"Dell support, Molly speaking, how may i help you?" Molly huh, i bet her name is something like Madhuvanthi. As i try to explain my problem to her she keeps asking me to repeat myself. Now i'm already angry that my laptop isn't working but having to constantly repeat the problem to someone who doesn't understand english is making me even more angry. I hate DELL!!! i hate them for makin crappy machines that constantly fail on u and "molly" is not making the situation any better!!! She directs me to 10 different people who also don't speak english very well until over an hour later of mostly waiting on hold i'm told my problem is with Windows not Dell!! WTF!!!!!! I may have just been on facebook when this happened but regardless i COULD'VE been working on something important and Dell doesn't know that and neither does "Molly!" I spent money on the product and if it malfunctions by no fault of my own, i'm OWED fantastic customer service!!! customer = customer service, what part of that equation does "Molly" not understand?
Does the situation sound familiar?
Well during my study abroad trip, i had the opportunity to learn more about, "Molly." Not "Molly" in particular but more like call centers. We visited WNS in Hyderabad, one of the leading providers of BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) services. They have many services, but call centers was our main focus. With the entire stigma surrounding call centers, our presenter assured us that WNS is "far more sophisticated and decent than the others." For example, at WNS those who work in call centers do not have to change their names, unless of course the name is extremely difficult to pronounce (Madhuvanthi- don't ask where i got that from). They also work in an extremely fun, cooperative environment. The facility consisted of completely open workspaces and there were many rooms for recreational purposes (ping pong tables!!). There was a huge cafeteria and gym- and the whole facility was very colorful, for a second we forgot we were in Hyderabad except of course for the cows and homeless people passing by the windows. As we viewed the facility we noticed many women working and the environment and WNS seemed to employ those within their mid-twenties.
Indian call centers have had a growth rate of about 60% in the last three years and WNS has greatly contributed to those figures. As we viewed the facility we noticed many women working that seemed within the age range of mid-twenties. The reason more women are employed is because call centers have generally been labeled as “women’s work.” Our presenter even said that as a woman there are certain aspects of femininity that need to come into play when dealing with irate customers. As a result, men are not as dependable to do such jobs. Admin jobs are also favored women, even though most have at least a college degree. They are the lower paid half of the industrial workforce, they earn only about $120-$220 a month. However, women tend to think of it as an IT job, more comprehensive than just service. Men see it as a waste of intelligence, and label the occupation as a sophisticated telephone operator.
They go through a lot of training to work in the field, process based training, accent training, & good customer service; empathy training. The empathy training is mainly due to the irate customers. It was mentioned that a "normal" part of US culture, is to say "what the hell are you doing?" They say it may be so common in the US but they find it extremely offensive in India. Part of the empathy training is to deal with this aggressive behavior that is so common in the US. So i guess we're known for being assholes!
Another problem is that English is a second language for them and while they learn proper english and we speak incredibly fast in slang, there is a HUGE communication gap. So basically dell is settin up these customer service calls for disaster.
I couldn't help but think, for a woman to have a college degree and yet work at a job in which she must deal with irate customers all day who belittle her, while a man with the same education has the right to have an actual IT job is absolutely absurd. So here i'm gettin pissed at "molly" and treating her as if she's incompetent when in reality if it weren't for the language barrier and my insulting tone, my problem would probably have been resolved in a shorter amount of time. I guess if you think about it, if Madhuvanthi grew up in the US, with her education we probably would be working for her, and most likely she would see us as incompetent dumbasses!
