Customer Relationshiop Managers (CRM's)... - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

tonyko1 · 08-18-2012, 08:00 PM

Hello all,

I have been a happy 2012 2SS/RS vert owner since May, 2012.

Not sure if I am happy that I didn't find this forum before I bought my car, especially the "vert section/forum".

Having stated that, going through the threads by many, often the same issue but by different people, over and over, reminds me of my time as a Customer Relationship Manager (CRM) back in 1999-2000. While a decade ago, I fielded so many angry calls about the announcement of the Camaro/Firebird cancellation after the 2002 model, or 35th anniversary car. (and BTW, how the 2012's are truly 45th anniversary cars.......but I digress, GM has bigger problems).

So you all know, unless things have dramatically changed with GM customer service, be advised that said service is "outsourced", no longer a GM function per se. GM does oversee the operation, has GM personnel at the site answering questions and such, but it basically is a bunch of non-car people, let alone GM people, or folks who know anything at all about cars and trucks, let alone the history and legacy of an icon like a Camaro.

I started my "internship" at GM in November, 1999, in Portland, OR, when a huge call center firm named Sitel of Omaha, NE took over the customer service operations from GM. We soon came to call the place SitHELL, as it was a zoo. Four weeks of training was to make you a CRM, yeah, right. There were 19yr old women right out of school fielding calls about lifters making a clacking sound, ha. They were like "yeah whatever".........It was awesome.

The Portland facility had 500 CRM's and 3 GM reps looking over operations and answering technical questions. It was just a slow trainwreck. And one CRM would grant or deny a request by fiat, or how their day was going, not if it was genuinely warranted, or not.

SitHELL finally lost their contract to IBM who then shipped it out to God knows where... I keep hearing people saying they call customer service and get a foreign speaking woman. Well, that is 1/4 th of all of LA, CA, ha. It is the only job they can get, even landscaping eclipses their skill-set.

What does this rant & rave mean? Two things:

1. Document everything, including pictures and time and place and who you talked to, both at the dealer and GM customer service. They will give you an elongated customer service number to refer to when you call and you will always get another person other than the original. That is good and bad, good if your original CRM is a hack, but if your original CRM was good, ask for them to call you back, if they are still working there. The turnover rate there is about 35-40% in a 12month timeframe.

2. Try your best to have the dealer fix it, if you go to the above, you have already burned one bridge.

Finally Brandon of Chevrolet Customer Service is all I wrote about above. So go easy on him, he means well but can only do so much, which is merely document what you are going through. When I was there we were empowered to make buyback decisions but those days are over. I personally authorized a buyback of a 2000 Vette that kept locking the guy INSIDE his car, with the new keyfob that kept reprogramming the signal to feign off thieves. It worked real well on the owner, he had to get out of his car like Batman & Robin, ha.

MS3DALE · 08-18-2012, 09:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tonyko1

So you all know, unless things have dramatically changed with GM customer service, be advised that said service is "outsourced", no longer a GM function per se. GM does oversee the operation, has GM personnel at the site answering questions and such, but it basically is a bunch of non-car people, let alone GM people, or folks who know anything at all about cars and trucks, let alone the history and legacy of an icon like a Camaro.

This part is so true,and has been for a long time now,I'm the parts manager at a GM dealer,I've worked at GM dealerships since 1990.
I love whenever the "Chevrolet customer assistance center" calls us to ask a question about where a part is that has been backordered for a customer but isn't in yet,they ask what the status is (IE-when will it arrive) I tell them..."you tell me,your GM" (knowing full well that they are NOT GM,but rather a third party call center)
I love that they then "dance around" my comment and say..."we don't have access to that information",I then say..."what? but your GM?"
Only then do they admit that they are not GM "per-se",but rather a call center for them.
I always suggest to customers that are having issues,to let us handle it and take care of them if we can.
One other thing I will add....I HATE that they talk to us like they are reading from a script

DON'T talk to me that way,talk to me in a normal conversation please,I deserve that kind of respect

Cam2011 · 08-18-2012, 10:15 PM

They may not be car people, but the three or so times I had to call with some issues I will say that they did a great job, followed through, returned calls, and helped me in rectifying a few issues.

Now if only GM could do something about some of their crappy dealerships, no worries though, now I have a relationship with a dealership I trust (I know the service manager personally).

08-18-2012, 08:00 PM	#1
tonyko1 Banned Drives: 2012 Camaro 2SS/RS Convertible, IBM Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Oregon Posts: 1,015	Customer Relationshiop Managers (CRM's)... Hello all, I have been a happy 2012 2SS/RS vert owner since May, 2012. Not sure if I am happy that I didn't find this forum before I bought my car, especially the "vert section/forum". Having stated that, going through the threads by many, often the same issue but by different people, over and over, reminds me of my time as a Customer Relationship Manager (CRM) back in 1999-2000. While a decade ago, I fielded so many angry calls about the announcement of the Camaro/Firebird cancellation after the 2002 model, or 35th anniversary car. (and BTW, how the 2012's are truly 45th anniversary cars.......but I digress, GM has bigger problems). So you all know, unless things have dramatically changed with GM customer service, be advised that said service is "outsourced", no longer a GM function per se. GM does oversee the operation, has GM personnel at the site answering questions and such, but it basically is a bunch of non-car people, let alone GM people, or folks who know anything at all about cars and trucks, let alone the history and legacy of an icon like a Camaro. I started my "internship" at GM in November, 1999, in Portland, OR, when a huge call center firm named Sitel of Omaha, NE took over the customer service operations from GM. We soon came to call the place SitHELL, as it was a zoo. Four weeks of training was to make you a CRM, yeah, right. There were 19yr old women right out of school fielding calls about lifters making a clacking sound, ha. They were like "yeah whatever".........It was awesome. The Portland facility had 500 CRM's and 3 GM reps looking over operations and answering technical questions. It was just a slow trainwreck. And one CRM would grant or deny a request by fiat, or how their day was going, not if it was genuinely warranted, or not. SitHELL finally lost their contract to IBM who then shipped it out to God knows where... I keep hearing people saying they call customer service and get a foreign speaking woman. Well, that is 1/4 th of all of LA, CA, ha. It is the only job they can get, even landscaping eclipses their skill-set. What does this rant & rave mean? Two things: 1. Document everything, including pictures and time and place and who you talked to, both at the dealer and GM customer service. They will give you an elongated customer service number to refer to when you call and you will always get another person other than the original. That is good and bad, good if your original CRM is a hack, but if your original CRM was good, ask for them to call you back, if they are still working there. The turnover rate there is about 35-40% in a 12month timeframe. 2. Try your best to have the dealer fix it, if you go to the above, you have already burned one bridge. Finally Brandon of Chevrolet Customer Service is all I wrote about above. So go easy on him, he means well but can only do so much, which is merely document what you are going through. When I was there we were empowered to make buyback decisions but those days are over. I personally authorized a buyback of a 2000 Vette that kept locking the guy INSIDE his car, with the new keyfob that kept reprogramming the signal to feign off thieves. It worked real well on the owner, he had to get out of his car like Batman & Robin, ha.

08-18-2012, 10:15 PM	#3
Cam2011 Drives: 2011 Camaro 2SS/RS Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: CT Posts: 2,061	They may not be car people, but the three or so times I had to call with some issues I will say that they did a great job, followed through, returned calls, and helped me in rectifying a few issues. Now if only GM could do something about some of their crappy dealerships, no worries though, now I have a relationship with a dealership I trust (I know the service manager personally).