Not long ago I handed Washington the blue print to stop unwanted robocalls.
“The solution” as I called it followed on the heels of an absolutely woeful senate subcommittee hearing that left me wondering if the folks in Washington knew anything about telecom at all.
One of the major components of the solution was cracking down on offshore calling.
While shifting practices offshore can save money it almost always comes with a decrease in customer experience–plus it reduces visibility into the activities at the call center and makes it far more likely laws will be skirted and consumers will be abused.
Well the FCC seems to be abiding the Czar’s good advice and is now laser focused on limiting the use of offshore call centers by American businesses.
Specifically, Chairman Brendan Carr announced yesterday that the Commission will soon vote on:
- Limiting volume from overseas call centerss;
- Empowering consumers to transfer calls to a U.S.-based location;
- Requiring covered providers to disclose the location of the call center during the customer interaction;
- Requiring workers at overseas call centers to be proficient in American Standard English and otherwise be trained
appropriately for resolving issues with U.S. customers; and - Requiring the use of bonds or tariffs in appropriate circumstances to deter illegal robocalls from offshore call centers.
In Carr’s words:
“Americans get frustrated when they call a U.S. business and end up connecting with a call center
located abroad. Language and communications barriers often make it difficult for callers to promptly
and efficiently get the results they want. And these foreign-based call centers often create a
heightened security risk as well. So the FCC will be voting on several proposals designed to reshore
call center jobs and improve the customer service experience at the ones that remain—including by
seeking comment on requiring call center workers to be proficient in American Standard English. The
FCC will also be opening up a new front in our efforts to block illegal robocalls from abroad by
examining the targeted use of tariffs or bonds.”
In a statement Carr also said:
The over-reliance on foreign call centers is a risk to privacy, data protection, and even national security. Call centers often work with customers’ sensitive payment and account information. Yet, many foreign countries do not impose the same legal protections as the United States. In addition, foreign call centers have contributed to the onslaught of robocalls facing American households and businesses, often leveraging the training and the infrastructure used to operate legitimate call centers to defraud Americans.
Yep.
This all looks good and the Czar is here for it.
Will definitely be discussing with the board and members of Responsible Enterprises Against Consumer Harassment (R.E.A.C.H.) tomorrow to see how industry will respond here. How R.E.A.C.H. lands on this issue could very well help determine the outcome of the FCC proceeding.
And if YOU want a voice in that process it is not too late to join TODAY and still make the critical meetings tomorrow as we hash these issues out!
Chat soon.