Do you know how to transfer a call quickly?

How often has the connection dropped out while a call center operator was trying to transfer you, or perhaps you get put straight through to someone's voicemail, meaning you need to hang up and call again. You should have a simple method for transferring calls that ensures the caller doesn't go around in circles or is left waiting for ages, wondering what is going on.

• When a caller asks to be transferred say "Just putting you through" (Instead of "Hang on" which doesn't give the caller any indication of what is going on).
• IM e.g. Stephen: "Stephen, Colin from Microsoft Events, Line 1."
• Stephen responds "OK", and then pick up the call, following the rule above
• If Stephen doesn't respond or messages "Busy", Stephen is with a client or away from his desk. Then ask is there anything I can help you with?  Take a message or try and assist the caller yourself

More on Rules to Better Instant Messenger.