.
But it is incorrect to absolve something because something else is worse. They both suck.

PS: Never had to call IRS, I pay all my taxes fully and on time. :-P

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So do I but their systems sometimes credit payments to the wrong SSN or claim income that you didn't have.

Saying the government is worse than business and CEOs is directly relevant to your thesis. If you don't want companies and their CEOs running business, the alternative is governement.

If you say employees can run it, good luck. Go show me the largest company that is employee run that doesn't have a President, CEO, or the equivalent at the top. You won't find one that is even close to being a major employer.

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I'd settle for smarter CEOs and BoD's.

When you realize it's their goal to make most callers give up everything makes a lot more sense.

I always insist on a in country (this country) rep. Can take a bit but I've always been able to.

Interesting we had a client attempt to offshore to the Philippines on of our product lines which involves MediCaid social work directly with the patient. Turns out that's illegal.

Kansas Kid said:

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infinity ag said:

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Kansas Kid said:

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infinity ag said:

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Last weekend I switched to Progressive Insurance and called Liberty Mutual to cancel my old one. They kept me on hold for 35 minutes and it went on and on.

I called the next day and it was faster but this cost saving to give the CEO a big fat bonus trick has gone on too long.

At least the OP is lucky he didn't catch a dude with an obvious Indian accent calling himself "Steve".

---

If you think that is bad, try calling any federal agency. IRS Is usually 2-3 hours and that is if they don't say they are too busy, please call again. SSA is automated and if you want to talk to someone, you have to schedule an appointment which where I live is 1-2 months out.

Further proof that CEOs do a much better job than not for profit government.

---

OK.
But it is incorrect to absolve something because something else is worse. They both suck.

PS: Never had to call IRS, I pay all my taxes fully and on time. :-P

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So do I but their systems sometimes credit payments to the wrong SSN or claim income that you didn't have.

Saying the government is worse than business and CEOs is directly relevant to your thesis. If you don't want companies and their CEOs running business, the alternative is governement.

If you say employees can run it, good luck. Go show me the largest company that is employee run that doesn't have a President, CEO, or the equivalent at the top. You won't find one that is even close to being a major employer.

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I was just kidding about the taxes. :-)

My thesis is only about corporations and CEOs. I say that almost all CEOs are deranged psychopathic creatures who are barely human.

I didn't say anything about government at all. They may be better or worse, no comment. You brought in government as a comparison. CEOs/corps suck for sure, I am sure governments suck as well.

If I were to pick, I'd pick the lesser of the 2 evils - I'd go with government.

Customer service is a dead concept. Everyone is fine complaining about it, but virtually no one is willing to pay an extra dollar on something for better service. Look at the airline industry. Everyone hates airlines, but when they go to buy a ticket, most everyone will just buy the cheapest ticket and then ***** about how they get nickel and dimed.

infinity ag said:

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I didn't say anything about government at all. They may be better or worse, no comment. You brought in government as a comparison. CEOs/corps suck for sure, I am sure governments suck as well.

If I were to pick, I'd pick the lesser of the 2 evils - I'd go with government.

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Government can burn water that's how inept they are.

I'd take even the worst, moron of a CEO over even a slight bit of govt.

AustinAg2K said:

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Customer service is a dead concept. Everyone is fine complaining about it, but virtually no one is willing to pay an extra dollar on something for better service. Look at the airline industry. Everyone hates airlines, but when they go to buy a ticket, most everyone will just buy the cheapest ticket and then ***** about how they get nickel and dimed.

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There's no reason good, American CS can't be "a thing" again for the same price.

Cut the corporate bloat.

There always WAY too many levels of management that can easily be gutted and nothing will change. Zero intrinsic value to most corporate mgmnt levels.

Doesn't really matter, anymore.

AI chat bots will fully take over all call centers in a couple years. All major UCaaS and CCaaS solutions out there are already adopting AI Chat bots and AI Receptionists to route calls based on key words, phrases, or concepts. We aren't far from the full experience being handled by AI.

However, even once the AI chat bots are there, businesses will still need to implement them into their environment, CRM's, ERP's, etc. Until those API's are in place and working smoothly, we won't be in full AI mode. Even when it does, they will still need some human agents for escalations, which will still probably be based overseas.

Ultimately, it will come down to you either talking to someone from Manila or an AI bot. None of these companies are ever moving their call centers back to the US.

ETA: Fun exercise. WHen talking to all these overseas agents, listen for the word "already". They never use this word correctly. If you ask them to make a change on your account, they will put you on hold for several minutes or so, then come back on and say something like, "I already made that change on your account." You will never un-hear this goofy use of the word "already".

AustinAg2K said:

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Customer service is a dead concept. Everyone is fine complaining about it, but virtually no one is willing to pay an extra dollar on something for better service. Look at the airline industry. Everyone hates airlines, but when they go to buy a ticket, most everyone will just buy the cheapest ticket and then ***** about how they get nickel and dimed.

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No.

People go cheap with they are students and fresh out of college and building their net worths. After a point, they do not go cheap, they pay more for quality. They do that with everything. Cars also. My first cars were Honda and Ford. Latest are BMW and Audi. Who knows what next? Maybe a Merc.

As for longer flights, I plan to go by business class the next international trip I take.

But the way the economy is the last 10-15 years, people just don't have the chance to make enough money to spend. All opportunities go overseas.

BigRobSA said:

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AustinAg2K said:

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Customer service is a dead concept. Everyone is fine complaining about it, but virtually no one is willing to pay an extra dollar on something for better service. Look at the airline industry. Everyone hates airlines, but when they go to buy a ticket, most everyone will just buy the cheapest ticket and then ***** about how they get nickel and dimed.

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There's no reason good, American CS can't be "a thing" again for the same price.

Cut the corporate bloat.

There always WAY too many levels of management that can easily be gutted and nothing will change. Zero intrinsic value to most corporate mgmnt levels.

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Biggest bloat is C level comp. Cut that and pay the workers more and see the difference. That is the only change from 40 years ago. C levels make too much and lowest levels barely get by. And we call it "capitalism" and move on.