File:Bell telephone magazine (1922) (14569672417).jpg

Identifier: belltelephonevol3132mag00amerrich (find matches)
Title: Bell telephone magazine
Year: 1922 (1920s)
Authors: American Telephone and Telegraph Company American Telephone and Telegraph Company. Information Dept
Subjects: Telephone
Publisher: (New York, American Telephone and Telegraph Co., etc.)
Contributing Library: Prelinger Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Internet Archive

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perators andtheir evening, night, and assistantchief operators. It is a group ofcarefully selected and well trainedwomen, who have come up through the ranks, and are well informed,practical, and experienced. Chief operators have jobs whichrequire executive ability comparableto that needed in running a sizablebusiness. And today, that ability isconfronted with many challengingproblems—among which are equip-ment shortages, and difficulties inmaintaining an adequate and welltrained force. In some localities, unforeseen de-velopments and shortages of stra-tegic materials have temporarily out-stripped the ability to keep up withservice demands. So an inadequatenumber of circuits and switchboardpositions in some offices calls for in-genuity and skill to make the bestuse of what is available. Added to that, there has been avery large number of new employeessince the Korea war, all of whomhave to be trained imder the guid-ance of the chief operators and those The Systems Chief Operators 139
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A Chief Operator talks thi)igs over with a Service Assistant in a typical centraL-ojjice setting of operators., service assistants, and clerk who assist them. These additionsare running currently at about 10,000new operators a month in the BellSystem. While relatively few employeesleave to take other jobs, the quali-ties that make good operators ap-parently make good wives and moth-ers. So marriage and home dutiescause resignations, and the forcesneed constantly to be replenished, aswell as increased to permit the han-dling of an ever rising number of calls. Recruiting and Hiring Applicants In many places, recruiting is a re-sponsibility of the chief operator,and this involves, directly or through her assistants, many discussions withthe force and with the schools—thebest and most productive sources ofapplicants. There may be participa-tion in school Career Days, andvisits to the office from counselors,teachers, and students so that theycan see for themselves what a goodjob telephon

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