Apps, algorithms and AI were supposed to make life more convenient. Instead, they're burning out workers and killing customer experience.
Weekly trips to my grocer's deli counter were a weekly ritual, but tech and greed spoiled the experience before listeria ever did, and it's making everything else miserable, too.
And the cheese! There, behind the glass, were provolone and Swiss and long blocks of yellow and white fromage, proud to be called American — something made from milk of happy cows and not extruded between sheets of sickly cellophane. When I made my choices, the kind man or woman behind the counter would happily hand me the first cuts from the deli slicer for my approval of their taste and thickness.
An appointment, it seemed, was not enough. Like Lucille Ball in the candy factory, the men and women there toiled in vain against time and the work expected of them. This isn’t a complaint letter to customer service, however. It’s more than that. You see, I’ve had this experience in other places, too — little incidents of retail entropy, scattered signs of a system slowly breaking down.
And then there was the to-go order from the shopping mall “Chinese bistro” which was like watching the iceberg can-open the Titanic. And that’s the thing that’s become common in American consumer culture. Too many corporations have turned staffing decisions over to algorithms, as Inc. magazine editor Bill Saporito recently. Companies have set the dials to maximize profits at the cost of customer experience and employee satisfaction. It’s a phenomenon Saporito witnessed at Starbucks, where drink combinations might soon outnumber the stars in the observable universe.
@Mobile Kyle Whitmire Delivery Tech Algorithms AI A.I. Artificial Intelligence Customer Service Curbside Apps Retail Convenience
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Whitmire: Sandy Gaw to lead Houston Public Library SystemSandy Gaw, previously a teacher, principal and assistant superintendent at Houston Independent School District for 31 years, will lead Houston public libraries.
Read more »
Whitmire: COVID meds are the new class divide in AmericaWhat once was free is stupid expensive again.
Read more »
Whitmire’s Independent Review into suspended Houston Police incidents complete, Internal Affairs investigation continuesUnderstaffing was identified as a major issue, particularly in the Special Victims Division and the Major Assault/Family Violence Division, which had high numbers of suspended cases.
Read more »
Whitmire: Alabama Democrats are a party on paper, filed in the nick of timeParty insisted it had ducks in a row, then checked to make sure ducks were in a row (they weren't).
Read more »
Whitmire may need state-level change to arm younger HPD recruitsMayor John Whitmire wants to bring on younger police recruits, but doing so may require going to Austin and changing state law.
Read more »
Whitmire: Alabama Democrats take their toxic mess to the Chicago DNCPetty internal politics has poisoned Alabama's other party.
Read more »