Give Us a Break

Working for Cingular customer service makes me feel like Jack Nicholson in
"One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." I've been working there for six months.
I've asked several managers why our customer service is rated poorly by
every organization that rates such things, and ***not one of them*** could
give me an answer (and I suspect that the bigwigs at corporate hq don't know
either). I figured it out my first day on the job.

A) Training is grossly inadequate. They teach you 10% of what you need to
know and then throw you to the wolves. The rest of your "training" consists
of asking those around you, but since they weren't trained well, you're just
as likely to get false information from them than accurate information.
2) Because of reason A, most people who care about doing a good job stress
out and quit, leaving those who don't care (since I've been there,
ambulances have been called five times to get people for anxiety attacks
and/or heart attacks).
III) It's a union shop, so seniority counts more than talent or ability.
D) It's a politically correct company, so minorities and handicapped people
are given preference in promotions, regardless of ability.
5) Job performance statistics, for the most part, don't measure how good
you are doing, they measure how much the company spends on customer service
(which I understand must be kept track of). Those with the best stats
usually don't give good service (for example, one of the stats measures how
many people call in a second [or third or fourth] time in the same day. As
a result, many CSR's, if they can't resolve the issue, tell the customer
that the solution may take hours, so call back TOMOROW if the problem
persists).
VI) Quality control is almost non-existent. In a meeting of about 30
people not long ago, a manager said that the corporate people were listening
to calls and heard a CSR deliberately hang up on a customer. EVERY CSR in
the room got an "oh $#!+ I hope it wasn't one of my calls" look on his face.
I also hear a lot of rudeness from CSR's, and nobody seems to be disciplined
for it.

Those in upper management either don't know what good customer service is,
don't care, or don't know what it's like "in the trenches." In either case,
they should all be fired... it's their job to know these things.

As for me, I'm looking for a different job. I was just moved up to tech
support, and again, the training was useless (and most of the tech support
people have NO technical education outside of what Cingular gives them). I
get so stressed out that I often throw up before work. I've taken 4 sick
days in the last two weeks because I get too stressed out to go in.

So next time you call us, keep in mind that the person you're talking to is
probably doing their best in a situation where he/she is in way over his/her
head.

I'm done venting... y'all have a good day,

Cingular CSR

---

› See More: Give Us a Break

"CSR" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Working for Cingular customer service makes me feel like Jack Nicholson in
> "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." I've been working there for six
> months. I've asked several managers why our customer service is rated
> poorly by every organization that rates such things, and ***not one of
> them*** could give me an answer (and I suspect that the bigwigs at
> corporate hq don't know either). I figured it out my first day on the
> job.
>
> A) Training is grossly inadequate. They teach you 10% of what you need to
> know and then throw you to the wolves. The rest of your "training"
> consists of asking those around you, but since they weren't trained well,
> you're just as likely to get false information from them than accurate
> information.
> 2) Because of reason A, most people who care about doing a good job
> stress out and quit, leaving those who don't care (since I've been there,
> ambulances have been called five times to get people for anxiety attacks
> and/or heart attacks).
> III) It's a union shop, so seniority counts more than talent or ability.
> D) It's a politically correct company, so minorities and handicapped
> people are given preference in promotions, regardless of ability.
> 5) Job performance statistics, for the most part, don't measure how good
> you are doing, they measure how much the company spends on customer
> service (which I understand must be kept track of). Those with the best
> stats usually don't give good service (for example, one of the stats
> measures how many people call in a second [or third or fourth] time in the
> same day. As a result, many CSR's, if they can't resolve the issue, tell
> the customer that the solution may take hours, so call back TOMOROW if the
> problem persists).
> VI) Quality control is almost non-existent. In a meeting of about 30
> people not long ago, a manager said that the corporate people were
> listening to calls and heard a CSR deliberately hang up on a customer.
> EVERY CSR in the room got an "oh $#!+ I hope it wasn't one of my calls"
> look on his face. I also hear a lot of rudeness from CSR's, and nobody
> seems to be disciplined for it.
>
> Those in upper management either don't know what good customer service is,
> don't care, or don't know what it's like "in the trenches." In either
> case, they should all be fired... it's their job to know these things.
>
> As for me, I'm looking for a different job. I was just moved up to tech
> support, and again, the training was useless (and most of the tech support
> people have NO technical education outside of what Cingular gives them).
> I get so stressed out that I often throw up before work. I've taken 4
> sick days in the last two weeks because I get too stressed out to go in.
>
> So next time you call us, keep in mind that the person you're talking to
> is probably doing their best in a situation where he/she is in way over
> his/her head.
>
> I'm done venting... y'all have a good day,
>
> Cingular CSR
>
>
Sounds more like a disgruntled customer.

On Mon, 13 Jun 2005 03:24:21 -0500, "CSR"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>Working for Cingular customer service makes me feel like Jack Nicholson in
>"One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." I've been working there for six months.
>I've asked several managers why our customer service is rated poorly by
>every organization that rates such things, and ***not one of them*** could
>give me an answer (and I suspect that the bigwigs at corporate hq don't know
>either). I figured it out my first day on the job.
>
So quit
>A) Training is grossly inadequate. They teach you 10% of what you need to
>know and then throw you to the wolves. The rest of your "training" consists
>of asking those around you, but since they weren't trained well, you're just
>as likely to get false information from them than accurate information.
So quit
>2) Because of reason A, most people who care about doing a good job stress
>out and quit, leaving those who don't care (since I've been there,
>ambulances have been called five times to get people for anxiety attacks
>and/or heart attacks).
So quit
>III) It's a union shop, so seniority counts more than talent or ability.
Welcome to the real world. Those people who complain about senoiity
being the deciding factor are usually those who do a mediocre to poor
job. THose people who do an outstanding job usually do get rewarded.
>D) It's a politically correct company, so minorities and handicapped people
>are given preference in promotions, regardless of ability.
My sympathies on that.
>5) Job performance statistics, for the most part, don't measure how good
>you are doing, they measure how much the company spends on customer service
>(which I understand must be kept track of). Those with the best stats
>usually don't give good service (for example, one of the stats measures how
>many people call in a second [or third or fourth] time in the same day. As
>a result, many CSR's, if they can't resolve the issue, tell the customer
>that the solution may take hours, so call back TOMOROW if the problem
>persists).
>VI) Quality control is almost non-existent. In a meeting of about 30
>people not long ago, a manager said that the corporate people were listening
>to calls and heard a CSR deliberately hang up on a customer. EVERY CSR in
>the room got an "oh $#!+ I hope it wasn't one of my calls" look on his face.
>I also hear a lot of rudeness from CSR's, and nobody seems to be disciplined
>for it.
>
>Those in upper management either don't know what good customer service is,
>don't care, or don't know what it's like "in the trenches." In either case,
>they should all be fired... it's their job to know these things.
>
>As for me, I'm looking for a different job. I was just moved up to tech
>support, and again, the training was useless (and most of the tech support
>people have NO technical education outside of what Cingular gives them). I
>get so stressed out that I often throw up before work. I've taken 4 sick
>days in the last two weeks because I get too stressed out to go in.
>
>So next time you call us, keep in mind that the person you're talking to is
>probably doing their best in a situation where he/she is in way over his/her
>head.
>
>I'm done venting... y'all have a good day,
>
>Cingular CSR
>
to end it all, quit/

In article <1118656833.62fb8315f198dacd8ddd8662c26d9583
@teranews>, [email protected] says...
> Sounds more like a disgruntled customer.
>
>
>
>
I beleive it cause it is pretty much what I have experienced.
The reps in any of the various departments seem to want to tell
me what I want to hear and terminate the call. Cingular is an
incrediblely huge monster. These are some of the numbers I've
collected over the past six weeks while being transfered from
one person to another or being told by one person to call this
number instead, and one day I had 5 people tell me that I was
given the wrong number and to call a different number in
succession. Here is my list so far
1-866-636-5801
1-877-426-0525
1-800-901-9878
1-800-814-6369
1-888-284-3121
1-866-246-4851
1-877-867-5279
1-800-507-9213
1-800-331-0500
1-800-801-1101
1-866-564-2358
1-800-901-9878

"djk" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> In article <1118656833.62fb8315f198dacd8ddd8662c26d9583
>
> I beleive it cause it is pretty much what I have experienced.
> The reps in any of the various departments seem to want to tell
> me what I want to hear and terminate the call. Cingular is an
> incrediblely huge monster. These are some of the numbers I've
> collected over the past six weeks while being transfered from
> one person to another or being told by one person to call this
> number instead, and one day I had 5 people tell me that I was
> given the wrong number and to call a different number in
> succession. Here is my list so far
> 1-866-636-5801
> 1-877-426-0525
> 1-800-901-9878
> 1-800-814-6369
> 1-888-284-3121
> 1-866-246-4851
> 1-877-867-5279
> 1-800-507-9213
> 1-800-331-0500
> 1-800-801-1101
> 1-866-564-2358
> 1-800-901-9878

One of the stats they judge performance on is the percentage of calls that a
CSR transfers. Sounds good on the surface, as someone who more effectively
handles a customers reason for calling will have fewer transfers than
someone who doesn't. In effect, CSR's will offer a phone number of another
department and only transfer calls if the customer requests it. This
improves your stats, but is horrible customer service. And often the CSR
doesn't know the correct number... the database of phone numbers we use is
often wrong.

Cingular CSR

"James Mason" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:1118656833.62fb8315f198dacd8ddd8662c26d9583@teranews...
>
> Sounds more like a disgruntled customer.

Actually, my cel service is still with Verizon. I don't want to buy a new
phone to get the employee discount, especially since I don't plan on working
there much longer.

Cingular CSR

To CSR;

To me, what you say has the ring of truth. I've literally spent hours
on the phone being transferred all over the place, usually ending up
back to the original number that I called. Then by chance I would get
someone that really could help me.

I just started service with Cingular on 2/28/05 with a phone and a data
card. With the phone, I've only had the problem of the salesman not
writing out the full shipping address for FEDEX. With the data card,
the original card was defective and a replacement was needed. While
the card is working now, I still haven't resolved all the issues. I
don't feel like going into the whole speel here, but I am still waiting
for a refund of the card that I shipped back to Cingular on 4/6/05.
They say I'll get it.............

In doing a little research before I bought the above equipment, I found
that I seemed to know more than the people that were supposed to help
me. Once I was given a number to call that was no longer in service.
Another time it took the rep. several minutes to locate the number to
transfer me to. There seems to be an obvious lack of training - which
I blame on Cingular, not on the unfortunates that work for them.

In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] says...
> In effect, CSR's will offer a phone number of another
> department and only transfer calls if the customer requests it. This
> improves your stats, but is horrible customer service. And often the CSR
> doesn't know the correct number... the database of phone numbers we use is
> often wrong.
>
>
well in my case I never requested to be transfered, I was told
by the person on the phone I needed to speak with someone else
and was given the number. I then called the new number and again
was told I needed to call another number. This happened 5 times
in succession. I never did get an answer. Cingular just sucks in
my opinion. I feel sorry for anybody that does business with
them because I think they will be raped in some fashion at some
point, most will just roll over and take it. It's a shame.

"GomJabbar" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> To CSR;
>
> To me, what you say has the ring of truth. I've literally spent hours
> on the phone being transferred all over the place, usually ending up
> back to the original number that I called. Then by chance I would get
> someone that really could help me.

I got those calls every day before I went to tech support. In those cases,
I'll put the caller on hold and call the other department (or departments,
if the first one is unable to help [often, we don't know where the call
should be transferred to, and have to dig for it ourselves]) and when I get
someone who can help, then I transfer the call thru. Sadly, most don't do
this because it hurts your stats, as you might be on hold for 5 to 10
minutes for each department you call. I can't count the number of angry
callers that have told me that I was the first person they've talked to that
even remotely cares about their problem. Not that I'm an angel or
anything... I get enough bad customer service in my life that I'm not about
to give bad service to the people who call me. Every time my manager
"coaches" me about my long call times (one of the stats they keep track of)
I tell him that the only way I'll stop giving good service is if they fire
me. Since the turnover rate is so high, few get fired no matter what they
do.

> I just started service with Cingular on 2/28/05 with a phone and a data
> card. With the phone, I've only had the problem of the salesman not
> writing out the full shipping address for FEDEX. With the data card,
> the original card was defective and a replacement was needed. While
> the card is working now, I still haven't resolved all the issues. I
> don't feel like going into the whole speel here, but I am still waiting
> for a refund of the card that I shipped back to Cingular on 4/6/05.
> They say I'll get it.............

We had huge problems with the return warehouse in (as I recall) Memphis.
They shut it down and now returns go to (as I recall) somewhere in Texas.
Now we have slightly fewer problems. Never ship anything back without a
tracking number. If you can prove thru tracking that the package was
delivered, it doesn't matter if they lost it at the warehouse. With no
tracking number, it can be a HUGE hassle to get the refund.

> In doing a little research before I bought the above equipment, I found
> that I seemed to know more than the people that were supposed to help
> me.

Many here in this newsgroup know more than I do. It's pathetic. "Ongoing
training" consists of a page or so of info on a subject and a short
multiple-choice quiz. Since we have to read these between calls (impossible
on busy days), usually one person will take the test and email his buddies
with the answers. The rest skip the info and take the test. Once you've
taken the test, you are responsible for knowing the info.

> Once I was given a number to call that was no longer in service.

Sad to say, I've given out numbers that were non-existent. They change
numbers and nobody updates the database.

> Another time it took the rep. several minutes to locate the number to
> transfer me to. There seems to be an obvious lack of training - which
> I blame on Cingular, not on the unfortunates that work for them.

The company has a high turnover rate in customer service. Most of the CSR's
have no college and go on to minimum wage jobs with no benefits, whereas
Cingular pays $9.15 to start and has great benefits... really tells you how
much the job sux. The biggest reason for people quitting is stress from not
having enough training. When someone quits, they do an "exit interview" to
find out why, so they must know at the top (assuming they read them).
Sometimes I think the company is run by the Three Stooges, and that's on my
good days.

CSR

CSR,
Your statements are consistent with my experience with Cingular
customer support. There are too many personal stories to share here
that I have experienced in the last year or so, but one recently one
stands out. Someone I know was having problems making calls with their
GAIT phone when in an area of Cingular coverage other than their home
area. They contacted cust. support and were advised that their phone
needs to be off for "7 minutes every 24hrs". What a croc! Their
problem was most likely MSC/VLR related but the rep probably felt like
they had a handle on the situation. I would have more respect for CS if
they told me they just didn't know what to do vs. trying to advise
people on something they have no knowledge about. Anyway, I've always
had good luck calling the Cingular business support number and have
since advised others to bypass 866-Cingular altogether.

It seems to me that Cingular has one of the best optimized &
maintained networks, but the least helpful CS departments. I really
hope they wake up, smell the roses & invest a little more on the CS
side of the biz.