Among the unrelenting crises and accusations of corruption that seem to fill the newspapers every day, the article in the url below caught my eye. Not only is it, unusually, a good news story, but it profiles a job I didn't realize existed:
"For 12 years now, Anita Pires has been working at the call centre for Camelot, the company that runs the UK's national lottery. She is one of a staff of 30 who answer calls from potential lottery winners, checking their numbers for prizes that range from £5 to the multi-millions. … According to a 2016 report, more than 700,000 people in the UK are employed by call centres. The work is often tough: it can be a difficult mix of monotony, stress and the emotional labour of staying friendly for hour upon hour of calls. But for a few call-centre employees such as Pires, the work is pure joy."
What comes across in the article is that, if anything, the people making these good news calls seem to get as much out of the exchange as those receiving them:
"The next step in the lottery process for major winners – anything over £50,000 – is to be referred to a winners' adviser; a team of seven who speak to the winners and then visit them to ensure the cash transfer. … Katie Garrett has been an adviser for almost 10 years. 'Ever since I started I've been bowled over by the difference this news we share makes to people's lives,' she says, 'I remember one 20-year-old who won £50,000 and who was about to be kicked out of his flat with his mum because she had been made redundant. This money changed everything. No two winners are the same and I always get that warm, fuzzy feeling when I get to speak to them.'"
"For 12 years now, Anita Pires has been working at the call centre for Camelot, the company that runs the UK's national lottery. She is one of a staff of 30 who answer calls from potential lottery winners, checking their numbers for prizes that range from £5 to the multi-millions. … According to a 2016 report, more than 700,000 people in the UK are employed by call centres. The work is often tough: it can be a difficult mix of monotony, stress and the emotional labour of staying friendly for hour upon hour of calls. But for a few call-centre employees such as Pires, the work is pure joy."
What comes across in the article is that, if anything, the people making these good news calls seem to get as much out of the exchange as those receiving them:
"The next step in the lottery process for major winners – anything over £50,000 – is to be referred to a winners' adviser; a team of seven who speak to the winners and then visit them to ensure the cash transfer. … Katie Garrett has been an adviser for almost 10 years. 'Ever since I started I've been bowled over by the difference this news we share makes to people's lives,' she says, 'I remember one 20-year-old who won £50,000 and who was about to be kicked out of his flat with his mum because she had been made redundant. This money changed everything. No two winners are the same and I always get that warm, fuzzy feeling when I get to speak to them.'"
The article lists several of these jobs that involve people calling others to give them news that will transform their lives (almost always for the better). Whether it is lottery winnings or exam results or a major lifetime achievement, such as the Nobel Prize, the sense of responsibility and wonderment among the people who get to inform the winners of the news is consistent:
"Michael Kelleher has been the director of the Windham Campbell prize, one of the largest literary awards, since its inception in 2013 and has called each of the annual winners to share the news that they have won $165,000. … When Kelleher does manage to convince a writer of his authenticity, 'people are always speechless,' he says. 'One winner burst into tears – his phone was going to be cut off the following day because he couldn't afford the bill. We really saved him and had a huge impact in allowing him to keep practising his art.' Kelleher has made the call many times but still finds it nerve-racking. 'If anything, I get more nervous now,' he says, 'because I know how much it means to people and how life-changing the acclaim and the money can be. It's a job I never take for granted.'"
It seems clear that these people take great pride in what they do, but also find it immensely fulfilling:
"One of the most momentous cold-calling tasks each year is undertaken by Göran K Hansson, who, as secretary general of the Royal Swedish Academy, informs Nobel prizewinners of their triumph. He has made the call to 44 laureates in the past 10 years. … Hansson says he feels genuine elation in being able to pass on such career-defining news. … 'All I do in my work now is make people happy – how many people can say that? You form a special bond with that person, even though it is through a phone call, and with many of them we become good friends afterwards.'"
The article reminded me of research that shows the uplifting benefits of spreading joy in the world. For example, I remember reading about an experiment where people were given a small amount of money, say $20, and asked to either spend it or donate it, and were then asked later about issues like wellbeing or self-esteem. The results revealed that people who had given the money away scored much higher on such metrics than those who had spent the money on themselves. The article also reminded me of research on firefighters, for whom working on holidays to serve the community (sacrificing the time with their families) was something core to their identity in which they took great pride.
These anecdotes reinforce in me the idea that those who find specific meaning in their jobs are more likely to be happier and more productive than those who don't see the point of what they are doing. Which, of course, is why firms should strive to build and sustain such purpose. I remember an ad by GE a few years ago where the people who made the jet engines for the Boeing Dreamliner plane were taken to the inaugural launch to reinforce the essential role they had played in the process – a role they may lose sight of if they just remain in the factory focusing on their specific task. Here is a similar ad for employees who made the engines for a new 747 (https://youtu.be/z9SnDrUhZxQ).
Take care
David
David Chandler
© Sage Publications, 2020
Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: http://studysites.sagepub.comstudy.sagepub.com/chandler5e
From the lottery to Nobel prize: Meet workers who make life-changing phone calls
By Ammar Kalia
August 18, 2019
The Guardian
