Devoted to the call center industry, the agents on the phones, and their managers

Using a different name as an agent is pretty standard for outsourced centers.  The most common would be using an American name.  Some people don’t appreciate this.  I understand this completely.  For one, if you happen to get bad customer service, you would like to track the person down to complain to their supervisor.  On the other hand, one can also give a commendation for a job well done.

But, there is a logical reason why outsourced centers do this.

Foreign Sounding Names
Not all names are created equal.  Can you imagine yourself spending a minute just trying to figure out how to articulate the agent’s name?  This is frustrating.  You end up getting a piece of paper trying to spell it.  It also doesn’t stick to your head.  It’s easier if you get a more familiar sounding name.

But, doesn’t this make it more difficult to track them then?  Not really.  The important thing here is that the center ensures the agents use only one name.  In our center, we have the QA team compiles them or sometimes Operations would do so.  We get a list and this is helpful especially if we monitor live calls.  In case an incident happens, we can always go back to the list and check the notes on the system to validate.

So, the next time you call in and think they don’t sound like a “Steve” or “Jackie” because of their heavy accent, don’t be surprised nor there is no need to worry.  The agent is still there to resolve your issue.