pssttt : my SISTER - urmila is in INDIA!!!
I know I haven't been writing as regularly as you would like me to (?).. but my office life is totally crazy!! my current shift start at 3.00 am in the night to 12.00 in the next afternoon.. so thats nine hours of "official" time, Or rather the time the office admits it wants one to be there, but of course there is the pre shift n post shift "meetings"... all impromptu ones at that!
so u have to normally get to office by 2:45 at night... which mean I leave home by 1:30 for a 3:00 shift... and after office, ah this is the best part.. after office since we have "nothing to do" we have meetings, some of which at times go on till 1 ..1:30 or even two in the afternoon... so one gets home by 3 or so... (IF we are lucky!)
so for 5 days a week office eats up from 1:30 in the night to 3:00 in the afternoon the next day my day... 13:30 nearly fourteen hour days!!!
and on some "special" circumstances we are asked to work till 3:00! for no extra pay! ..get home (by 4:30 or so!!)
And today, TODAY - a _SUNDAY_...when I had great big plans of reducing the size of my mail box, visiting my fav blogs, leaving a few comments, finally updating my blog, chattin up friend from afar....ok, ok, I am sure you get the picture! ..8:10 in the morning - on a SUNDAY - i get a call from my team leader asking me to show up in office by 10:00!! - remember i live 1 hour away - at the very least!! - on a SUNDAY!
The unfairness of life!! And though one is getting paid for the "overtime", one doesn't have the option of choosing NOT to come in!! (the dialog from godfather "i'm not a supersitious man... but i have notice something bad always happens to people who cross me!" zipped through to me mind) ...got outta bed, told akka (urmila) bout the change in plans - why change? cause believe it or not, even lowly agents have a life - n other then the delightful activities outlined above a movie was also on the cards - this being my sister's first weekend in the country! (she is here for only TWO!! oh, woe is me!) anyway, swallowing the bitter pill that is life, rushed through my morning abolutions and dragged my sorry ass to office, with water streaming down my back - thanks to my hair still being wet! - got to office lookin like a drowned rat... only to find three, THREE, teams logged in - and NO, as in NONE, not a single solitary call coming in!! with my team leader and coach no where in sight!!! to say that i was bugged would be putting it mildly! ah well, i'm from the lowest rung of this corporate ladder...
man, i tell you... working life sucks. I miss the good ol days when I was paid pocket money simply to go to college!! ;)
which brings us to the topic of today’s title :
A smile across many miles!!
Remember a time when you were in school/college... and got all caught up in the adraline rush of the excitment an upcoming event brings? How you got totally caught up in the crazy rush the event brought out in EVERYONE around you? In India, especially in Bombay - the intercollegiate festival arises a lot of enthu in everyone! Late evening practice sessions, auditions, meetings, what-have-yous... ah, and of-course yours truly was allwwaaayyyysssss in the thick of things!! (oh, for those Mood-Indigo of IIT-B days!! what i wouldn't give to rewind time!!) Can't have lit events (or can i??? hmmm.... well, ammunation for more hair brained notions!!! watch this space for more!) but we can recreate the magic of an 'event'!
So here is the plan, GIFTS!!! :D
Okk, that might require some elucidation...
Does everyone reading this like getting gifts? (thou oughtn't to be nodding thy head, this medium renders me blind to ur reactions, though a resounding YES would be nice though!) And if this gift was sent to you, maybe from a different country, maybe even from a different continent?!?! Sounds exciting?
Whats the catch? ...well, there isn't one... there isn't really a catch.. only you'd have to send one too! (n i for one love sending gifts!!)
How is this different from the age ol barter system you asketh?
...read on!!
1. All interested / sorta interested people mail me at : pramila@gmail.com the following
* Your suggestions (and any questions you may have!) :)
* Your email address you will use to "login" to the site
* Your postal address (don't worry, stalking ain't parta my plan!) ;)
2. Our resident Hi-Tech chappie Nishant will create the site where (we would all need to login ) all the names of the participant would be displayed.
3. Now the crux - We each get to choose _ONE_ person we want to send a gift to, that person wouldn't know who has "choosen" him/her. You can send anythin you like! And get a chance to play "secret santa"! (though i'd like to urge everyone taking part to select people from a different country, if not continent!!)
4. Once everyone has choosen whom them want to send a gift to we will each send out our gift, but wouldn't know from whom, or which country our gift was coming from!!!
Its as simple as that! 1..2...3!! ..oh ok, there is a four, big deal!!
Whetted this idea out with many of you and everyone i spoke with responded positively, with a great deal of enthusiasm i might add! Which leads me to believe this is going to be a success!!
As a foot note, i'd like to mention to "visitors" and first timers here, who might like the idea and want to participate... this kinda event requires a lot of trust and you will appreciate that i couldn't possibly include you in this round of the event, simply cause we (i speak for the blog-ring of my friends n me|) haven't known you long enough. we might have round two a few months, maybe a year later.. incase you decide to stick around till such time, you could then participate!! :)
So heres hoping all my regulars send me a mail stating their acceptance along with the other things requested. It would help if you have a blog, though its not mandatory (and i am willing to extend the invitation to maybe a few of your friends, the ones they are ready to vouch for!)
Advance credits to Hima and Happy who i have ropped into help with the page layout! And to Ellen who loved the idea so much she is gettin her best friend to start a blog, just so that she can participate too!! :)
Warm best wishes to GreyRose who recently said "Heyyy! Pramila! How be u girl? U know I really admire you...ur attitude towards life is awesome...ur my role model girl :-)" ..this from the girl who has moved to a brand new country! Alone!!
Mily mine I do hope you take part n this helps in cheering you up, atleast in some small measure. Hugs to you and lil Matt.
OK,PEOPLE _PLEASE_ SEND ACCEPTANCE EMAILS TO = pramila@gmail.com _WITH_ your postal address
those of you who have stopped by for the first time/aren't regular - never fret - if we are connected by common friends, all you have to do is ask that friend to vouch for ya, n you are in!!! ain't i darlin!! ;)
so act _PHHAASSSTTTT_ (by the same token, regulars can INVITE their trusted friends to join up!) and send me the mail, the site will be going live soon!!
pssttt, applies to even the software head honchos! :)
ANYONE WHO WANTS TO SUGGEST A NAME FOR THE SITE (NOW LOOKIN AT THE RESPONSE WE ARE PLANNING TO _BUY_ WEBSPACE!) PLEASE SEND ME YOUR SUGGESTIONS BY MAIL/IN THE COMMENTS BOX - AND YOU DON'T NEED TO BE PARTICIPATING TO SUGGEST A NAME FOR THE SITE!! SO GET THAT THINKIN CAP ON AND SUGGEST AWAY!
...ramblings of a crazy mind
Sunday, September 19, 2004
Sunday, September 12, 2004
U.S trivia!
Look what happens when a President gets elected in a year with a "0"at the end.
Also notice it goes in increments of 20 years.
1840: William Henry Harrison (died in office)
1860: Abraham Lincoln (assassinated)
1880: James A. Garfield (assassinated)
1900: William McKinley (assassinated)
1920: Warren G. Harding (died in office)
1940: Franklin D. Roosevelt (dies in office)
1960: John F. Kennedy (assassinated)
1980: Ronald Reagan (survived assassination attempt)
2000: George W. Bush ????????????
And to think that we had two guys fighting it out in the
courts to be the one elected in 2000.
You might also be interested in this.
Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846.
John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946.
Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860.
John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960.
Both were particularly concerned with civil rights.
Both wives lost their children while living in the White House.
Both Presidents were shot on a Friday.
Both Presidents were shot in the head.
Now it gets really weird.
Lincoln's secretary was named Kennedy.
Kennedy's Secretary was named Lincoln.
Both were assassinated by Southerners.
Both were succeeded by Southerners named Johnson.
Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln, was born in 1808.
Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was born in 1908.
John Wilkes Booth, who assassinated Lincoln, was born in 1839.
Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Kennedy, was born in 1939.
Both assassins were known by their three names.
Both names are composed of fifteen letters.
Now hang on to your seat.
Lincoln was shot at the theater named 'Ford.'
Kennedy was shot in a car called 'Lincoln' made by 'Ford.'
Booth and Oswald were assassinated before their trials.
And here's the kicker.......
A week before Lincoln was shot, he was in Monroe, Maryland
A week before Kennedy was shot, he was with Marilyn Monroe.
Creepy huh?
Also notice it goes in increments of 20 years.
1840: William Henry Harrison (died in office)
1860: Abraham Lincoln (assassinated)
1880: James A. Garfield (assassinated)
1900: William McKinley (assassinated)
1920: Warren G. Harding (died in office)
1940: Franklin D. Roosevelt (dies in office)
1960: John F. Kennedy (assassinated)
1980: Ronald Reagan (survived assassination attempt)
2000: George W. Bush ????????????
And to think that we had two guys fighting it out in the
courts to be the one elected in 2000.
You might also be interested in this.
Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846.
John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946.
Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860.
John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960.
Both were particularly concerned with civil rights.
Both wives lost their children while living in the White House.
Both Presidents were shot on a Friday.
Both Presidents were shot in the head.
Now it gets really weird.
Lincoln's secretary was named Kennedy.
Kennedy's Secretary was named Lincoln.
Both were assassinated by Southerners.
Both were succeeded by Southerners named Johnson.
Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln, was born in 1808.
Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was born in 1908.
John Wilkes Booth, who assassinated Lincoln, was born in 1839.
Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Kennedy, was born in 1939.
Both assassins were known by their three names.
Both names are composed of fifteen letters.
Now hang on to your seat.
Lincoln was shot at the theater named 'Ford.'
Kennedy was shot in a car called 'Lincoln' made by 'Ford.'
Booth and Oswald were assassinated before their trials.
And here's the kicker.......
A week before Lincoln was shot, he was in Monroe, Maryland
A week before Kennedy was shot, he was with Marilyn Monroe.
Creepy huh?
Sunday, September 05, 2004
I am miffed!!
Why?
Ok I present to you the following lines
“I had to call in 2 days in a row for the same problem. The first day I spoke with a representative who could not resolve my problem and she escalated my call to another techenician who was also unable to help. the second time I called the representative, Ann was able to resolve the issue within a few minutes.”
What would you think were the writer’s feelings towards Ann? Would you say the writer disliked ann / liked ann / or was impressed+liked Ann? – Also bear in mind the person is an irate customer who bothered to note down the name of the representative and specifically mention it in her comment!!!
This is not a pop quiz, nor is some kinda test. Please think carefully and answer. Yes it’s a serious kinda question, eddie! :oP
Most contact centers in the U.S have something called point of service evaluation – POSE or customer satisfaction scores – CSAT scores, for the lay man what this means is how the customer would rate their interaction with the company in question – based on that particular representative’s skills / behaviour. The customer may not be anyone big/famous/important in their own lives..but how they rate the company is veryyy important to the company. and therefore in turn very important to the rep's score card / growth prospects.
The other parameter is the all important AHT. What in the heck is that? Average handling time. How long you spend (waste?) on a call on average. This includes the time you put the customer on hold and the time you take after the call to wrap up the call. To put it simply the total time you are “working” divided with the number of customers you have attended to.
Growth and/or incentives are linked to these two very parameters (and of-course your ass-licking / yes siring abilities!!!) as everyone knows, no one in their right mind wants to be working as a representative. That’s not anyone’s life long dream. It doesn’t take Einstein’s brains to figure out that people who work while the rest of THEIR country sleeps is doing so for the money, for that supreme thing called moolah.
This is why every representative pays a lot of importance to these damn scores. Those who want to “grow” - n thereby get more moolah, also better work, even if its at the same shitty timings.
Ann won't...no more like can't be anyone's yes man (or woman) ...office politics is something ann cannot abide by. she has zero suckin up to superiors ability (??? dunno if i should rightly call them that, they sure ain't her superiors intellect wise).
She dislikes giving her customer's the short end of the stick and sending them off with half baked solution which might lower (ok, no might there, will lower) her AHT but won't keep the customers happy in the long run... so she doesn't pay attention to how long each customer takes.
This leaves her only customer satisfaction, if she harbour any dreams of "growing". And this she achieves without any question. (Its not easy being the only person who hasn't had a single escalated call, ever. in both organisations she has worked.) One of the few to get appreciation calls, with the customer commending the way she works.
So imagine her shock and horror at being told she got a negative rating from one of her customers in front of her whole team. Down cast she accepts her bad luck, but wants to be told what the customer said so that she can improve.. she is stonewalled for over ten days. when she finally conners someone and gets to read the customer's comments, she sees the supposed negative comment “I had to call in 2 days in a row for the same problem. The first day I spoke with a representative who could not resolve my problem and she escalated my call to another techenician who was also unable to help. the second time I called the representative, Ann was able to resolve the issue within a few minutes.”
So once again i ask you, my reader, what do you think were the customer's thoughts about Ann as she penned down the comment?
Baahhh
stumbled onto these quizes thanks to Maeve
You're most like Sleeping Beauty!
You don't need to even be awake to make a man fall for you.
You love a guy who will be your savior and sweep you off your feet.
You may seem innocent, but once you get comfortable with your man anything can happen.
Which Naughty Disney Character Are You?
...we are on a roll here
You are the goddess of knowledge and war.
You are very smart, but you have a hot temper.
Which Greek Goddess Are You?
...ok, last one
You Don't Have a Boyfriend Because You are Too Shy
When a guy gets to know you, he finds a great catch
Problem is... you're too shy for most guys to get to know.
From meeting someone to dating, you usually have your guard up.
And while you're just holding back, it makes you seem like you've got something to hide.
Don't Have a Boyfriend? Want To Know Why?? Take This Quiz :-)
dunno how accurate these quiz findings are, but they were kinda fun!
Dad's health is a little more steady now. He is not in much pain. the chemotherapy has begun. he has finished one entire cycle of it, and has to go through 2 more cycles before another CAT-Scan will be taken, n then the doctors will decide whether the growth has reduced enough to perform the operation on it. am keeping my fingers crossed. please pray for me!!
And in other news.. dad has finally begun a blog of his own!! You can catch daddy at simplypaddy, but remember, you don’t know anything much bout u know what. Keep commenting restricted to whatever he writes bout. He knows I have a blog, but he doesn’t know where it is, or what it is about... n I’d like to keep it that way.
Don’t forget to tell me what you made of the writer’s comments bout Ann.
Ok I present to you the following lines
“I had to call in 2 days in a row for the same problem. The first day I spoke with a representative who could not resolve my problem and she escalated my call to another techenician who was also unable to help. the second time I called the representative, Ann was able to resolve the issue within a few minutes.”
What would you think were the writer’s feelings towards Ann? Would you say the writer disliked ann / liked ann / or was impressed+liked Ann? – Also bear in mind the person is an irate customer who bothered to note down the name of the representative and specifically mention it in her comment!!!
This is not a pop quiz, nor is some kinda test. Please think carefully and answer. Yes it’s a serious kinda question, eddie! :oP
Most contact centers in the U.S have something called point of service evaluation – POSE or customer satisfaction scores – CSAT scores, for the lay man what this means is how the customer would rate their interaction with the company in question – based on that particular representative’s skills / behaviour. The customer may not be anyone big/famous/important in their own lives..but how they rate the company is veryyy important to the company. and therefore in turn very important to the rep's score card / growth prospects.
The other parameter is the all important AHT. What in the heck is that? Average handling time. How long you spend (waste?) on a call on average. This includes the time you put the customer on hold and the time you take after the call to wrap up the call. To put it simply the total time you are “working” divided with the number of customers you have attended to.
Growth and/or incentives are linked to these two very parameters (and of-course your ass-licking / yes siring abilities!!!) as everyone knows, no one in their right mind wants to be working as a representative. That’s not anyone’s life long dream. It doesn’t take Einstein’s brains to figure out that people who work while the rest of THEIR country sleeps is doing so for the money, for that supreme thing called moolah.
This is why every representative pays a lot of importance to these damn scores. Those who want to “grow” - n thereby get more moolah, also better work, even if its at the same shitty timings.
Ann won't...no more like can't be anyone's yes man (or woman) ...office politics is something ann cannot abide by. she has zero suckin up to superiors ability (??? dunno if i should rightly call them that, they sure ain't her superiors intellect wise).
She dislikes giving her customer's the short end of the stick and sending them off with half baked solution which might lower (ok, no might there, will lower) her AHT but won't keep the customers happy in the long run... so she doesn't pay attention to how long each customer takes.
This leaves her only customer satisfaction, if she harbour any dreams of "growing". And this she achieves without any question. (Its not easy being the only person who hasn't had a single escalated call, ever. in both organisations she has worked.) One of the few to get appreciation calls, with the customer commending the way she works.
So imagine her shock and horror at being told she got a negative rating from one of her customers in front of her whole team. Down cast she accepts her bad luck, but wants to be told what the customer said so that she can improve.. she is stonewalled for over ten days. when she finally conners someone and gets to read the customer's comments, she sees the supposed negative comment “I had to call in 2 days in a row for the same problem. The first day I spoke with a representative who could not resolve my problem and she escalated my call to another techenician who was also unable to help. the second time I called the representative, Ann was able to resolve the issue within a few minutes.”
So once again i ask you, my reader, what do you think were the customer's thoughts about Ann as she penned down the comment?
Baahhh
stumbled onto these quizes thanks to Maeve
You Are Sleeping Beauty
You're most like Sleeping Beauty!
You don't need to even be awake to make a man fall for you.
You love a guy who will be your savior and sweep you off your feet.
You may seem innocent, but once you get comfortable with your man anything can happen.
Which Naughty Disney Character Are You?
...we are on a roll here
You are Athena
You are the goddess of knowledge and war.
You are very smart, but you have a hot temper.
Which Greek Goddess Are You?
...ok, last one
You Don't Have a Boyfriend Because You are Too Shy
When a guy gets to know you, he finds a great catch
Problem is... you're too shy for most guys to get to know.
From meeting someone to dating, you usually have your guard up.
And while you're just holding back, it makes you seem like you've got something to hide.
Don't Have a Boyfriend? Want To Know Why?? Take This Quiz :-)
dunno how accurate these quiz findings are, but they were kinda fun!
Dad's health is a little more steady now. He is not in much pain. the chemotherapy has begun. he has finished one entire cycle of it, and has to go through 2 more cycles before another CAT-Scan will be taken, n then the doctors will decide whether the growth has reduced enough to perform the operation on it. am keeping my fingers crossed. please pray for me!!
And in other news.. dad has finally begun a blog of his own!! You can catch daddy at simplypaddy, but remember, you don’t know anything much bout u know what. Keep commenting restricted to whatever he writes bout. He knows I have a blog, but he doesn’t know where it is, or what it is about... n I’d like to keep it that way.
Don’t forget to tell me what you made of the writer’s comments bout Ann.