India Based Call Centers: The Worker Perspective
July 16, 2011
ReadWrite Enterprise asks, “What’s It Like to Work in an Indian Call Center?” For an answer, writer Klint Finley turns to a Mother Jones article by an American writer, Andrew Marantz, who sampled Indian Call Center training.
With regard to overseas call centers, ReadWrite generally focuses on is whether businesses should invest them now or wait until working conditions and customer service quality improve. That question remains unanswered here, but this piece does call attention to the workers’ perspective.
Finley summarizes:
“Much of the article revolves around the cultural impact that the business process outsourcing industry has brought to India, both good (more economic opportunities for women) and bad (the potential stifling of Indian culture as call center workers attempt to conceal their identities). Here are a few interesting points:
Other key points we noted:
- There are almost as many women as men working in the call centers.
- Many of these workers are college educated, but are doing very basic work.
- Some workers are encouraged to eat American fast food and listen to American music, even on the weekends.”
Treatment of Indian workers by their employers eager to westernize them is a tangled thicket.
How does this relate to search? Three points of contact.
First, search vendors talk about improving customer service. What seems to be more accurate is reducing the costs of support for the company offering help to its customers.
Second, it is not clear in my mind that brute force indexing or even more sophisticated systems do much to address the disconnect between what a customer needs and what is available to answer the question. If the answer is not in the processed content, who is kidding whom?
Third, the notion of improving a customer interface sounds great in a meeting. But the actual implementation is usually more about preventing the customer from contacting the company saying it is “customer facing” and “committed to excellence in customer support.”
Enterprise search vendors know how to address these issues. Right?
Cynthia Murrell July 16, 2011
Comments
6 Responses to “India Based Call Centers: The Worker Perspective”
-
- Subscribe to Beyond Search
Feature archive
News archive
-
[…] hours, or in an overflow call center capacity. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6465814 Outsourcing is becoming more and more commonplace in the telecommunications world today.lt="" class="alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-4087" height="150" […]
[…] on call center metrics, visit http://www.inovasolutions.com/call-center-reporting/ [/hidepost]Some executives see call centers as "cost centers," meaning they are a low value expense that needs …"> In fact, many businesses have based their reputation and success on providing unparalleled […]
[…] certification classes for lean six sigma, black belts, green belts, and yellow belts. [/hidepost]Six Sigma has proved useful in the service industry as well as in manufacturing. It has been success… But the major function of handling calls that many would argue couldn't be standardized can be […]
[…] best technology and offers call centers services with 100% customer satisfaction. [/hidepost]A call center is designed to fulfill the gap between an organization and the customers for the bette…ss. A call center serves the accurate information to the query of customers received through email, […]
[…] give SQM Group a call and ask for a free demonstration of what they can do for you. [/hidepost]Improving first call resolution has been shown to improve other traditional contact center metrics s…ution has been shown to improve other traditional contact center metrics such as customer […]
India was administered by UK but the disadvantage is they doesn’t familiarize the enthusiasm of American Culture unlike in Philippines.