Are the Wrong People Answering Your Phones?

I recently read a post by Call Center Gal about person who wanted to work in a call center, but didn't want to answer the phone. Gal did a nice job of referring the person to non-phone tasks (e-mail, webchat), but it got me thinking about so many Customer Service Representatives I've met through the years who should really find another job. CSRs who tell me things like:

• "I'm not here to serve the customers, the customers should be ready with what I need from them."
• "Our customers are all idiots."
• "I hate answering the phones."
• "I don't give a _____ about the customer."
• "I'd give better service if the customers weren't so stupid."

What is even more surprising to me than the fact that these people remain in jobs that they clearly hate, is why employers would want them as the first impression the company delivers to a customer. Too often companies put up with employees who are ill-fit for the task because they believe they have no choice. Rarely do I find a company who calculates the cost of having the wrong person talking to their customers.

Creative Commons photo courtesy of Flickr and ewanmcdowall