Don’t you hate you call a place

[aprilgail]

I end up hanging up over and over again until I get one that I can understand. My boss all the time says "Can I please have someone that speaks English without a foreign accent" when he calls places!

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I don't think it has anything at all due to outsourcing customer service centers overseas. I have had problems when I'm on the phone with a customer service person from the northeast who talks too fast and in a brusque way that you can't catch what they are saying. Or a southerner that has such a twang it's hard to decipher. Or a quiet-talker. They are the absolute worst! Or when you hear so much background noise from other agents that it's like trying to hear through a cacophony in a tin can. That drives me bonkers. And as a disclaimer, so no one thinks I'm bagging on people with regional accents, I have a slight southern accent that I can't get rid of even though in the last 52 years, I've lived up and down the east coast!

I have to talk to a call center several times a day, 6 days a week for work & this hasn't been my experience.

 

[MrsJackSparrow4Life]

I have found that while they are harder to understand, the CS reps with heavy foreign accents know how to answer my questions better than the ones with American accents do the majority of the time. Especially the ones at FedEx.

 

[jt'smom]

I have to talk to a call center several times a day, 6 days a week for work & this hasn't been my experience.

You're very lucky you've never had to call the New Jersey DMV, the Walton County Electric company in Georgia or any utility in South Florida then, lol!

 

[adelaster]

I end up hanging up over and over again until I get one that I can understand. My boss all the time says "Can I please have someone that speaks English without a foreign accent" when he calls places!

That sounds so mean, but declaring one's ignorance is presently "en vogue".

If your boss is American it is also hilarious as most of us speak a warped version of what came over from British colonization. Now we call it American English and British English to be polite. I'd wager if your boss is backward enough to hold bias against accents It's likely that they would consider someone speaking British English "speaking English with a foreign accent".

Not to mention the U.S. has incredible linguistic diversity across regional areas.

When I hear an obvious accent, I am more inclined to think the odds are higher that I am speaking with someone more dedicated, cultured, and intelligent- after all they mastered at least one second language to speaking ability. America is statistically behind the rest of the globe in this to an embarrassing degree- no doubt largely in part due to those who share your boss's position.

Language is a means to an end- communication. Of course it can be used as art, etc., but the primary function is meant to be understanding each other in a deeper and more transferable way than body language. In that way there is no "best" or "proper" as long as the meaning holds. I certainly do not ascribe to the view that American English is the pinnacle of linguistic achievement.

O.P. to your original point- I'll take a thick accent with a clear-headed and well-informed speaker who has great customer service skills over so many other things.

 

[AnnaFloridaLover]

I end up hanging up over and over again until I get one that I can understand. My boss all the time says "Can I please have someone that speaks English without a foreign accent" when he calls places!

Wow, your boss is polite and ignorant at the same time.

These are real, living humans who are trying their best to help you and do their job to the best of their ability and you keep hanging up on them? Ugh.

 

[AnnaFloridaLover]

That sounds so mean, but declaring one's ignorance is presently "en vogue".

If your boss is American it is also hilarious as most of us speak a warped version of what came over from British colonization. Now we call it American English and British English to be polite. I'd wager if your boss is backward enough to hold bias against accents It's likely that they would consider someone speaking British English "speaking English with a foreign accent".

Not to mention the U.S. has incredible linguistic diversity across regional areas.

When I hear an obvious accent, I am more inclined to think the odds are higher that I am speaking with someone more dedicated, cultured, and intelligent- after all they mastered at least one second language to speaking ability. America is statistically behind the rest of the globe in this to an embarrassing degree- no doubt largely in part due to those who share your boss's position.

Language is a means to an end- communication. Of course it can be used as art, etc., but the primary function is meant to be understanding each other in a deeper and more transferable way than body language. In that wat there is no "best" or "proper" as long as the meaning holds. I certainly do not ascribe to the view that American English is the pinnacle of linguistic achievement.

O.P. to your original point- I'll take a thick accent with a clear-headed and well-informed speaker who has great customer service skills over so many other things.

Very well said!

 

[ronandannette]

While it is impossible not to patronize businesses that outsource, I find infuriating to know that jobs are being outsourced and I (as a customer) am also being inconvenienced by outsourced employees who are not able to articulate properly. I typically ask to speak to someone who is better able to communicate or just hang-up and make a mental note to try not to patronize said company as often. I think the more that consumers demand US based customer-service with their wallets, the more businesses will ultimately have to comply.

Or, you know, be willing to actually pay more for it - given that outsourcing is 100% a cost-saving measure to remain competitive without raising prices. And let's face it, it's unlikely the current business model is going to change because it would be a big financial risk to revert call centre jobs back to the US/Canada where employee costs are so much higher and would have to involve price increases. Regardless of the level of service, most people will still contract with the lowest-cost provider, period.

And here's a situation that turns this issue on it's head: at my company almost 50% of our customers are first-generation immigrants and have very little fluency in English. We go to great lengths to communicate with them; translation software for written communication and sometimes even using professional translators. It's a strain and a major expense, but necessary to ensure they receive the service they deserve. Our staff members are also very used to dealing with language barriers and extreme patience is part of the job. But we're talking about high-end houses that cost upwards of 1/2 a million dollars, not a $12.99 courier delivery.

 

[MommyinHonduras]

Actually, the American School was founded in 1946, and Elvel School was founded in 1967. There are several other bilingual schools that started way before 2007. I know someone who just turned fifty and studied at Elvel School since kindergarten. But she's a doctor and I doubt she'd be interested in that type of job. I'm surprised that anyone who attended a bilingual school over there would be after that type of job. Those schools are quite expensive, and attended mostly by children of wealthy families who have high expectations for their future. But I agree that jobs are few there, so maybe they hare having to settle for less

https://amschool.org/ http://www.elvel.com/

Ok, I should clarify I mean ones where not rich people can afford, kinda. Yes there are ones that cost $$$$ and have been around awhile. But in the last 10 years more are opening and cost around $100-$200 a month instead of multiple thousands a year. There are families putting resources together to send one kid in hopes of elevating the family. They have no connections and will not get get jobs that only come through family connections, and that is most. They are the ones taking the call center jobs. It is still more money than anyone else in the family has had an option to make in the past. And there are quite a few of them but it means moving away from the family to the San Pedro to take the job. One is also being built on Roatan where English is spoken by more than half the people, but it is island English and that accent is very strong.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I have found that while they are harder to understand, the CS reps with heavy foreign accents know how to answer my questions better than the ones with American accents do the majority of the time. Especially the ones at FedEx.

I guess it depends on who you're calling. In my experience, most call c

You're very lucky you've never had to call the New Jersey DMV, the Walton County Electric company in Georgia or any utility in South Florida then, lol!

lol... I live in South Florida. American accents aren't a problem for me, regardless of what part of the country they're from. I talk to people all over the country.

I always hope for a native English speaker to pick up, but it could be someone from anywhere. I guess it depends on which call center has the time. I'll take someone who speaks English as a first language every time, please. FWIW, I find trying to understand most people who speak English as their second language is much harder over the phone than in person.

People I talk to, who speak English as a second language, have to follow a script. They ask my name the first thing, so they can refer to me personally. I've been called many different names some of which are strictly male names here. I've tried spelling my name & even tried using the phonetic alphabet, but I was wasting too much time on something that didn't really matter. I finally gave up. Now, I just let them call me whatever they think I said the first time. Sometimes, they'll refer to me by the wrong name 10 times in the same call. Yep, that's me. I'm Kenny (not even close to my name). Those who are native English speakers aren't required to follow a script. They understand my name the first time & don't repeat it several times. The calls are much more efficient, because I don't have to keep repeating myself. Fortunately, I know the out of country script by heart, so I just reply to what I know they should be asking me next. That saves some time. Having to try to understand what they're saying & get them to understand what I'm saying is the most frustrating part of my job.

 

[CynBeth]

Unfortunately for my job I have to contact companies that outsource from India and these days most companies I contact for personal things do as well and I hate it. They always mess everything up and I have to call numerous times to get the job or issue done right or get taken care of. When I ask for a manager most are from there too and are just as bad as the employees and if I ask for a rep from the US most times there is no one they can transfer me to.

 

[MillauFr]

I think the more that consumers demand US based customer-service with their wallets, the more businesses will ultimately have to comply.

I am more likely to use a business that allows me to resolve issue and answer questions by using their website. I hate when I have to call a live person. I would rather use the website.

 

[ols386]

This isn’t exactly the topic, but I get frustrated when I call a business and the person on the other end of the phone, talks so fast that I can’t follow what they say. I’ll ask them to repeat themselves because I’m not even sure if I’ve called the right place (company name). When I ask a specific question and they respond, I again have to ask them to repeat themselves because I can’t understand what they’re saying. In turn, they get irritated with me because I asked them to repeat, again. It becomes frustrating for them and for me, but usually they are speaking English.

 

[rajak73]

Well you know you're connected overseas when you call your CC company before vacation to tell them where you are going so they don't suspend the CC for fraud and they have to ask you to spell I-O-W-A.

 

[Hikergirl]

I had to call Best Buy last night, the first person I spoke to had no accent but then I had to be transferred to some other department.
The second person had a thick Indian accent and I could not understand him. When I got off the phone I really had no idea what was going on, figured I'd wait until today and call back to get clarification. Clearly he understood me though, I got an email this morning and my problem was resolved