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Topic starter
07/11/2022 5:00 pm
THIS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE!
I'm sure you've noticed that most every company out there, boasts of always providing QUALITY SERVICE. **Warning, this was a four cup of coffee talk for me today".
I was 15 years and I had a paper route. I had to become a young business man. I made index cards for each of the customers on my route. I listed what editions of the paper they received (i.e. morning, evening, Sunday, or combinations of all three).
Also on those index cards were the amount I needed to collect from them each month. And when it was collected, the amount was checked off with a "red" check mark. Perhaps not the best bookkeeping system, but for me and the time, it worked.
With the above also came my notes of where I was supposed to deliver their papers, like at the front step, inside the front door, and even some wanted it to be put in their garage (via the side door). It was important that each customer received delivery of their paper that was the easiest for them.
It was an early lesson for me, in providing the best "quality service" I could to please my customers. Not sure how I figured out that was important, but I just felt it was.
When I was a senior in high school, like many kids, I got a part-time job. Mine was at the Sears Catalog store in Cottage Grove. I'd start at 7:00am and work until 11:00am, then go to school from 11:30 to 3:00pm. It was called "on the job training", and YES, it was (in hindsight) "on the job training".
Each morning a semi-truck pulled up to the back door of the store and I'd unload the merchandise that was on it. Some big boxes, some bigger boxes, and packages of various sizes. After getting all the "stuff" off the truck, I had to match each package up with an "order slip" that was created when the customers originally placed their order. We didn't have computers in those days folks...it was all written and logged in with pen and paper.
When each box/package was logged in, they were then put in alphabetical bins by last name. The customers were then called on a land-line, no cells or texting back then either, and they were advised that their order had arrived at the store. Good customer service!
If for some reason the customer changed their minds, or what they ordered wasn't what they thought it should be, I'd process (again by paper) their refund. That semi-truck I mentioned earlier that would arrive at the store each morning, it also took back the returns from the day before. They would be loaded on the truck after the in-coming orders were taken off. Again, a smooth process.
After leaving that Sears store, I got a job at Dayton's in downtown St. Paul in the stock department. I was in charge of the Cosmetics, Notions, and Luggage departments. With regard to the process shared above with unloading a truck each day, now there wasn't just one truck a day, but sometimes two and three. But all of the boxes for each of the departments had to be put on pallets, logged in, then delivered to their respective stock rooms.
Still a later in my young adult life I worked at West Publishing Company, the largest Law Book publishers and distributors in the country. I loaded and unloaded boxes of books and logged them in or out. I created and filled orders for lawyers and colleges everyday while driving my fork lift around the warehouse. After each order was filled, it was then verified to the order requested to assure it was correct. It didn't leave the warehouse or get on the truck until it was accurate.
I believe I might have been the last person to assure that quality service would or could be a reality. I know you're saying, "awe come on George, what are you spewing out now?".
Well most of the times when I've expected to receive quality service, it has not come to pass. Okay, okay, hold on...let me give some examples. And the reason I share them, is because I honestly feel that the mistakes I'm going to share with you, should NOT have happened. And they wouldn't have happened if everyone involved with the process along the way DID THEIR JOB!
EXAMPLE #1
We ordered a new mattress and box-spring. Simple enough? Well not quite. Oh, I'll add that we ordered them in the color BLUE. That I guess was where it got confusing. They were delivered on time, but, yea, here comes the but. The mattress was BLUE...the box-spring was PINK. When we pointed it out to the delivery driver, he said, "yea, I wondered about that". Hello! My first thought was that, if he "wondered about that", WHY didn't he question it before taking it from the warehouse? His answer, "I just deliver them". To which I would argue, it was his job to check orders. However, it was also the job of the person or persons that handled the order before it was ready to go on the truck for delivery. The order form clearly said, "One mattress and one box-spring, BOTH IN BLUE". Moral of this story is, they had to take the PINK box-spring back to the warehouse, and we would wait for another delivery. Oh and we were told, "this never happened before".
EXAMPLE #2
How does one buy a new refrigerator, have it written on the order form with the correct color and size, and then receive the wrong refrigerator? The refrigerator delivered was literally "half the size" of the one we ordered. Again, the order form was CORRECT, but they loaded on the truck and delivered the WRONG refrigerator. When the delivery driver brought the refrigerator in to the house, we immediately informed him, "this isn't the refrigerator we ordered". He checks his clip board with order form, and guess what, the order form had the RIGHT refrigerator on it, but the wrong one was put on the truck. Once again I think, someone along the way in this delivery process fell asleep, up to and and including the delivery driver! It should have been checked to be correct by each employee along the way, so that "the wrong" refrigerator wouldn't have been loaded on the truck. And yea, the delivery man's response was, "this never happened before". Seriously?
EXAMPLE #3
Now of the many examples I can share, this one might be the best (or is it the worst)? We ordered NEW patio doors! The Kitchen was door was white with a left handle, and the family room door was brown (to match the wood work) with a right handle. On the day of delivery, it was cold and snowing outside (SEE THE PHOTOS ATTACHED FOR THIS ONE) and they took both doors out at the same time! Of course the weather as I pointed out being cold and snowy, the house was immediately freezing. The other thing I'll mention to this story is that this was at the peak of the COVID pandemic, and Lorraine was with no immune system from her Chemo treatments...I only add this because it made this particular delivery and installation very uncomfortable. But (yea there's that word again), it turns out that was only the beginning of the fun for this project. The kitchen door was installed, looked great. I liked it! Then the family room door was installed...oops! I informed the installer, that it was the WRONG color, it should have been BROWN, not white. I get a, "What?". I repeated, "it's the wrong color!". Okay, here we go! He checked his clip-board order form....and YES, he had BROWN for the family room door on it. And you can guess his next response..."Geez, this never happened before". I'm serious that's what he said. Well, the next problem was, the door was already installed, and with it being ugly outside, there was absolutely nothing I could do at that moment. Upon calling the company and talking to one of the Big Wigs, he tried to put the blame on me, by saying that I should have caught the mistake BEFORE the door was put in. SERIOUSLY? I told this dude that, had HIS delivery driver/installer checked the doors that were put on his truck BEFORE he left the warehouse, this wouldn't have happened. I further told him, that it was also obvious that every employee that handled the order before it was ready for the truck, ALSO missed that one of the doors was not correct. I advised him that I wasn't about to go through another installation with the weather as it is, but I also told him I was NOT paying for the door. He tried to balk at that edict from me, but I told him, I'M NOT PAYING FOR IT". As the winter went on, we grew to be satisfied with the WHITE door (and it's a really nice door), so we opted to not do any more business with the company.
EXAMPLE #4
This is the last one. Just this past Wednesday, we were getting a NEW roof due to the spring hail storm that ravaged our city. The insurance claim went smooth, the contractor has been a pleasure to work with. We picked out our roof color. Shortly after, we were advised that the color we chose (that would by the way, match the new siding we are also going to be getting), was on back-order. So the contractor said, "I'll give you an up-grade on a different roof, if you care to choose a color other than the one you chose". Okay, so we picked a darker color for the roof, but now that prompted us to also change the color of the siding we'd chosen. No big deal, right? Wrong!
Our roof materials were delivered, the old roof ripped off, and the new one put on. That should be the end of the story, but (again, that word), it turns out that the roof that was put on, was actually the FIRST color chosen, that somehow mysteriously showed up, even though it was supposedly on back-order. Now here comes my favorite line, "this has never happened before"...yup, that's what the contractor said. He was very apologetic, and offering us upgrades on siding, etc. However, this time, I WASN'T BITING THE BULLET! I told him that we want the CORRECT ROOF (the upgraded one) and we were sticking with our new siding choice. He said he'd be putting an ASAP rush on the replacement of the roof, again. Guess we'll have to stayed for the ending to this one.
EXAMPLE #5
Okay, I know I said the last example would be the last one, but I needed a happy ending to all of this. I've got to be honest and admit that NOT everything I've ever ordered has been wrong, but certainly I've had my share over the years. But (this one's a good but), when Lorraine and I got married, through all the planning for the wedding, the guest list, the hall, the church, the day, everything was in place. As I waited at the Alter on that cold beautiful January morning in 1974 for my BRIDE to walk down the isle....when she did, SHE WAS THE RIGHT BRIDE!
Nothing has been less than "happily ever after" for us! We've been blessed!
George Schire
Oakdale, Minnesota
07/11/2022 7:39 pm
Interesting set of examples, that many of us can relate. I am glad you ended with a good example.
Ed Davis
Inverness, Illinois, USA
George Schire reacted
07/11/2022 8:20 pm
I chalk most things that go wrong to people not caring. The missing ingredient today seems to be a lack of pride in doing the best you can be in your job no matter how unimportant it might seem to you.
08/11/2022 12:12 am
I don't know if I'm lucky...I never seem to have these kinds of situations.
08/11/2022 12:14 am
Maybe I shouldn't say this but...if, as it turned out, you're satisfied with that "really nice" white door, is it fair to that businessman not to get paid anything at all for it? He's out the cost of the door and the labor. As a small business owner myself, I wouldn't feel comfortable doing that. I'd try to find some middle ground.
Barry Levittan
Long Island, NY
Topic starter
08/11/2022 7:47 am
Maybe I shouldn't say this but...if, as it turned out, you're satisfied with that "really nice" white door, is it fair to that businessman not to get paid anything at all for it? He's out the cost of the door and the labor. As a small business owner myself, I wouldn't feel comfortable doing that. I'd try to find some middle ground.
I see your point Barry, and I understand where you are coming from. What you don't know is that the story with the door and the installation is even more complicated than I shared. If I'd give the whole story of how the company treated me with their error and some stuff that happened while they were installing it and damage that was done to the walls, you'd understand better. They didn't want to, nor were they going to, assume any responsible for not only their mistake, but the actions of their two employees who were not professional in many ways. In the end, we were satisfied with the "white" door mostly because we were exhausted from dealing with a company that didn't care and would except no blame. So my "not paying for the door" was my only satisfaction.
George Schire
Oakdale, Minnesota
Moe Parr reacted
Topic starter
08/11/2022 7:49 am
I don't know if I'm lucky...I never seem to have these kinds of situations.
Yes you are lucky. Buy a lottery ticket. 
George Schire
Oakdale, Minnesota
Pete Rovero reacted