Synopses & Reviews
The global developments in Information Technology Enabled Services have transformed customer service encounters which were until recently face-to-face. Major business areas of healthcare, insurance, banking and media are increasingly moving their customer processes to call centres, web based interaction, and email. ITES is set for explosive growth over the next decade, alongside being increasingly outsourced to non-English speaking destinations. The need for good English language communication skills is becoming ever more acute.This book looks closely at interactive communication in customer-facing services, featuring the voices of both academics and those in industry. It aims to integrate the work of applied linguists, teachers, trainers and businesses. After an initial discussion on the value of research to applied training, the major issues of ITES communications are addressed with either an academic analysis being followed by a training example derived from it, or with an analysis of a workplace problem followed by a research-based solution proposal. This volume should appeal to a wide readership in academic, business training and HR departments.
Synopsis
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Table of Contents
Notes on Contributors
Part I: Current Issues in English Communication in the Globalized Workplace 1. Introduction, Gail Forey (Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong) and Jane Lockwood (The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong) 2. English in Tiers in the Workplace: A case Study of Email Usage, Li Lan (Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong) and Lucy MacGregor (University of Leeds, UK) 3. English as a Key Resource to Business and Development, Catherine Nickerson (Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, India) 4. Communication Skills in Contemporary Service Workplaces: Some Problems, Anna Kristina Hultgren and Deborah Cameron (University of Oxford, UK)
Part II: Managing the Telephone Relationship with the Customer: Interpersonal Complexity 5. "I was so angry. It was unbelievable..." A Comparison of Written and Spoken Customer Service Complaints, Jon S. Y. Hui (City University of Hong Kong) 6. Naming and Negotiating Relationships in Call Centre Talk, Susan Hood (University of Technology, Sydney, Australia) 7. Call Centre Discourse: Graduation in Relation to Voice Quality and Attitudinal Profile, Jenny Yau Ni Wan (Hong Kong Polytechnic University) 8. Researching and Understanding Accent Shifts in Indian Call Centre Agents, Claire Cowie (University of Edinburgh, UK) and Lalita Murty (University of York, UK)
Part III: Language, Culture and Training in the Globalized Workplace9. Talking About Talking: Comparing the Approaches of Intercultural Trainers and Language Teachers, Jane Hayman (International Consultants Centre, Melbourne, Australia) 10. Reconceptualizing Culture for Workplace Communication, Neil Elias (Neil Elias, Logica (Philippines) Inc.) 11 India Rising: The Need for Two Way Training, Barry Tomalin (International House, London) 12. Call Center Training and Language in the Philippines, Eric Friginal (Georgia State University, USA) 13. What Causes Communication Breakdown in the Call Centres? The Discrepancies in the Communications Training and Research, Jane Lockwood (The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong)
Part IV: Communication Skills: Assessment and its Uses14. Consulting Assessment for the Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) Industry in the Philippines, Jane Lockwood (The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong) 15. Language Assessment in Call Centres: The Case of the Customer Service Representative, Alan Davies (University of Edinburgh, UK)
Part V: Beyond the Workplace: Social Implications16. Language Globalization and the Workplace: Education and Social Implications, Gail Forey (Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong) Index