Automation

MAN V MACHINE

The technological revolution is here and according to Moore's Law, it's doubling in power, improving and evolving at an increasingly faster rate.

Never before in history have we seen such a transformation to our lives like those experienced with the current technological advances in computerisation - particularly over the last few years. 

Rise Of The Super Computers

Human beings are essentially themselves just biological computers and although the human brain is the most complex/advanced organism in the known universe - it will struggle to retain that crown for much longer. 

A singularity - the point at which our computers will pass humans to become the most advanced and intelligent beings in the universe - is projected to arrive in the not too distant future according to Ray Kurzweil, futurist and author of an interesting book on the possibilities to enhance humans and challenges this will face our future generations.

And so, should we manage to avoid destroying the planet and/or ourselves in the meantime, how will we cope with some of the immediate effects shown in the above video? Self driving cars are already here - albeit in the early stages, but essentially doing a job that millions will lose when the technology irons out those minor glitches, could throw the world into economical melt down. 

We're going to need to adapt fast. Many manual jobs have already been replaced by machines, but if human creativity can even be mimicked and automated too, where does it leave us with work? Just as utilising the horse for transport has long since been replaced with the combustion engine, we will be obsolete in many more ways. 

The Human Aspect

There will still be a need for social interaction/empathy and the human touch and that's where the bulk of the work will be available. Anything that still requires the human element, ie. meaningful connections with other human beings in a genuine, heartfelt and sympathetic way, will still be required, and in even greater demand.

Thus, as computers get better at processing big data, faster at dealing with complex processing and number crunching. it will be the skills of the sympathetic human beings offering their encouragement and support to all those who have become broken trying in vein to keep up. So, it stands to reason, that if we want to future proof ourselves, this will be the greatest commodity for us to master for greatly benefitting ourselves and the future generations to come.

Customer Services

GETTING WHAT YOU WANT

Angry, feeling let down or needing to vent about an injustice that has befallen on you? Customer service numbers are set up for the very purpose of dealing with any complaints we may have and to keep the customer happy. 

Turning On The Charm

Some poor soul's daily job, is to deal with a barrage of disgruntled customers that in some way believe they've received a poor service on some level or other. Out of the many people calling to voice their dissatisfaction, not one person is going to phone up and in a friendly voice say, 'I just wanted to tell you how pleased I am with your company's service/product'. It's unlikely that, in their haste to scorn the internet provider/phone network (or whatever they are angry about) service, very few will consider enquiring about the other person's welfare or what they plan for the weekend.

So, if you want to be in the tiny percentage of customers who recognise that another human being is on the other end of the phone / in the store / just doing a job to pay the bills, etc....be civil and nice. Make banter, get their name and start off the conversation with some friendly chit chat - followed by 'I apologise for what follows, as I've got a bit of a gripe about the product/service and I know it's not your fault'. See how much better the result is if you make it much easier for the other person to like and actually want to help you get a good result. 

A lot of these centres are measured on customer feedback - often with bonuses on positive outcomes. They are the ambassadors for the company after all. If they can offer a solution to retain a customer - and even encourage that customer to praise the service in a survey (they normally ask how likely you are to recommend to a family/friend) - they get job satisfaction and we get a good result. 

I have managed to turn around quite a few situations to my favour by being charming. With banks and mobile phone customer services complaints, I've even managed to get money back, bills reduced and extra benefits thrown in. Often too - the call had gone so well that I've even managed to get direct extension numbers and email addresses not usually given out to the general public, all making future customer service enquiries even easier to deal with. 

The bottom line is...remember to pull in your emotions. Detach yourself from the issue and connect with the person on the other end of a phone. Job satisfaction is the biggest motivator in any place of work. Give yourself the best chance of success by encouraging others to deliver and therefore allow both parties to get what they want with a satisfying smile at the end of the call.