What is it with telesales jobs in large offices and call-centres?

rey mysterio said:
Barclays doesn’t seem to push sales these days but I think this will change soon. I’m trying my absolute hardest to get out of it now - been there a year on the phones to tide me over during the pandemic and it was going okay until just after christmas. Looking at moving away to be honest Sunderland is utterly shite for jobs. Nissan, Nissan suppliers or call centres.

Someone apparently got wrong a few weeks ago for not logging any complaints though which did raise a few chuckles. I mean surely as a business less complaints is better ffs. Can’t for the life of me understand the logic behind many of the business decisions.
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It's a regulatory requirement to log complaints.
 


Ben Gardner said:
Christ, I forgot about the bell!
2 Touch, especially, insisted on you ringing a frigging bell every time you got a sale.
Team managers would give you a high ten (I mean, I ask you)! and force everyone to clap you as you returned to your seat.
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Was that sales for setanta sports? I did post office bank accounts next door used to do my f***ing tits in.
 
I work up there and have done 20 odd years. I’m totally in the wrong job and would love to re-train. I just love to yap and find it hard to follow the script at times. During Covid I was even worse I would get a little old fella on and think I could be the only person he’s spoken to all day. Would end up cracking on and trying to make there day.
 
TexasMackem said:
I used to have a boss at EE who'd say "Bonus is called bonus because it is an unexpected reward, you should never rely on it because it isn't guaranteed".

Then why the fuck am I putting myself through the arse ache of selling shit to line other peoples pockets? Patronising twat.

It's my opinion that these companies don't equip floor managers with the skills or empowerment to genuinely improve their people because there simply isn't the will to do so at organisational level. Much easier to show an unhappy employee the door because there are always plenty of willing replacements.
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A bonus is exactly that unless you're on a commission structure.
 
keema naan said:
deadly serious.
@Gillythedilf will agree

call centres these days in Sunderland are full of lads who use hand cream, keep a cat as a pet, order cocktails at the pub, meet up for a coffee with the girls for a natter and sit in the back seat instead of driving :lol:

Long gone are the days when we had proper blokes doing manual graft
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I bet they would cry if they had to lie on a wet road underneath a mark 2 cortina and change the oil filter.
 
NGS said:
I’ve been based there 16.5 years mate, admittedly only 4 years or so on the phones when I first started, last 4 years in supplier management managing our outsourced, overseas site, obviously pre covid meaning regular business travel.

I always say pay is ok but the BA perks are incredible, keeps so many people tied in as the travel becomes addictive, especially as my kids have travelled the world in business class for next to nowt.

Like previous posters have said, call centre roles really open doors to the wider business, if you really want it.
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Pleased it's worked out for you - it was just a complete culture clash for me with the company and people ethics there, the perks were just never worth it (though it was never ever intended to be anything but temporary whilst I went through checks for my new role).

The contact centre side was the most face fits place I've ever been and the amount of adultery was crazy. One of the lads that trained me got done for fraud stealing off BA, warning signs were there but everyone ignored them but that's probably a story of every contact centre in the land
 
Obvious Mag said:
Pleased it's worked out for you - it was just a complete culture clash for me with the company and people ethics there, the perks were just never worth it (though it was never ever intended to be anything but temporary whilst I went through checks for my new role).

The contact centre side was the most face fits place I've ever been and the amount of adultery was crazy. One of the lads that trained me got done for fraud stealing off BA, warning signs were there but everyone ignored them but that's probably a story of every contact centre in the land
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Yeah that’s fair enough, turnover of staff this past 4 or 5 years has been crazy, the newer, lesser paid contracts don’t help. I guess the legacy staff on the more appealing contracts (like me) do almost get stuck in a rut. I now am only based in NCL but directly report into our head office London, so luckily I did escape the UK contact centre side of it.

Aye, agree on the face fits part, can see why ppl get fed up.

Theres been a few ‘high profile’ fraud cases like, scum people like that, as they always always get caught eventually. Deserve to have the book thrown at them
 
Ben Gardner said:
Christ, I forgot about the bell!
2 Touch, especially, insisted on you ringing a frigging bell every time you got a sale.
Team managers would give you a high ten (I mean, I ask you)! and force everyone to clap you as you returned to your seat.
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😂 I remember doing a couple of weeks at 2Touch as a student. We were doing the week long training and one of the lads doing it with us was from Ford Estate and a bit mental. When we passed the floor on the way back to the training room he pushed one of the bells leading to a round of applause and a bewildered young lad who was in the middle of a call looking around. 😂 Steve Gutenberg to play the Ford lad in the fillum.
 
1more said:
It's a regulatory requirement to log complaints.
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Not if no dissatisfaction is expressed. I once had a call listened to and was told I could have offered to log a complaint because the lady said she was angry at the fact the postman hadn’t been. How the hell does that have anything to do with the bank ffs
 
rey mysterio said:
Not if no dissatisfaction is expressed. I once had a call listened to and was told I could have offered to log a complaint because the lady said she was angry at the fact the postman hadn’t been. How the hell does that have anything to do with the bank ffs
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And it's a judgement call on what's an expression of dissatisfaction and a complain
 
Seaham Towny said:
I then had a half hour meeting whereby my manager explained to me if I’d only tried to sell him x, y or z that could’ve made him more positive about the company.
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Why do people even think that?
When companies try the hard sell trying to extract more money out of me, it does the complete opposite & make me think more negative about the company
 
42 said:
Why do people even think that?
When companies try the hard sell trying to extract more money out of me, it does the complete opposite & make me think more negative about the company
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To be fair to said manager, I don't think he wanted to say that but he was indoctrinated into the cult. After about 18 months of pushing that narrative he realised he'd get more out of me if he just cut the bullshit.

This was around the same time I accidentally found out he failed the interview for the managers job he was fulfilling but was hired anyway. Funnily enough his aunt was also a gaffer and friendly with the higher ups in the place. Said higher ups were all 'asked to leave' a few year back for not following hiring practices.
 
Ben Gardner said:
Whether it's ResQ, Citi, Barclays, 2 Touch, Northumbrian Water, Royal Mail, BT ... they're all a bit shit in varying degrees (and I've worked in them all)
Middle-managers get absolutely high as a kite on the power given to them, despite having no experience whatsoever in man-management.

They get promoted on the strength of a few decent months' sales and licking the arse of HR at the right time. Nepotism also helps.
These same bosses twist on about the pressure they get from above, and blame the plebs if he/she can't run a team.

They act like your best mate when you've had a good month and you're wanted on THEIR team, stab you in the back when the heat is on.
Reach for company manual and quote policy ad verbatim when they can't even understand a word of it.

I always did quite well in call-centres but - this may surprise you - my bad attitude let me down.
I wonder of my experience matches that of others..

  • Barclays - great training, decent basic but poor commission structure. Most managers on power trips.
  • 2 Touch - good money if you graft but nepotism was rife. High staff turnover, now known as something else.
  • Northumbrian Water - good training, poor money, awful to get to.
  • Citi - nepotism central (long-gone after the worldwide financial crisis)
  • Royal Mail - the boredom makes you yawn so much, people think you're crying.
  • BT - as above, but this was in the days of 192 so you'd expect little else.
  • ResQ - .....poor management at all levels and little fascists getting the plum jobs. Two sisters that do the training were hot AF though.
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Friend of mine took his redundancy from nissan 10 ish years ago and went into call center work and he's done very very well for himself indeed. He got promoted very quickly and he's now on great money with a company car and seems to have a very good life. And said after 20+ years at nissan it's piss easy and the money is great. And all the birds are a plus!
 
keema naan said:
deadly serious.
@Gillythedilf will agree

call centres these days in Sunderland are full of lads who use hand cream, keep a cat as a pet, order cocktails at the pub, meet up for a coffee with the girls for a natter and sit in the back seat instead of driving :lol:

Long gone are the days when we had proper blokes doing manual graft
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Being in an environment that is full of skirt and known for naughty shenanigans sounds like what real gadgies would do tbh. Not spend their time getting dirty and sweaty with other hairy arsed men.
 
offshore said:
Friend of mine took his redundancy from nissan 10 ish years ago and went into call center work and he's done very very well for himself indeed. He got promoted very quickly and he's now on great money with a company car and seems to have a very good life. And said after 20+ years at nissan it's piss easy and the money is great. And all the birds are a plus!
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That's great, that, genuinely pleased for your mate.
I'd hate to think that EVERYONE has a negative experience of call-centres!
 

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