Whenever I see signs that say “Start your call center career with us”, I smirk and wonder about the truth of such words. That was before. Now, I am of a different opinion. Why? Because I became part of the world I never thought I would be part of and I came to know all about this industry.
I used to know this industry as the call center industry, but now that I’m part of it, the more accurate term is BPO or Business Process Outsourcing Industry. I have come to realized that in this time of economic crisis, it is one of the most stable and fastest growing industry. More and more companies are outsourcing their customer services in order to focus more on their products and services and thus increase their profit margins. Thus the boom of BPO companies. And contrary to my former opinion, a career is indeed possible in such an industry for one cannot remain an agent for long. One must not remain an agent for long. Especially since there are a lot of promotion possibilities present.
Yet the downsides are indeed true. There’s the graveyard shift and the heavily smoking culture. But looking pass these, the opportunities are countless.
Enough for the introduction. The purpose of this blog is to update everyone who’s wondering where I am now.
I am a Technical Support Representative for McAfee under a BPO company – Sutherland Global Services and am now based in Camarines Sur. Technical support is quite a challenge and is very different from some of the usual forms of customer service. My responsibility is basically to provide troubleshooting steps to customers with regard to their McAfee softwares. And troubleshooting is mostly a free-flowing thing. It is not something that can be contained in a script. So basic skills necessary are the ability to probe, to listen carefully and to issue correct resolutions.
And since this is a technical account, I was trained on technical stuff. Imagine me, a Biology major, pursuing a technical job. Complete opposites right? But I managed. And now I am thinking of actually pursuing this job to become a Technical Foundation trainer. That means more studies in my part when it comes to techie stuff for after all technology is constantly evolving.
I never imagined in my life that I would go back to my province and pursue a career here. But here I am. I’m actually glad that Cam. Sur has a booming economy and as thus there are a lot of career opportunities here. What I like most about working in the province is the complete difference of the experience from working in Manila. There is no rush hour or heavy traffic or pollution. We have shuttle services to and from the city. Our site is located beside rice fields and we are constantly treated to fresh air and bird calls whenever we go out of the building.
The sight is also something. Imagine passing by rice fields on the way to work. Or seeing the majestic Mount Isarog whenever one goes outside the building. It is really a far cry from the sights I am used to in Manila.
And of course, here in the province, the lifestyle is much much simpler. Stores are closed by 8pm and by 10pm restaurants are closing. Well with the exception of a certain party strip where night people can have time to party. For the past few weeks I caught the 6am shuttle to work (my shift was 7am-3pm) and imagine the early morning scene of the city. It is already 6am but still the number of vehicles are quite few. In Philcoa, 6am is a pretty busy time for traffic. But here, the roads are almost clear.
Everyday, I am constantly surprised by the changes in the scenery of my life now. Everything is really very different.
Well I guess this is life. You never know what’s in store for you. You just have to believe that there is a perfect and wonderful plan for you.
