Call Center Agent: Faced with Father and Daughter DILEMMA

source: http://www.sunstar.com.ph/breaking-news/2012/08/31/79-quake-hits-eastern-samar-240302

The evening of Friday, August 31st 2012 - the whole Philippines was caught off guard with a shocking news.The Eastern side of the country was literally being  rocked with a magnitude 7.7 earthquake. I was still asleep then I woke up because the house that I lived in here in Cebu was dancing. I thought somebody grabbed hold of it and decided to toss it back and forth.

Yes, I am a call center agent here in Cebu. I am here to work. Just like my colleagues I'm  from a different island of the country. Cebu has always been a place of calm. Hard hitting typhoons never had that chance to hit this city hard - as far as I can remember. People consider themselves lucky unlike the ones living in Manila wherein it's almost automatic that it would flood every time it rains. Maybe this is the reason why Cebuanos are not used to calamities. I can still remember a couple of months ago when people here were in panic because of an earth quake. This relax mode in the city, made me calm and confident that nothing bad would happen here. No typhoons, floods, quake, etc would damage or harm Cebu.

Past eight in the evening, August 31st. It was an event that changed me. I woke up because of the loud noise that I heard outside my room. My housemates were in a panic mode. I realized that the whole house was being rocked. It was obvious that we were experiencing an earth quake. I went out of the door. And when everything seemed to settle, I went back. Instinctively, I checked the Internet for a news. Then I saw an update from my friend in Facebook. She placed in her status that Eastern Samar was hit with a 7.7 earth quake. Some of her friends were already making some comments. And it hit me that me that my daughter is in Borongan Eastern Samar. I started to ask for some updates. I tried to call. I was not getting through. I used both of my phone services but I was not getting anything. Somebody posted that they were not able to do so on their end. The cellphone signal was down in our place. Facebook was still on, so I kept asking for updates. Then, even Facebook went out because the power in our town shut off. I swear I wanted to pound the heads of the owners of Globe, Smart and the manager of ESAMELCO (our power provider). I did not know what to do. At the same time, I remembered that I have agents already on duty. Our office was located on the 15th floor of a building near Ayala Cebu. A team lead updated me that they were sent down. Now, I was confused on who to attend to first, my agents or my daughter. I waited for an update in Facebook. Knowing that our town in Samar is facing the Pacific Ocean, I was restless! The thought of a tsunami after a strong quake bothered me so much. The house where my daughter lives is near the coastline. Switch thought. Everything seemed to be fine in the office. However, no update does not mean that everything is fine. So I went to the shower, put on a shirt and went to the office. 

In the call center. The whole production floor did not look normal. I know it was hard for the agents. Being located in the 15th floor while the ground moves is never a good experience - I think! Well, everyone seemed calm except me. I never heard an update. When I left the house I read that there was a tsunami warning raised for Eastern Samar. So I was in a dilemma on whether to be a Manager and take care of my agents or to be a father and worry about my child. 

The President of the company approached me. He saw that I was not in a tranquil state. And just like a father he patted my back and said "a tsunami, normally comes after an hour or so". I realized that he was right. I was able to focus. Now, I am manager. Now I can be productive. I received a text later that my daughter was fine. Friday was one hell of a production day!

EARTHQUAKES in Philippines: A test of Call Centers’ DEDICATION

Feb 06, 2012 – the central part of Philippines (Visayas) was hit by a 6.8 magnitude (US National Geological Services) earthquake. People were in great panic. Based on my own observation, the whole fiasco started at about 11am in the morning. I was watching the news when suddenly I felt that the whole house was shaking. At the 30^th second of the event I felt the urge or the necessity of going out for safety. When everything settled down, GMA News TV announced the earthquake for national consumption. Highly notable was the tsunami alert raised by PHIVOLCS (the geo department of Philippines). It was an alert level 2 – a low one. A couple of minutes after, I heard screams of people announcing that the water was at E-MALL. The said mall was like a kilometer away from where I live. I got out again and noticed the crowd in a frantic mode. It was panic time. Children were being dragged or carried by their parents and at the same time some are crying. Some people were staring at the sky as though they are waiting for something to appear. Hours after this, the whole area calmed down for a reason that I can’t still figure out. Nevertheless, the ground felt like an expectant father – shaking from time to time. People were still vigilant and nervous even up until now.

Feb 06, was a day that consumed many lives. The populace that lived near the epicenter of the earthquake was badly hurt. It was life costly and traumatic for everyone. Though we are far life as we all know it here in Cebu did not function as normally as it should be.

During hiring orientation in the call centers that I worked with, absence in whatever form or reason is highly discouraged. Actually, it is an action met with hostility. Any center supporting all kinds of L.O.B. knows that absence is indeed something that hurts revenue. Less of this would mean more income for the center. Hence, such action is not tolerated or dealt with aggressively. February 06 was the day when this concept was put to a test.

The dilemma. Classes were suspended during the morning. A lot of people were still on a state of shock. Some brought their families on top of mountains to make sure that they are safe if indeed the feared tsunami comes. In spite of its lifting after two hours since it came to existence, the said alert remained to linger on. This was the situation. For an industry like the BPO or the Call Center such event should not cause any absences – theoretically. Nevertheless, as an industry played and controlled by human factor the theory (even how noble it is) cannot stand when agents themselves don’t show up out of fear – the center shuts down. I mean any boss would not be able to balance revenue versus the human concept of fear. Talking to an employee who did not report to work on the said day she answered the million dollar question as to why she did not report to work. She said, “my daily wage of six hundred pesos would not be able to compensate if something happens to my family”. This is indeed a position worth talking about but one that was answered by some centers.

We know by now that the earthquakes (plural) that happened on the 6^th of February caused some centers to have a high absence rate on that day, some on a skeletal form and yet some shut down. In Ayala for example a big call center housed in Cebu IT tower, employees were asked or did not go to the office. The center shut down. On the same building another center suffered the same situation or was forced to shut down due to the situation that was apparently posing as a standing block. A rumor has it also that some centers have the same fate located in Mango Ave and I.T. Park. This is based on my knowledge and I would love to be corrected if ever there is a need.

On the night of Feb 06 though, a remarkable call center was operating at 95% of its employees. In fact, they were the ONLY center operating in Cebu IT Tower. If ever there are other entities in that building they are not able to match the rate that this center had. Their attendance was almost as perfect as possible. It was another day in the office for the agents working for the center. They may not have the same perks offered by a call center in IT park that considered the day’s work as overtime and of course with a different rate. But these people for the company named EBUSINESS BPO INC was there. The employees were there for no other reason but because they wanted to work. With the permission of the owners of the center, I asked an agent as to why she reported to work. She said, “if I don’t go to work, who will answer the phone? Who will help our customers?” Having said so, I talked to their Business Development Officer as to the reaction of their clients. He simply said, “they were amazed with our agent’s dedication.”

Dedication, a word that is hard to get by these days. It is so because a Filipino employee has a lot of centers as an option. So if, he/she does not like the current that he/she works with. He or She can go somewhere else and be accepted by another. With such situation people can leave an organization or company if they would like to do so. In addition, on such day when the populace of Cebu were in great fear and turmoil it was understood if they would not be able report to work – humanely speaking. Thus making the action of being able to work and make the center operate is indeed a show of dedication to the company. There are other call center agents who reported to work on the said day but I would like to commend that EBUSINESS BPO was able to operate properly because of its dedicated employees. Kudos!

EBUSINESS BPO INC. has proven herself that she can support the needs of her clients. A kind of support at a rate beyond normal circumstances. February six, two thousand twelve marked that day as an example of this center’s DEDICATION. So if I am a client considering centers to handle my account, I would say that this center has an A+. I am just making a comment and not advertising.