Pontiac Career Management

Archive for the ‘Career Center’ Category

Working in a call center environment can be hurled with so much stress. Call center agents worldwide especially in the Philippines mostly complain this manic behavior which they encounter from their customers. If you ever worked in any call center, stress is always on top of their concerns on how to handle it on a daily basis. Customers, especially the Americans are very hard to deal with. They often display their rudeness to the agents, and unfortunately, racism is typically high.

According to the web, stress is defined as: constraining force or influence: as a: a force exerted when one body or body part presses on, pulls on, pushes against, or tends to compress or twist another body or body part; especially : the intensity of this mutual force commonly expressed in pounds per square inch b: the deformation caused in a body by such a force c: a physical, chemical, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension and may be a factor in disease causation d: a state resulting from a stress; especially : one of bodily or mental tension resulting from factors that tend to alter an existent equilibrium .

In another simple definition, stress is the emotional and physical strain caused by our response to pressure from the outside world. Common stress reactions include tension, irritability, inability to concentrate, and a variety of physical symptoms that include headache and a fast heartbeat.

Many of us are suffering from stress. This can be triggered with a lot of factors in which our job related activity is one of the many causes of this psychological behavior. Call center agents both inbound and outbound services will encounter a lot of insulting comments from their customers. The agents are also berated and questioned their incapacity to give technical solutions demanded by the irate clients. Not contented, the foreign customers will say: “You Filipinos fu**!!”, or, “You Filipinos suck!” This is the reality in the call center and beyond. Though call center employees in the Philippines are receiving attractive benefits, they are bombarded with heavy psychological problems especially stress.

The greater number of unhappy customers that the agents may receive in their 8-hour working period is considered stressful to them. Why? The agents may get tired of taking calls of thinking that the next customer might also have the same scenario with their previous customers.

Interestingly, stress can be given immediate attention in order not to make the situation worst. Many call center companies offer various solution to relieve their agents from stress caused by their angry customers. Facilities like fitness clinic, yoga, sporting room, entertainment room, and massages can help agents overcome stress.

In addition, there are certain reminders to the customer service people to fight stress in order not to affect their job. Handling stress properly can bring progress and change in the landscape of the outsourcing industry in the Philippines. The following tips can help you avoid stress:

* Smile and be happy.

* Don’t take the bad comments personal.

* Don’t involve in an argument.

* Try to fix the problem of the customers.

* Understand the root of the issue

Smile and be happy

Though you can’t see the expression of your customers because of the basis of telephoning system, giving your best smile and happy with the job you have can help you make a difference. Call centers agents are trained to practice their good values and proper phone etiquette especially when talking to the customers. Greet them politely, and listen attentively to their concerns.

Don’t take the bad comments personal

Although customers may sometime attack you too much, remember that they are disappointed to the products and not with you. The customers may need someone to fix the problem because they don’t have the chance to speak in a face-to-face conversation. Most of them have been waiting on the line for almost 30 minutes to one hour which pissed them off. They may throw unnecessary words on you, but as soon as you help them, the situation will change from rough conversation to friendly approach. Being a call center agent, always have the patient in understanding the characteristics of each of the customers they encounter.

Don’t involve in an argument

Never enter in an argument with your customer. Avoid giving your personal opinion telling your customers that they’ve done wrong many times. This will not help solve the customers’ problem; instead this may be the start of having a bad argument which might affect the credentials of the agents. The customers may feel that they are ignorant because of the inappropriate and unfriendly approach. Always think of better response when talking to the customers all the time.

Try to fix the problem of the customers

It is better that when the agents listen to the problem of the customers. The agents must always ready to troubleshoot any inquiry that the customers ask. However, if the agents have a hard time in fixing the problem, they can ask their team leaders or their supervisors for the solution. But before doing that, the agents should ask permission to put them on hold for quick seconds. We are not perfect; we may have the skills in oral communication which needed in call center industry but lack of technical experience in other approaches. Many contact centers set up a separate department that specializes in troubleshooting. When the agents told the customers to call them back make sure that they need to do it in order to avoid disappointment from the customers.

Understand the root of the issue

Understanding the root of the issue will answer the problem of the customers. Don’t be over reacted when the customers expressed their rudeness to the agents. Again, they are not directly mad at the agents but to the product itself. Let the customers talk and relay all the problems to the agents. In return, the agents should listen to it and take down some of the vital points related to the issue. The agent may politely say: “I empathize with you Sir. Don’t worry ‘coz I can help you fixing the problem…” Giving the hope that the problem will be fixed right away can avoid difficulty in arising the stressful situation.

These are few of the friendly tips that may help call center agents overcoming stress in their job. Call center is a unique industry giving a promising career to people worldwide.*

Q. I’m about to graduate High School and I don’t know what I want to be “when I grow up”. Do you think that a career quiz might help me decide?

A. Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! But maybe not for the reasons that you think. You see, as the great Quizmaster, I’ve found one thing to be true: A career quiz, or any quiz for that matter, is always biased towards the thoughts and belief’s of the person who wrote it.

Usually a career quiz is written for entertainment purposes only. Now, if you are calling it a career quiz, but you really mean some sort of standardized occupational guidance test like professional career counsellors and the military use, then those are typically valid assessments of your career capabilities.

However, since you are asking the question here, and I am definitely not a career counsellor, then I’m going to assume that you are talking about your run-of-the-mill career quiz like the type that you find in typical magazines and on a variety of general audience web sites.

So, the reason that I said “Yes, yes, a thousand times yes” is because anything that gets someone thinking about career options is a good thing. A well-written career quiz has the effect of causing you to brainstorm over your career options. What you want to be “when you grow up” may be a moving target for you. Most people evolve as they mature and their goals change. What sounds like a good idea now may be far away from what you will eventually become. However, as I said, a career quiz gets you thinking and that’s a start!

When looking for a career quiz take a good look at the type of questions that are being asked. Remember what I said about the author’s bias earlier? You want to find a career quiz that asks “horizontal” questions rather than “vertical” ones. For example, a horizontal question might be: “Do you enjoy working against deadlines?”, while I vertical question might be “do you prefer the precision of hand tools versus the speed of power tools?”.

Horizontal career quiz questions are designed to explore general career likes and dislikes while “vertical” questions tends to try and shoehorn you into a particular career path. Now don’t get me wrong, there is a place for a vertical career quiz. For example, if you are thinking about a career in woodworking, and you are trying to decide if you want to be a cabinet maker or a house framer, a vertical career quiz is exactly what you need.

The important thing to remember is to never make a career decision based solely upon the results of some career quiz that you happen to come across. If the quiz gets you to thinking that you might enjoy some particular career, then research that option more fully. A career quiz is simply another tool to help you navigate the pathways of life. Good luck!

A culinary arts career is an inviting prospect for many people. For one thing, demand is up, as people’s busy lives cause them to eat out more and more. For another, a culinary education opens up a variety of possible careers, from running the kitchen in a top restaurant to the very desirable option of owning your own business.

But many ask if there really is money to be made in a culinary arts career. Most of us, when we think of cooks, think of the greasy hamburger flippers at the local diner. There is a good reason that those jobs are normally filled with teenage employees, and that’s because anyone with a culinary education and a career plan sets their sights much higher. There are a number of culinary arts careers that offer ambitious folk true earning potential.

Below is a list of eight top culinary arts careers available to those with the appropriate education and experience.

Personal chef

A personal chef typically works in a private home for a private employer. Because of this setup, a personal chef often has more flexibility within his or her work environment, not to mention more creative control over the menu. Full time personal chefs usually earn between $35,000 and $50,000.

Head cook or chef

The head cook or chef is a culinary arts career that many cooks set their sights on. The head chef at a restaurant is generally in charge of developing menu choices and managing a team of cooks. Although the average salary is $34,000 annually, a head chef at a top restaurant can easily make as much as $60,000, or even more.

Restaurant manager

A restaurant manager is in charge of not just the kitchen and its cooks, but also the wait staff. Although a restaurant manager’s salary averages around $50,000 annually, a manager in an upscale restaurant can earn considerably more. However, you should also keep in mind that many managers work long hours with little or no overtime compensation.

Pastry chef

Believe it or not, being a pastry chef is another good culinary arts career. Pastry chefs’ salaries average at about $50,000 annually, although the yearly income is a little less for those who are paid hourly wages.

Executive chef

Executive chefs are primarily found at upscale restaurants, and average around $75,000 annually. However, executive chefs can make as much as $120,000 annually in top restaurants.

Sommelier

A sommelier, also known as a wine steward, is usually present in upscale restaurants. Although a sommelier’s income averages around $60,000, it can sky rocket as high as $150,000.

Wine director

A wine director does much the same thing as a sommelier. The average income for a wine director is $85,000 annually.

World-class chef

World-class chefs are the ones you see and hear about every day. For example, Wolfgang Puck is a world-class chef who is well known for his signature line of convenience foods. World-class chefs can easily make as much as $100,000, but that figure can increase exponentially if you know how to market your signature lines via books, magazines, television, and other media outlets. A world-class chef is the type of culinary arts career that most cooks fantasize about, and many self-employed caterers hope to eventually make a reality.

As you can see, there are many opportunities available for you to find a high paying culinary arts career. Next time you talk about your dreams, and your friends or family say, “There’s no money in that,” rattle off a few of these jobs and see if you can’t change their minds.