Thursday, April 05, 2007

Tech Support

Shit, what a thankless job.

That call reminds me of the year I spent doing internet tech support for MSN. I'd say every 10th customer was like that guy, completely batshit insane and bouncing off walls. (I had death threats from one caller... I don't know how he planned on killing me since he was 2,500 miles away, but still it's discomfiting.) Most of the rest were just rude, but without too much profanity and ad hominems. Maybe one in 10 was polite and patient.

There is a reason that the TSR's ask you the litany of seemingly-useless questions. The call center (and microsoft, or dell, or whoever) has a "call formula" that TSR's have to follow. Supervisors secretly monitor the calls, and every question you don't ask is a point you lose out of 30 or so possible points. Any call that scores below 24 will get you called on the carpet. Three calls below 24 can cost you your job.

I once had a guy call with a really simple issue, which I immediately resolved for him without asking all the requisite questions. I mean, why waste his time? The guy's problem was solved in under 30 seconds and he was ecstatic. I got called into my supervisor's office and dumped on for it. Huh?

Your call is important to us (if by "important" you mean "the bottom of our list of priorities").