• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechT-Mobile

T-Mobile CEO John Legere Wants to Make Customer Service Something People Don’t Hate

By
Jonathan Vanian
Jonathan Vanian
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Jonathan Vanian
Jonathan Vanian
Down Arrow Button Icon
August 15, 2018, 5:59 PM ET

In addition to revolutionizing the wireless industry, T-Mobile CEO John Legere now wants to overhaul customer call centers.

He said Wednesday that he is revamping T-Mobile’s call centers to reduce the hassle of confusing phone trees, chat bots that use canned phrases, and human representatives who seem like they’re out of the loop.

At a glitzy media event in Charleston, S.C., Legere lampooned his larger rivals like Verizon and AT&T. In his opinion, these companies spend billions of dollars to create a “massive digital fortress” between customers and human representatives.

“Instead of investing in avoiding customers, we’re investing in serving customers,” Legere said, taking one of his frequent potshots at rivals.

By carving its call support operations into teams of around 30 to 40 people, with each team responsible for different parts of the country, T-Mobile believes it can better handle customer complaints and reduce frustrations.

“This is a pain point for our customers, but it’s an epidemic that affects all service industries,” Legere told Fortune after the event. “It’s something that they hate.”

As part of the revamped customer support, each of the company’s 17 U.S.-based call centers will have teams in charge of overseeing specific places, like Minnesota or the various regions of large, metropolitan areas like New York City, said Callie Field, the T-Mobile executive vice president of customer care. Additionally, customers will be able to see photos of their customer support staff, in an effort to build a bond between the two parties.

“I truly believe there is no such thing as a bad interaction,” said Legere, even “if you’re interacting with [customers] at their angriest.”

Legere is known as an executive who attempts to push the envelope with marketing and brash proclamations as a way to distinguish T-Mobile from its rivals. The company typically casts itself as an underdog fighting on behalf of upset customers frustrated with confusing data plans and poor call-center service.

Under the new plan, T-Mobile’s specialty call center teams will field calls from 7 am to 9 pm, while its more conventional customer support service staff continue dealing with inquires 24 hours a day. By 2019, the company plans to expand its revamped customer support service to 24 hours each day, with workers in its overseas call centers handling inquiries that come in at night.

Customers can either ping their dedicated support staff by phone or text message, and can schedule phone appointments. Additionally, customers who enjoy talking to T-Mobile’s automated voice systems can still choose to do so if they wish, the company said.

Although the initiative is expensive, T-Mobile COO Mike Sievert believes that, “This team of experts approach is actually good business.” If customer support can better solve problems because they know customers’ history and area of service, those customers “don’t have to call anymore.”

Legere said that T-Mobile has consulted on its customer support plans with executives from Sprint, with which T-Mobile is trying to merge in a deal worth about $27 billion. Federal regulators must approve the deal before the merger takes place.

He said that T-Mobile is offering other companies to “come and learn from us” so they can similarly overhaul their call service.

“I will personally walk the CEO of Verizon around the center,” said Legere, referring to an unlikely scene.

In any case, he believes that rivals will eventually revamp their customer support, in the way they followed T-Mobile in releasing unlimited wireless plans.

When asked what he admires about his larger competitors that he routinely criticizes, Legere said “their size.”

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

“They are big,” he said. “They are really good at sucking,” he then added.

About the Author
By Jonathan Vanian
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Jonathan Vanian is a former Fortune reporter. He covered business technology, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, data privacy, and other topics.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

InvestingStock
There have been head fakes before, but this time may be different as the latest stock rotation out of AI is just getting started, analysts say
By Jason MaDecember 13, 2025
32 minutes ago
Politicsdavid sacks
Can there be competency without conflict in Washington?
By Alyson ShontellDecember 13, 2025
1 hour ago
InnovationRobots
Even in Silicon Valley, skepticism looms over robots, while ‘China has certainly a lot more momentum on humanoids’
By Matt O'Brien and The Associated PressDecember 13, 2025
3 hours ago
Sarandos
Arts & EntertainmentM&A
It’s a sequel, it’s a remake, it’s a reboot: Lawyers grow wistful for old corporate rumbles as Paramount, Netflix fight for Warner
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 13, 2025
7 hours ago
Oracle chairman of the board and chief technology officer Larry Ellison delivers a keynote address during the 2019 Oracle OpenWorld on September 16, 2019 in San Francisco, California.
AIOracle
Oracle’s collapsing stock shows the AI boom is running into two hard limits: physics and debt markets
By Eva RoytburgDecember 13, 2025
8 hours ago
robots
InnovationRobots
‘The question is really just how long it will take’: Over 2,000 gather at Humanoids Summit to meet the robots who may take their jobs someday
By Matt O'Brien and The Associated PressDecember 12, 2025
21 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Economy
Tariffs are taxes and they were used to finance the federal government until the 1913 income tax. A top economist breaks it down
By Kent JonesDecember 12, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Apple cofounder Ronald Wayne sold his 10% stake for $800 in 1976—today it’d be worth up to $400 billion
By Preston ForeDecember 12, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
40% of Stanford undergrads receive disability accommodations—but it’s become a college-wide phenomenon as Gen Z try to succeed in the current climate
By Preston ForeDecember 12, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
For the first time since Trump’s tariff rollout, import tax revenue has fallen, threatening his lofty plans to slash the $38 trillion national debt
By Sasha RogelbergDecember 12, 2025
23 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
The Fed just ‘Trump-proofed’ itself with a unanimous move to preempt a potential leadership shake-up
By Jason MaDecember 12, 2025
21 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
At 18, doctors gave him three hours to live. He played video games from his hospital bed—and now, he’s built a $10 million-a-year video game studio
By Preston ForeDecember 10, 2025
3 days ago
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.