nanog mailing list archives
Re: Bad Support Bots
From: William Hamilton <bill () edisys co uk>
Date: Fri, 15 Jan 2010 17:01:54 +0000
On 15/01/2010 16:57, Michael Thomas wrote:
The difference is that nobody wants to "talk" to a robot when they're the victim of a false positive which is causing business impacting interruption. A robot is not empowered to go beyond its instructions, and if it's programmed either wrong or with inadequate nuance, there is no escalation.
Sure, and that's understandable.
Let's not forget that IVR mazes and their modern day counterparts have been built in large part not to resolve problems but to reduce the cost of "support" by expensive human automatons to the point that it's often incidental if they actually solve problems. This is not a well kept secret, and when you're trapped by one especially when it's produced a crisis, its rather disingenuous and maddening for the IVR's keeper to cop attitude. A much better approach -- assuming that the goal is actually to resolve problems rather than shield resources -- is to at least make the escalation process transparent. Knowing what you have to do in order to get ahold of some of something empowered to resolve problems is a lot better than a robot telling you to take the next turn in a twisty maze.
I agree it's perhaps not clear how to get hold of a human, but you can't really argue that it's not clear how to progress the issue in general as the message quite clearly tells you to respond if you wish for it to be re-opened.
I can't accept that the instructions that the bot provided were unclear, but can organisations in general (again, not SORBS-specific) do better when dealing with their "customers"?
Absolutely. B
Current thread:
- Re: SORBS on autopilot?, (continued)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? Ronald Cotoni (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? Michelle Sullivan (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? Brian Keefer (Jan 11)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? gordon b slater (Jan 11)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? Michelle Sullivan (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? William Herrin (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? William Hamilton (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? William Herrin (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? Larry Sheldon (Jan 15)
- Bad Support Bots (was: SORBS on autopilot?) Michael Thomas (Jan 15)
- Re: Bad Support Bots William Hamilton (Jan 15)
- Re: Bad Support Bots Michael Thomas (Jan 15)
- Re: excessive automation bmanning (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? William Herrin (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? paul (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? Michelle Sullivan (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? paul (Jan 15)
- Re: SORBS on autopilot? Michelle Sullivan (Jan 15)