For those not familiar with the term “Radio Sport”, it is
the Amateur Radio activity of contacting as many other stations as possible in
a set period of time. This contest
activity involves being able to hear distant stations through noise and
interference, as well as exchanging a precise set of information with the other
station. The exchange of information
must be exact with no mistakes and no misunderstandings. The information is logged for future
reference to be submitted to the sponsoring organization for points. Points are for bragging rights, and the sense
of accomplishment for success. The proficiency
is good practice in the event of supporting communications during an actual
emergency.
In the field of Technical Support, it is important to be brief,
but friendly, and always precise. In the
heat of the moment flowery language is not appropriate, sticking to the subject
with a balance of courtesy is essential.
The skills I learned in Radio Contesting apply well to situations where asking
the right questions without being misunderstood is of primary importance. The client requesting assistance is sometimes
flustered or panicked. Letting them know
you are listening to their problems and calmly providing answers puts the
client’s mind at ease.
Speaking on the telephone with a client while they are in a noisy
equipment room, is not significantly difficult in comparison to a radio conversation
on single sideband with other conversations a few kilohertz up or down the band
bleeding into your own conversation. It
does require a good ear for a person’s voice.
Sometimes during a tech support phone call, the person on the other end
of the conversation may have an accent.
This is commonplace in radio when speaking with radio operators from
around the world. Getting the questions
and answers accurately exchanged when trying to repair equipment using technical
terms can be a challenge. This is where
using the International Phonetic Alphabet to spell things out becomes a great
tool to ensure accuracy. If a part or
model number is confused it could mean sending the wrong replacement to the
client. Misinterpretations resulting in confusion
and delay are not acceptable when a client’s investment is in question. One should not be afraid to ask the person to
repeat themselves or ask them to explain something using different words. Repeating what you have heard is also a good
tool to confirm that the message is received without error or misunderstanding. This practice is commonplace in radio
conversations where noise and interference can often lead to misunderstandings. Being a parrot provides this crosscheck of accurate
information.
In radio conversations the conditions of the band are
usually called to blame for any misunderstandings that may arise, whether that
is the actual cause or not. The person’s
equipment on the other side of the conversation is not called into question, because
that would be confrontational. The same
goes for Technical Support, in that blame is not placed. Avoiding overuse of the word “YOU” keeps the situation
from becoming personal. Always refer to
the problem as a technical task to be overcome, and never succumb to emotional
responses when conversations turn away from objective conversation. My mentor would always say, “They can’t argue
with the science.” If the support
engineer remains objective with an attitude of solving the problem logically,
the person requesting help usually responses with an attitude of gratitude.
When time allows establish a good rapport with the person at
the other end of the conversation. Letting
them know something about you, or listening to something about them, goes a
long way to keeping the conversation friendly.
Listening before speaking goes a long way to let them know they have your
attention and best interests in mind.
As it is done in radio the conversation is ended with a word
of thanks and good wishes. Express your
gratitude for their patience while working through the problem. Apologize when required and stick to the
science.
This is Eric N3FIX.
73
