Regarding our compensation issues, it seems to me that the higher ups in the company aren't sure exactly what we handle on a daily basis as compared to our competitors. The company that I hear most about is [Competitor] and that is the only one I can speak on based on personal knowledge. [Competitor]'s Tier 1 tech support is paid $12.xx per hour during training and then they receive a $1 raise upon completion of training. [Competitor]'s support consists of having customers reboot equipment, basic (and I want to stress basic) troubleshooting and setting up of email accounts. Additionally, they do basic troubleshooting on their video service. I know this because I have a friend that works for [Competitor] Tier 1 tech support and I have, on many occasions, considered going from [My Company] to [Competitor] due solely to the pay differential. Our technical support representatives in the Customer Support Center on a daily basis will troubleshoot dialup connections, ISDN, ADSL, SDSL, T1, Video Service and Phone service. The internet connection troubleshooting is complex because of the many types of software and troubles that have to be addressed. Anything from the inability to access any websites, certain websites, e-mail, certain e-mail, etc. Additionally, in the recent years, the increasing numbers of customers who have problems with popups (Spyware & Adware) and viruses has increased substantially. In an effort to assure the customers that the reason that they're having these issues is not caused by the ISP, we have to often times go above and beyond what a normal support representative would do because we stay on the phone with the customer to make sure that their computers are free of any viruses and spyware and that they're completely happy with their internet service, even though we know that the problem is not because of their internet connection.

That's just the internet side, we also now are supporting phone calls, helping customers with dial tone issues, outgoing and incoming call issues, voicemail issues, calling card issues and these issues are both on the ILEC and the CLEC side of things. We have to assure customers that their problems are being handled in a timely manner even though they don't feel they should have to wait 1-2 business days to have their phones repaired.

In addition to the internet and phone support that I've previously mentioned, we now have the addition of a new service, the FiberEdge video package. This is, as everyone knows, a whole new realm in technology for [My Company]. As is with most new technology, there are a lot of bugs that have to be worked out as we go. The customers don't care that there are bugs that have to be worked out. They just want to know why their video service that was working fine before is not working anymore. Of course, since this is a new service and none of our technicians have extensive experience with it, the troubleshooting process takes a lot longer than it would if it were a service that had been around for a while. This makes the customers more irate because they expect prompt service and occasionally there will be a time where the problem takes a bit more research. This will, obviously, get better with time, though.

Now, most of that is not such a big deal because, of course, it is our jobs and we are dedicated to our jobs. What makes things exponentially more difficult is when we have customers calling in that are already irate before we even get on the phone. Often times, these customers are irate over things that we in the CSC do not have first hand control over and the customers do not understand why their problems cannot be handled immediately. Of course, with our extensive customer service skills, we are often times able to explain the situation to the customer and have them calm and understanding before the call is complete, often times that is not the case. It is extremely difficult to have to explain situations to irate customers when we have no control over what is going on or what will be handled other than taking trouble reports and sending them to their respective departments.

Sorry for such a long winded opinion but I feel that this is something of concern to the entire department so I feel that the most detailed explanation is in order. Please don't take this as a rant or a complaint, more of my opinion on why I feel we should be compensated properly. In the 4+ years that I have been with [My Company], the things that I have learned and the friendships I have made have been invaluable. I would simply hate to have to leave such a superb company solely on the issue of lack of adequate compensation if something comes along that makes that a necessity.

Regards,
Jeremy Jouette
Customer Support Specialist