# When you call a call centre where are the people based? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 10, 2012, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-call-a-call-centre-where-are-the-people-based/621563 "2012-05-10T23:08:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2012, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-call-a-call-centre-where-are-the-people-based/621563/21 "2012-05-11T07:06:50Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > Why is this a problem for Americans, denizens of the most ethnically diverse nation on earth? I have always found this really really bizarre. Why does the accent of the person you are speaking to matter more than the efficient resolution of your problem? Because if you can’t understand each other, the problem won’t get solved. I used to work for an American multinational with call centers in Philadelphia (the one where 2nd tier was - I was part of 3rd tier, we moved around a lot and were not considered part of CS), Shanghai and Mumbai. You got one or the other depending on what time you called. For several years, the only possible mode of communication was by phone; users could not send email, get an email with the proposed solution, use the company-wide IM service… and we were located in 60 countries, including several where English would not be anybody’s first or even second language. Most people could not understand the Indian shift’s workers. The Chinese were the ones non-Anglos preferred, as they pronounced very clearly, had no problem repeating or talking slowly and always managed to sound like they were both interested in your issue and happy to talk with you; the Indians were actively avoided by both Anglos and non-. The 2nd-in-command from CS was an arrogant ass who was known to his subordinates as TB (the bastard); every three months he’d send this letter to every user, along the lines of: > [@TB](#): > > You morons, you keep trying to send email to [CS-at-company.com](http://CS-at-company.com), that doesn’t work, it’s not monitored. You need to phone and you have to phone in English. I can’t believe you are all too stupid to understand this. The 6th or so time around, he caught me on a bad day, and I wrote back > [@Nava](#): > > Sir, > > while I appreciate that people should stick to procedures, perhaps you should reconsider the way communication to CS is handled? Since you say there is at least one email received every day, maybe it would be best to monitor email. > > Best regards, > Me. Dude flew off the handle, I got called in by my boss (pal of his), then a phone call from his boss - who had not read the original email, was horrified when he did, admitted he did not understand the Indians either and changed protocols so that: 1. email would be monitored, 2. callers could ask to move to IM, 3. if you had a CS Person’s IM addy, you could use it to contact them. I still count it as one of my biggest victories ever. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2012, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-call-a-call-centre-where-are-the-people-based/621563/22 "2012-05-11T07:32:28Z")
Nava, did TB ever get paid out. And what Nava said in regard to accents- if they are so thick (the accents) that it is difficult to understand, the customer will not be satisfied. There is no great mystique about that- I would never dream of getting a job in a call centre in Ireland or Scotland as I can have difficulty understanding their accents and I am sure they would have the same problem with my accent. ---
**Author:** ![Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleeps_With_Butterflies)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2012, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-call-a-call-centre-where-are-the-people-based/621563/23 "2012-05-11T07:36:49Z")
:: knocks on wood: I’ve been really lucky that I haven’t had to call for customer service for anything for quite a while. In the past it seems I mostly get American accents with the occasional Indian accent. When I was an undergrad I worked customer service jobs because they were plentiful and worked around my schedule. I would often get people who were THRILLED to get an American on the phone. Honestly I could understand it for elderly folks because many of them don’t hear so great over the phone and had a hard time understanding. It was disappointing how often people that were younger would make disparaging comments about talking to foreigners or would come right out and say racially/ethnically offensive things. ---
**Author:** ![bartleby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bartleby/32/10491_2.png) [@bartleby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bartleby)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2012, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-call-a-call-centre-where-are-the-people-based/621563/24 "2012-05-11T12:28:34Z")
Well, i’m here just north of Cincinnati (sadly), before that I was in Connecticut. i’ve only worked call centers (damned History Degree), so… ---
**Author:** ![TheSquirminator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/278dde/32.png) [@TheSquirminator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheSquirminator)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2012, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-call-a-call-centre-where-are-the-people-based/621563/25 "2012-05-11T12:50:09Z")
This one time I had to call up the Royal Bank Of Scotland. It’s the only time I’ve ever wished I was put through to an Indian call centre. Couldn’t understand a damn word of this woman’s Glaswegian accent! lol [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-call-a-call-centre-where-are-the-people-based/621563.md?page=1)