BT finds call centre staff 'below par'

Date: 09/01/2012

Companies looking to invest in 0800 numbers and hire call centre staff may be surprised to hear BT has struggled to fill vacancies for phone handlers.

According to the Express and Star, the firm has had more than 1,500 people apply for 300 jobs at its flagship call centre in West Bromwich.

However, the phone giant claims the poor standard of applications has left it with dozens of unfilled posts.

It is understood to have so far only recruited 54 individuals for its customer advisor positions.

Fred Lynch, of Transform Sandwell – a branch of Sandwell Council which is partnered with BT - said: "We are not yet seeing a strong pipeline of candidates. The pre-Christmas recruitment slowed and, despite the quantity of applicants, we are not getting the quality of candidates we require."

The news comes after it was recently reported Manchester Airport intends to teach its call centre employees to speak with a Mancunian accent in order to provide customers with an authentic local experience.