Sometimes our problems in the call center are not a result of demented leadership or crazy callers, instead, they come from the other employees we work with.

For those of you that don't know anything about call centers, new employees go to training classes and also work with a trainer to show them the ropes. Sometimes everyone is a trainer if we have a lot of people, other times only certain people are trainers.

Herb is one of the older guys who is one of management's favorites trainers. He's really a good worker, he has good numbers and works hard. He reminds me of that guy on PBS that used to have the sewing show, you know the guy with the high-sheen, clear polished nails. He's kind of a combination of Mr. Humphries from the old BBC show "Are You Being Served?" and Ricardo Montalban; smooth and fruity, but a sweet guy. I like working with him, but he has one outstanding fault; he's a gossip. He was training one of the new temps in the cubicle next to me and I could hear him going on and on about everyone. So could some other people...

"Make sure you always confirm the order in a way that the tape will pick it up, so we can clearly hear the customer agreeing that they understood the results..."

He was interrupted by one of our senior agents, Jody, dealing with an agency that we contract to help us with overflow data entry,"You have been sitting on this for three days! I am not going to call you back again! If I don't have an real answer in thirty minutes, my boss is calling your boss. We've got a *@&$#& contract that says you will provide us with forty-eight hours turn around!"
SLAM!!, she hung up.

Herb didn't miss a beat."Of course, we've got some horribly rude people here who just can't act professional. Back in the old days, her kind would have been fired..." Herb was in his element now, he started listing the faults of three or four other agents, and how he would never do what they did, and how there's just no discipline or civility. He was so caught up with himself he didn't realize that three of those agents had heard his monologue over the cubicle walls.

There were hurt feelings, but no fireworks.No management intervention, no memos, or corrections, just the gut-tightening hatred that people can transmit silently through a busy office.

Thanks for reading,

AC