The History of Call Centers
Over the years I have had the opportunity to speak at many ICMI events. In 2003 I passed the process to become a Certified Associate (it was pretty intense!). I have always felt honored to be a part of the ICMI team and have taught their premier workshop, Essential Skills and Knowledge, around the world.
The organization just celebrated their 25th Anniversary. If you have been around call centers as long as I have, you probably remember the huge trade shows from the past and perhaps attended a class taught by the Gordon McPherson (the guy that is credited with giving us the term “call center”). To celebrate the history of the organization, the former President, Brad Cleveland recently sat down for an interview. While it is a look at the history of the ICMI organization, is it also, in my opinion, a priceless look into the history of the call center industry.
I love to tell people that I started working in call centers before they were called call centers. My first call center job was in a “phone room.” We had 10-key brown phones with the headset hanging on the side. The ACD was nothing more than a blinking light indicating that a call was on hold. In the video, Brad will take you back to those days and bring you forward to the technology of the future. The video is about 10 minutes long but I think it will be worth your time.
Would love to meet you “live” at HDI
I am excited to be less two weeks away from speaking at the HDI Annual Conference and Expo in Orlando. My session is scheduled for Friday morning at 10:15am. If you will be there, please let me know - I would love to meet you in person. Send me an email and we can schedule a time to talk! http://www.thinkhdi.com/hdi2010/
Top 10 Signs You Work in a Call Center
Letterman-style list for your next manager meeting (although the last one may be a little
10. You supply your spouse with a daily quality performance report and analysis.
9. You end your date with the question, “is there anything else I can do for you?”
8. After a romantic evening with your spouse, you send him or her a satisfaction survey.
7. Your kid’s names are acronyms.
6. You find yourself calculating the average talk time after an argument with your spouse.
5. When you watch your son play soccer you keep yelling that the other team is out of adherence.
4. You keep losing bets by insisting that “Shook Me All Night Long” was sung by the mega-rock group “ACD”
3. At Halloween, you answer the door and say: Press one for Snickers, Two for Butterfinger, Three for Almond Joy, Four for Kit-Kat, or press 0 to opt out for an apple.
2. When choosing a line at the grocery store, you run a quick intra-day forecast.
1. Your dates always seem to go downhill because you keep bringing that your last date said you did not meet service level.
Thanks to Scott Thomas for co-authoring this. He is one of a kind!
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Bob Furniss
As founder and President of Touchpoint Associates, Inc., Bob Furniss has more than 25 years of experience in the customer service field - assisting organizations to increase productivity and profits by bringing out the best in their people. He has shared his experience in the areas of leadership and service with some of the top companies in America - companies like FedEx, Corporate Express, DePaul University, Delta Airlines, Hanley Wood and more.
Click here to email Bob direct -
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