A

Anonymous

Question

Do You Want Adobe to Outsource Support Offshore?

Forum|Forum|15 years ago
January 6, 2011
6 replies
2861 views

I had a simple problem in trying to reinstall Adobe Acrobat 8 today. I called support and got a fellow from the Phillipines that can't speak english. I wasted a 1/2 hour just trying to understand him. Also he didn't know anything. He was reading from a script.

I have been an Adobe customer for years and until today I thought they were a great company. Today I have changed my mind. They don't give a damn about their customers, only the bottom line.

I want support for Adobe software from a location in the USA that speaks and undestands english.

Anybody else feel this way?

This topic has been closed for replies.

the_wine_snob

Inspiring

Barb,

All US economic issues aside, I do not really care where the T/S call centers are located.

However, you make good points on the ability and ease of the clients to use the support. It would be helpful if:

The support staff could clearly speak the language of the caller. If they cannot, they should pass the call to one, who can.
The support staff has some clue about the software, and some firsthand knowledge of the programs would be a BIG plus
The support staff should know most of the questions to ask, and be able to instruct the caller on how to obtain that information to answer those
The support staff should enter into each call, knowing that they represent Adobe, and are dealing with people, who make their salary possible
The support staff should be willing to pass a difficult question on to people with more knowledge of the program in question. This is not a slap on them, but should be viewed as helping the caller get the necessary answers, even if they come from someone else.
The support staff should NOT be provided with a canned script to read, as many issues are unique - listen and ask, then offer suggestions for the particular issue

That is what I would like to see. If the T/S person is from New Guinea, I do not care. For me, the ability to speak, and understand US English is what matters. I do not even need for them to speak Mississippian English - general, Midwestern English is fine, and I will just affect a Chicago accent...

Hunt

Claudio González

Legend

Bill,

My son is fully bilingual and works for Oracle. And he surely knows his stuff more than very well. Large clients, mainly from English speaking countries, continuously thank him for both things, not knowing that more often than not my son is not only not at his office, but not even in Santiago when he solves their problems. Problems that are quite a lot more complex than the problems posted in these forums.

A long way of saying that you are right. I feel reasonably certain that in every country you will find people who can give good service and also are fluent in the language in which they have to provide it. Unfortunately, large companies care more for lower costs than for quality of service, and so Adobe pays lower rates by hiring people who may know their stuff, but cannot speak English. And Oracle may soon see my son working in another firm because in the last couple of years he has received no sign showing that good service is appreciated. Sad but true in both cases.

the_wine_snob

Inspiring

Claudio,

In the case of your son, I would hope that things change for the better, and recognition is given. Too few companies see T/S as a "profit center," but in the long run, it can certainly contribute positively to the corporate bottom-line.

Even when there is no language difference, I find people, who only read from a script, to be less than useful in many cases. I encounter this far too often, and always ask to speak to a supervisor, as most do not have that FAQ "script" in front of them. Many corporations have grown so large that they do need a level, or two, of T/S call screening. Many FAQ scripts CAN take care of a lot of the calls, kind of like the FAQ's for the product fora, but when something comes up, beyond the script, the representative should take the initiative to escalate the caller to someone, who CAN likely help. Most of us do that here - we offer the help that we can, and if that does not do it, pass things on to others, with more knowledge of such a problem. I've PM'ed folk, who I think will be better equipped to help a poster, when my knowledge is limited, or my suggestions fail to help. In active fora, there are usually several people, just waiting in the wings to help, so PM's are not needed that often.

Maybe Adobe can make good on the promise to improve things. Based solely on some of the recent reports around here, it DOES seem that Adobe T/S is getting better. I hope that continues. T/S can be so very important, as it is usually the first time that a customer encounters the corporation, beyond installing the program.

Wishing everyone good luck,

Hunt

B

Bullet14398

Participant

When ever possible NO. Americans should put Americans to work. The difference lies in top brass wanting more and more dollars as in GREED and when offshore support is needed to protect the bottom line. Where would we be without all the free Adobe products and free trials? I don't typically have good experiences with off shore IT help, however my last troubleshooter from India was kind, considerate, and knowledgeable.

Phillip M Jones

Inspiring

Actually NO! They should be putting Americans to work improve the economy so that we (as American can afford to buy their products. That problem with US today, they send work overseas , causing American to have to get menial jobs such as working in Fast food industry, or store such as Wal-Mart , K-Mart and such. We are becoming a country of two classes of citizens. Rich and poor. The Middle Class which has been footing the biggest share of Taxes to run the country, is a dying breed.

IF Companies including Adobe. must hire overseas workers they each should be required to teach them English and Diction lesson so that people can understand them

John T Smith

Community Expert

Many or even MOST companies outsource their support operation (had a Frididaire problem recently and wife had a very hard time understanding the people who tried to help but could not speak English very well)

As of this writing, you only have 3 messages (well, 1 + 2 misfire blanks) all here, so for Acrobat help start at http://forums.adobe.com/community/acrobat and ask your questions

mytaxsite

Inspiring

I am very happy with the support I am getting from Adobe whether it is outsourced or not. The problem is Americans, the British and Europeans don't want to do support type work so Adobe and other companies don't have any other options but to find labor overseas who can do the job cost effectively.

Hope this answers your question but please post back with specific query in appropriate forums where somebody will answer it for for you in writing.

Good luck.

Claudio González

Legend

Probably many feel the same, but this is not the forum to discuss such matters. This one is just for discussions on the forums themselves.

John T Smith

Community Expert

Since this was done a LONG time ago, what we users "want" has nothing to do with what IS Adobe's policy

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