Please be patient

Something I constantly whine about is the application of modern technologies that result in a less effective end product.

A previous example of this has been my tirade against how electronic payment in parking garages has made exiting shopping malls a nightmare.

This past week, a new technology quirk has been getting my goat. Companies have been jumping to get themselves the bleedingest-edge telephone systems installed, with the end result that it`s virtually impossible to leave a decent message or get hold of anyone these days.

A large South African IT company that employs hundreds of people across a number of different buildings has only one telephone reception desk.

Of course, it makes sense to only have to call one number to get in touch with this company, but the fact that you cannot talk sense to the receptionist about the location of anyone else in that company makes the whole experience a little complicated.

I was trying to get hold of someone in marketing. When transferred to her extension, I rang through to her voicemail, which informed me that she would be away until 14 February.

Needing to get hold of someone sooner than that, I called reception back. They consulted all sorts of employee lists to try and find the name of someone else in marketing and then put me through again. Another voicemail.

I left a message, then called reception back and asked if there was some sort of marketing assistant I could speak to, with whom I could leave my message. They suggested the first person I had been trying to get hold of. When I pointed out that that person would be away until 14 February, they again suggested the second person.

I left the receptionist alone. Over the course of three days, I left messages on voicemail for the second person, but received no response. Eventually, she called me back and told me that she had been on a three-day conference.

Which brings me to my point. It would have made a lot more sense for there to be a marketing assistant who knew the whereabouts of the various people in her department.

It could have saved me a lot of frantic message leaving if someone had been able to intelligently comment on the whereabouts of any of the people I was trying to get hold of.

Answering a phone doesn`t require a diploma in anything.

Georgina Guedes, editor, ITWeb Brainstorm

No receptionist will ever be able to keep track of the functioning of a corporation that has more than 50 people. It`s just not possible.

Instead of trying to make voicemail a suitable alternative for human contact with an intelligent person, companies should create reception organograms so that when a department is gutted by a two-day conference, someone is responsible for dealing with calls.

This is not difficult. Answering a phone doesn`t require a diploma in anything. Anyone who has ever worked for a small company has had their turn in answering and routing calls.

And since your reception area, be it physical or telephonic, is your first point of contact with anyone who has any dealings with your company, it makes a lot of sense that these people are not fobbed off on some irritating voicemail network.