( SNUG 05 Item 3 ) ----------------------------------------------- [12/20/05]
Subject: Synopsys Hotline
A BACKHANDED VICTORY -- Last year I did this survey with many of the exact
same questions for Cadence in 2004:
"Most of the time when you call the *Cadence* hotline, do you feel that
you get access to (choose one) knowlegable experts, or people with
average skills, or the truly inept?"
knowlegable experts: ############ 24%
average skills: ################ 32%
the truly inept: ###################### 44%
- from http://www.deepchip.com/items/icu04-03.html
The same question for Synopsys in 2005:
"Most of the time when you call the *Synopsys* hotline, do you feel that
you get access to (choose one) knowlegable experts, or people with
average skills, or the truly inept?"
knowlegable experts: ############ 24%
average skills: ########################## 54%
the truly inept: ########## 21%
Comparing the two, 24% vs 24% for "experts" is a tie, any votes for "average"
is a wash, but that "inept" 44% for Cadence vs "inept" 21% for Synopsys is
technically a win for Synopsys. And besides, can't you already see that big
motivational banner Synopsys management will put up near the hotline cubicals
to celebrate this victory? "SYNOPSYS HOTLINE -- PROUD TO SUCK LESS!"
---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----
Never call them, but our application-eng is really good!
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
You get the cellphone of the person you need and they do not hassle you
with several forms to fill, (and later feedback :-))
- Yossi Levhari of Verisure
Hotline don't work here. We call FAEs direct.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
Never call/email it. Have switched to going completely through our
local AE as too many of the support staff were "truly inept".
- Russell Petersen of Scientific Atlanta
average skills - but I'm being kind.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
people with average skills
I never phone the Hotline, I just submit testcases electronically. More
than once I have had to ignore the sometimes useless Hotline help and
convince someone else there was an issue to get a bug opened.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
I feel like I've been sent to India. Same feeling I get when I call
Cadence, and hey, even Dell. I would say that they're about average,
but I expect more than that. I seem to get someone else after the first
call is logged, but the initial call always seems to be just logging the
incident. The hotline help after that seems to have a wide range of
skill, some great, some not so great. I suppose this is getting to
be the same everywhere???
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
Average with the possibility of getting to an expert.
- David Black, consultant
Most of the time they are of average skills, other times they are inept.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
Usually knowledgeable experts, but sometimes some don't understand
my problems.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
I try to submit my calls via SolvNET rather than over the phone; the first
line of support doesn't typically have the knowledge to solve my problem,
but they usually get someone else involved pretty quickly, and they
typically know their stuff.
- David Smith of STmicroelectronics
Phone hotlines always start with average and then knowledgeable experts.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
They are average overall. Hard part is understanding the customer's
flow. I wish there were a reliable way to package up a run and
recreate it back at Synopsys.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
Truly inept. BUT they always put me in touch with someone who knows
what they're doing within 1 business day, and I get my questions
answered quickly.
- Tom Mannos of Sandia National Laboratories
Knowledgable experts.
- John Gedde of Aeroflex Laboratories
In europe: knowlegable experts
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
knowlegable experts
- Garrett Godfrey of Imagination Technologies Ltd.
People with average skills. That said, I have found some many issues
with their tools that I have a very capable person now assigned to get
all my issues.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
A mix of knowlegable experts and people with average skills.
- Lauren Carlson of StarGen Inc.
Average skills at first, eventually escalated to knowledgable experts
if necessary.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
First line support is fair-to-not so good. It seems like they pass you
off to others who know the stuff ok-to-fair.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
People with average skills with 1-2 years of experience in engineering,
and 6 months experience with Synopsys tools.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
Generally, the Synopsys hotline folks are knowlegable. Aren't there
some hyphens in know-leg-able?
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
Only called once in ~5 years. I did get good results, if memory serves.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
Experts (or maybe I'm dumb!)
- John Gray of Atmel
With their Nassda HSIM product (could be acquisition pains) it is the
truely inept. I've been a user of HSIM for ~ 3 years, and I'm basically
reading the manual to my "local" support engineer, who is in another
state. It was not that way before the acqusition.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
It takes a while to get someone that understands. Sometimes I don't but
I submit a testcase and that does get into the hands of an expert. I
seldom seem to talk to an expert though. Mostly its just people with
average skills.
- Joseph Panec of Teradyne
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