Creating Jobs Could Be Beneficial In Many Ways

I am sure that there must be more than a handful of readers out there who have experienced the frustration of being forced to rely on Customer Service/Tech Support representatives who are physically located many thousands of miles away from the source of the problem that has forced you to attempt to communicate with them.

And I use the word “communicate” advisedly.

My personal encounters began with the purchase of a new computer to replace the six-year old (ancient, I have been informed by many in the industry) model that seemed increasingly unable to handle the demands for increased RAM to power the newest “apps”.  Not a bad con game, this: continuously invent new and exciting programs that require ever-growing amounts of operational capacity, which in turn guarantees that your new computer will be obsolete in a disturbingly brief passage of time … requiring an update of equipment …. and on and on, ad infinitum.

Anyway, I was somewhat entranced by the capabilities of the new system that I purchased, particularly the ability to hold face-to-face conversations, through an ingenious system labeled “Skype”, with my oldest son, who is currently teaching conversational English to South Korean high school boys.  But the bloom soon faded from the rose when almost immediately my new computer exhibited a maddening tendency to randomly freeze up and stubbornly resist any attempts to reboot.

And so my relationship with the computer company’s Technical Support/Customer Service gnomes began.  Many hours built up attempting to converse with these entities, who I discovered resided in some warren in India, and who would invariably begin our conversations with a litany of questions that were always the same and had been exhaustively discussed during previous calls.  Communication clarity would vary, since some of these folks were reasonably conversant in English while others spoke with an accent that was difficult to understand.

I soon grew to despair over the iron-clad protocol that directed these conversations.  These folks are carefully programmed to apply a limited number of solutions to an infinite array of problems and I soon grew weary of having my computer taken over by these faraway trolls who would, after many minutes, happily pronounce my problem solved.  The problem, of course, would return in days or a week or so later and it would be back to the drawing board with another “technician” who would stoically recite the same questions and follow the same procedures with the same results.

My increasing irritation was eventually rewarded with arrangements being made to swap out the machine’s hard drive. A U.S. technician appeared on my doorstep and announced that his only function was to make the equipment switch and therefore could not do any testing to determine if indeed a faulty hard drive was the source of the problem.

The problem almost immediately again reared its ugly head, prompting more lengthy telephone “conversations”.  I finally grew irate enough to demand that the obviously faulty system be replaced and that opened a true Pandora’s Box of frustration and misery.  Technical Support referred me to Customer Service through a series of “holds” that eventually linked me back to Technical Support who informed me that they could not replace the entire unit and referred me to Customer Resolution, etc., etc.

During one heated (on my part) exchange, I demanded to be connected to an American representative, but was informed that such would be impossible.  After explaining that my next approach would be a truly nasty email to the company CEO that would include my unfavorable evaluation of Customer Service/Tech Support, I was informed that an attempt to make such a connection would be implemented, but the requested result could not be guaranteed.  I’m sure that the poor rep on the other end of the line had a story to take home to their significant other about the “customer from hell”.

I did indeed send off a nasty email that included detailed threats of forthcoming defamation.  I’m not sure which action was the effective one, but a few days later I spoke with a very pleasant gentleman here in America who assured me that a replacement computer would be on the way.  His word was good: I have the new unit beside me as I write this – yet to be installed - but the attempt will be made as soon as my blood pressure returns to a more comfortable level.

The point being, of course, that all of this aggravation could have been easily prevented through quick corrective action.  I have since learned through some contacts in the computer service/repair industry that such occurences are not uncommon and that the computer manufactures do little or no field testing on new products, but instead rely on the consumers to do this for them.  They have found it to be less expensive to replace “lemons” than to take the time and effort to prevent them.  Customer satisfaction has been relegated to a seat much further to the rear of the auditorium.

I apologize for taking so long to reach my subject of the title of this rant.  My suggestion to our government is this:  If you are truly committed to finding jobs for Americans (are you listening, Mr. President?) then simply make it a requirement that any American company providing goods or services within the United States must staff its Technical Services and/or Customer Support divisions with American citizens in an American location.  End of discussion.

The result?  Many jobs for Americans and an astounding reduction in the blood pressure levels of the American consumer.

And don’t route me through a maze of bureaucratic stations who will each assure me that it cannot be done.  Enough pissed off people can make it happen.

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