Fuck You, You Fucking Fucks!
Aug. 4th, 2005 12:03 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
purrrsephone.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
techrecoveryTwo incredible customer *GEMS* today.
BG = I work as a Tier 2 level tech support agent for a very LARGE, very INCOMPETENT communications company, in the DSL technical support department.
OFFENSE #1: Customer calls in and is working with two desktop computers, one hardwired to a combination modem/router that puts out a wireless network connection and the other with an internal wireless Ethernet card that is supposed to tap into that connection. Cx has already installed the card but can't get an Internet connection on the wireless PC. The hardwired PC, however, is just ducky. After checking all of the wireless settings and establishing that the first PC/modem is putting out a correctly configured wireless connection, I decide to move over to the wireless PC and begin troubleshooting there. Now, I do have support boundaries, and for something like this, they include checking the wireless configuration in the modem, making sure the connection is secure on the wireless PC, and making sure that the wireless device is working correctly. If any of those things come up bad, I troubleshoot until the point where I can refer the person or I've fixed the problem. I reached this point when I saw that the three different sections of configuration information that were supposed to come up for her wireless connection on her wireless PC were not coming up, only the "General" section. The customer verified with me that she had another wireless device for the PC before this one and that they DID come up for that one, just not this one. I informed the customer that we would need to check information in these sections and that if they wouldn't come up, she should speak to the manufacturer of her wireless device to find out why the advanced information was not allowed to be viewed or changed or the person who takes care of the operating system she was using, to find out why they wouldn't show up in that operating system's network connections. The customer refused to be transferred and did not understand why I was doing this. I tried to explain why the best I could, saying that everything I'm allowed to check on is okay and that this was an issue outside of what I'm allowed to work on with her, and trying to make it clear to her that these two tabs and the configuration information on them were direly important in setting up that wireless connection and that the two people I referred her to would be the only ones at fault for them not coming up. Cx responded argumentatively and rudely, telling me that she didn't like me passing her onto other people because I didn't know how to do my job and that I was lazy. I informed her of my support boundaries again and she called me a bitch. It was at that point that I went into a mandatory call closing (since we can't hang up on someone...legally) telling her that the call was becoming unproductive and that I'd given her my recommendations based on my findings, and it was at that point that she screamed in my ear that I was an "ignorant cunt" and although I wasn't finished with my unproductive call closing, I chose to hang up on her outright as she bellowed in my ear demands to talk to a supervisor.
And after that, I promptly logged out for a smoke break, slamming my headphones down and making it clear in my body language that I wasn't feeling friendly.
OFFENSE #2: Customer calls in and after checking on their setup information, we find that the customer has sync (meaning that her modem is working correctly, it's sending and receiving information or is at least prepared to, it's communicating back and forth with our central computers, a connection has been established, etc.) but is unable to get route (meaning she can't pull up webpages in her browser, usually characterized by "page cannot be displayed/cannot find server" messages). I run a line test to see if there's anything causing any interference with her DSL signal, and it comes up showing that the interference coming into her modem is at 100% and going out is at 98%. More often than not, this is interference with the phone server, because DSL is setup to run through the same phoneline as telephone service, although the phone service is supposed to be "filtered" with devices that make sure the two signals run on different frequencies (this is why you can be on DSL Internet and talk on the phone at the same time, because the frequencies are split). It's a proven fact that using a "Y"-jack splitter that allows the DSL modem and an analog device to be plugged into the same jack does not always allow the signals to be split into different frequency brackets, which causes noise on the line and--what do you know--interference with the DSL signal characterized by interference-related numbers ranging from 80% to 100%. Our list of required troubleshooting steps tells us that we are to remove any additional splitting devices and the analog devices plugged into them, plug the DSL modem directly into the phone jack on the wall, and run another line test to see if that takes the interference away. If it doesn't, then there is a separate list of things to check that could cause the interference and we check them, either fixing those things to correct the problem or referring them to a department that deals with analog line problems. If it does, we see if this fixes the customer's inability to get connected or load pages, and if it does, work with the customer for alternative solutions for their new problem of where to plug in everything they had to take out to get the DSL to work. I told the customer what we would need to do to fix the problem and she flat-out refused. She actually used the words, "I'm not going to do that, so don't bother asking. You'll just have to find another thing to check." I was initially taken aback, but inquired as to why she was unwilling to continue with the troubleshooting, and she told me that she had a fax machine plugged in there and "didn't feel like putting it on one of the other 3 jacks in the office." She didn't feel like it?! WTF?! I begrudingly explained to her that it was required troubleshooting and assured her that, considering how many times a day I deal with the same exact situation, this should take care of her problem. The customer assured me that she was "technicial" and that my explanation of what was causing the problem and my suggested solution made no sense to her, based on her VAAAST amount of knowledge, and asked me, "Didn't they train you to do *OTHER* things when this doesn't work for someone?" I informed her that it was simply a matter of checks and balances; we are trained to check on certain things and when flags go up, we have specific ways that we are supposed to take care of them. In her case, she was having analog interference with her DSL line and the specific solution to that problem is to remove any chance of analog interference. I tried to be as polite as possible when I informed her that her fax machine and the splitter she was running it into WERE the "analog interference" and that they had to be removed. The customer then said, "I bet you're new, so I don't blame you," at which time I informed her--again, as politely as I knew how--that I've been involved with all aspects of computers for over 15 years and that I had been at this job for a significant period of time, not to mention that this was an issue I had dealt with at least 5 times a day for that whole duration. The customer said, "I still don't think we can take care of things this way, is there someone smarter I can talk to about this?" Offended, naturally, I was more than happy to call our Tier 3 level agents (who take negative calls as well as positive calls when Supervisors are not available) to send the issue over to them. I informed Dan, the T3 agent, that the customer was unwilling to troubleshoot with me at a crucial point in the "Get the Customer Online!" process and he told me to transfer her over to him after giving the mandatory introduction and short-form call closing and asking for additional questions or problems beforehand. I asked the customer, "Ma'am, before I put you in touch with my Supervisor, Dan, is there anything else I can do for you this evening?" I don't know why I was surprised when she responded with, "Why bother asking now? I've been talking to you for 20 minutes and you haven't done a goddamn thing for me yet. I hope Dan fires you for not helping your customers."
I didn't even finish the call closing, I just hit the "Transfer" button and prayed that she would be killed by a rogue meteor.
Sorry to anyone who's tech-y and didn't need my explanations throughout the post, I was catering to those who did for clarification.
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customers_suck, techsupport, and my own journal, ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
purrrsephone.
BG = I work as a Tier 2 level tech support agent for a very LARGE, very INCOMPETENT communications company, in the DSL technical support department.
OFFENSE #1: Customer calls in and is working with two desktop computers, one hardwired to a combination modem/router that puts out a wireless network connection and the other with an internal wireless Ethernet card that is supposed to tap into that connection. Cx has already installed the card but can't get an Internet connection on the wireless PC. The hardwired PC, however, is just ducky. After checking all of the wireless settings and establishing that the first PC/modem is putting out a correctly configured wireless connection, I decide to move over to the wireless PC and begin troubleshooting there. Now, I do have support boundaries, and for something like this, they include checking the wireless configuration in the modem, making sure the connection is secure on the wireless PC, and making sure that the wireless device is working correctly. If any of those things come up bad, I troubleshoot until the point where I can refer the person or I've fixed the problem. I reached this point when I saw that the three different sections of configuration information that were supposed to come up for her wireless connection on her wireless PC were not coming up, only the "General" section. The customer verified with me that she had another wireless device for the PC before this one and that they DID come up for that one, just not this one. I informed the customer that we would need to check information in these sections and that if they wouldn't come up, she should speak to the manufacturer of her wireless device to find out why the advanced information was not allowed to be viewed or changed or the person who takes care of the operating system she was using, to find out why they wouldn't show up in that operating system's network connections. The customer refused to be transferred and did not understand why I was doing this. I tried to explain why the best I could, saying that everything I'm allowed to check on is okay and that this was an issue outside of what I'm allowed to work on with her, and trying to make it clear to her that these two tabs and the configuration information on them were direly important in setting up that wireless connection and that the two people I referred her to would be the only ones at fault for them not coming up. Cx responded argumentatively and rudely, telling me that she didn't like me passing her onto other people because I didn't know how to do my job and that I was lazy. I informed her of my support boundaries again and she called me a bitch. It was at that point that I went into a mandatory call closing (since we can't hang up on someone...legally) telling her that the call was becoming unproductive and that I'd given her my recommendations based on my findings, and it was at that point that she screamed in my ear that I was an "ignorant cunt" and although I wasn't finished with my unproductive call closing, I chose to hang up on her outright as she bellowed in my ear demands to talk to a supervisor.
And after that, I promptly logged out for a smoke break, slamming my headphones down and making it clear in my body language that I wasn't feeling friendly.
OFFENSE #2: Customer calls in and after checking on their setup information, we find that the customer has sync (meaning that her modem is working correctly, it's sending and receiving information or is at least prepared to, it's communicating back and forth with our central computers, a connection has been established, etc.) but is unable to get route (meaning she can't pull up webpages in her browser, usually characterized by "page cannot be displayed/cannot find server" messages). I run a line test to see if there's anything causing any interference with her DSL signal, and it comes up showing that the interference coming into her modem is at 100% and going out is at 98%. More often than not, this is interference with the phone server, because DSL is setup to run through the same phoneline as telephone service, although the phone service is supposed to be "filtered" with devices that make sure the two signals run on different frequencies (this is why you can be on DSL Internet and talk on the phone at the same time, because the frequencies are split). It's a proven fact that using a "Y"-jack splitter that allows the DSL modem and an analog device to be plugged into the same jack does not always allow the signals to be split into different frequency brackets, which causes noise on the line and--what do you know--interference with the DSL signal characterized by interference-related numbers ranging from 80% to 100%. Our list of required troubleshooting steps tells us that we are to remove any additional splitting devices and the analog devices plugged into them, plug the DSL modem directly into the phone jack on the wall, and run another line test to see if that takes the interference away. If it doesn't, then there is a separate list of things to check that could cause the interference and we check them, either fixing those things to correct the problem or referring them to a department that deals with analog line problems. If it does, we see if this fixes the customer's inability to get connected or load pages, and if it does, work with the customer for alternative solutions for their new problem of where to plug in everything they had to take out to get the DSL to work. I told the customer what we would need to do to fix the problem and she flat-out refused. She actually used the words, "I'm not going to do that, so don't bother asking. You'll just have to find another thing to check." I was initially taken aback, but inquired as to why she was unwilling to continue with the troubleshooting, and she told me that she had a fax machine plugged in there and "didn't feel like putting it on one of the other 3 jacks in the office." She didn't feel like it?! WTF?! I begrudingly explained to her that it was required troubleshooting and assured her that, considering how many times a day I deal with the same exact situation, this should take care of her problem. The customer assured me that she was "technicial" and that my explanation of what was causing the problem and my suggested solution made no sense to her, based on her VAAAST amount of knowledge, and asked me, "Didn't they train you to do *OTHER* things when this doesn't work for someone?" I informed her that it was simply a matter of checks and balances; we are trained to check on certain things and when flags go up, we have specific ways that we are supposed to take care of them. In her case, she was having analog interference with her DSL line and the specific solution to that problem is to remove any chance of analog interference. I tried to be as polite as possible when I informed her that her fax machine and the splitter she was running it into WERE the "analog interference" and that they had to be removed. The customer then said, "I bet you're new, so I don't blame you," at which time I informed her--again, as politely as I knew how--that I've been involved with all aspects of computers for over 15 years and that I had been at this job for a significant period of time, not to mention that this was an issue I had dealt with at least 5 times a day for that whole duration. The customer said, "I still don't think we can take care of things this way, is there someone smarter I can talk to about this?" Offended, naturally, I was more than happy to call our Tier 3 level agents (who take negative calls as well as positive calls when Supervisors are not available) to send the issue over to them. I informed Dan, the T3 agent, that the customer was unwilling to troubleshoot with me at a crucial point in the "Get the Customer Online!" process and he told me to transfer her over to him after giving the mandatory introduction and short-form call closing and asking for additional questions or problems beforehand. I asked the customer, "Ma'am, before I put you in touch with my Supervisor, Dan, is there anything else I can do for you this evening?" I don't know why I was surprised when she responded with, "Why bother asking now? I've been talking to you for 20 minutes and you haven't done a goddamn thing for me yet. I hope Dan fires you for not helping your customers."
I didn't even finish the call closing, I just hit the "Transfer" button and prayed that she would be killed by a rogue meteor.
Sorry to anyone who's tech-y and didn't need my explanations throughout the post, I was catering to those who did for clarification.
X-Posted to
customers_suck, techsupport, and my own journal, purrrsephone.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 06:02 am (UTC)When I setup DSL, it usually gets the closest jack to the NIU, if not punched directly down to the block. The phone line is then tapped after it (after putting a 2nd filter on the bugger to remove any doubt of a possibly bad internal filter) to avoid any interference.
However, I'm doing this for businesses, so the DSL modem is usually screwed on the same board as the NIU... ::snicker::
no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 07:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 08:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 08:16 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 08:50 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 02:04 pm (UTC)ME: OK, have you tried restar--
HIM: No. Let's not get into that.
Direct quote.
no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 04:52 pm (UTC)I would occasionally get get some real nasty calls from group 25, which is on the west coast, primarily. Mind you, we expeanded our hours from 5:00 - 9:00 just to support these people (We were on the east coast).
Whenever I got one of those calls, I put myself into "Unavailable" mode (which means no calls to the 800 line came in) and made an outgoing call. To the group 25 office. I was very friendly with an older lady named Rose, because I fixed a problem that had been going on for months there, and it made her job alot easier.
All I would have to say is "Hi Rose, guess who I just had an unpleasant conversation with?", and someone usually got fired.
It was nice having that one office be nice to me.
no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 06:06 pm (UTC)>_>
no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 06:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 06:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-04 10:29 pm (UTC)