[INTLGIRLY]

Yes I agree that customer service is HORRIBLE however as both a customer and a customer service rep with 20+ years of travel/hospitality experience both in the US and internationally .. i have to add that CUSTOMERS HAVE BECOME AWFUL.

Now before I get onto THAT topic, there are valid complaints. Lots of them. Horrible experiences described on these boards for the airline industry and others all over for every other industry.

I have to blame management. They don't know what's going on. They don't want to know. They put policies in place that are unmanageable and non customer friendly. Then when the poor agent tries to enforce the policy and the customer insists on a supervisor, many times the super will override the policy that the agent was told to enforce (with risk of termination). Many supervisors and managers have NO people management experience. No "working it up through the ranks". Don't know how to communicate either face to face or in writing. Do not know the basics of problem resolution (Listen. Don't interrupt. Apologize. Tell them what you can do. Follow up). Management do not set the example, so the agents and the supervisors coming up with them never get to follow by example. Directors are sitting in their offices in the clouds and no one below them have the guts to stand up. To say NO that won't work. Not for our staff/agents, not for our customers. Too afraid of losing their jobs. Or not gettting that promotion. Directors should THANK people for standing up!!

But I am digressing. As a customer service rep that takes calls for a major theme park, I am horrified (and depressed after every shift) at the EXPECTATIONS of the customer. There is a sense of entitlement from every echelon of society. I KNOW this is your vacation of a lifetime but I am sorry if the restaurant you want is booked. Lack of planning on your part should not be considered a crisis on mine. I realize that it's your child's birthday and that YOU promised her she could dine with "that" princess but you should not make promises you cannot keep because you are passing on that sense of entitlement to your kid. No the restaurant is FULL which is based on FIRE CAPACITY and YOU would be the first to sue if there was a fire and the location had too many people in it. I sympathize that your child is autistic and "has to eat" at EXACTLY 6pm and ONLY in "that" restaurant, but "that location" is already full however I do have "ANOTHER" restaurant if he "has to" eat at 6pm. And I know that autistic children don't like standing in line and you want a special pass but you know what? NO ONE really likes standing in line - adult or child, so leave those priveledges for those who REALLY need them like people who have no arms or legs because they have been defending our country (thank you by the way) or children BORN with major defects or those with life threatening illness.

I don't write the policies I only follow them. Please don't insult me by asking for a supervisor or threatening to get me fired. Don't embarass yourself by telling me you will "call the person you know who will get you in" cause if you know someone that high up why didn't you call him in the first place

Be nice to me. It will REALLY help my attitude and make sure that I will do everything in my power to find alternatives. Be nasty and I really won't "go the extra mile".

Oh and just some "basics"
Don't have me on speaker phone when you call, besides the fact that it's RUDE (at least ask me first if it's ok), I will probably have static and feedback and won't be able to hear you.
Don't call me from a noisy area / your convertible with the top down / your mother-in-law (wife/husband/other) in the background and continue to have a discussion with them while on with me. YOU called ME. Give me your attention.
Don't call me with screaming children / TV blaring or while you are eating, chewing ice / breast feeding or going to the toliet. Yes we can hear you.
If you and your significant other cannot agree on something, the please hang up the phone and go complete your argument somewhere else.
Do not place me on hold and take another call and stay on it and expect me to wait. Again. Rude. You. Called. Me.
You are NOT entitled to anything other than what you paid for. If you get it then great, if not well then you should have paid for it in the first place. Don't demand upgrades, special seating or special treatment. Be nice and you may just get it anyway.
If you are canceling and there is a cancel penalty for anything other than a valid reason like death or illness - suck it up. You were advised of the cancel policy. Don't insult either my or your intelligence by telling me you will just dispute it with your credit card company. And oh by the way - remember that message "this call is being recorded??".

Please LISTEN to what I am saying and answer the questions I am asking you. No I don't have that information or I would not be wasting my breathe. Please don't tell me how to do my job or how the system should work. I did not write the software and neither did my manager. In fact he does not even know how to use it. Don't ask me WHY I need the information. Just because. If I don't enter it I cannot go onto the next screen. Again. Not. My. Software. Try going online and making your reservations there. I am sorry the system is slow. Bogged down by all those people trying to make their reservations that don't know what they are doing I guess.

So going back to my original point - i am NOT saying all the complaints are not valid. I am So sorry this happened to all of you. But I just wanted to present "another side" and although it's not specific to the airlines, it's the same situations.

[Cynthia]

Well said. It should be required reading for all! hang in there.

[cortney]

well said!!!

[Gromit801]

BRAVO!!!! Now you will hear from the "If you can't take it, find another job" crowd.

[INTLGIRLY]

Originally Posted by Gromit801

BRAVO!!!! Now you will hear from the "If you can't take it, find another job" crowd.

Oh don't worry, I posted this on another board and I have already heard from the "How dare you say that my child's autism is any less serious than anyone with cancer or ms ........" crowd. (Did I say that? hmm no I don't think so, I think I started two very specific examples ...)
But I appreciate your support !!

[stevicus]

INTLGIRLY,

Great post. I can understand what you're saying, and I've had my share of jobs where I've been at the receiving end of some nasty customer venom myself. I can also appreciate the layers of management which can be out of touch, rigid, and apathetic.

It's also true that, even in everyday life, there's always going to be the usual quota of jerks and just generally unpleasant people. One thing I've learned is that these people, these jerks, the cranky passengers, and others who want to make life miserable for others: That's just their way. More than likely, they act the same way to others they come into contact with, whether it's a grocery clerk, waiter, or whatever. They have to live with themselves. I find that such people are usually nasty to everybody, so it's really on them.

I agree that the management can also be a large part of the problem. I don't know precisely how the airline industry works, but if it's anything like other large organizations I'm familiar with, it's probably a matter of someone at an executive level deciding, "Hey, this would be a really great idea," which then becomes policy. By the time it trickles down to the customer level, the customer is thinking, "Hey this sucks." All he can do is tell this to the customer service representative. Theoretically, if enough people call in to say "Hey this sucks," then it could be enough to cause management to reconsider their position. That may be what's on people's minds when they call in to complain. They just want "somebody" to know that they're not happy and that one or more aspects of their service was not satisfactory. The hope is that someone in a policy-making role might think "Well, gee, he's right, the policy sucks, so let's change it."

The general assumption is that businesses actually want to do a good job and provide high quality service for the sake of customer retention. Even setting aside business considerations, there's just the inherent human pride in doing a good job and taking pride in one's work. But when management doesn't care about that, then it puts the front line personnel in a very difficult position. Even if they're just greedy and out for the buck, I could sort of understand it, but even then, the kind of apparent apathy and inertia don't really seem to fit.

That culture seems to be more prevalent these days, but I don't know where it comes from. Even back in the days of the greedy industrialists, they still had a sense of pride, probably more ego-driven than anything else. They wanted to be the best, the biggest, the richest. They had to compete for that; it wasn't just handed to them. But now, they seem to be more than willing to settle for second-best. I noticed another site mentioned here which rates all the world's airlines on a scale of 1 to 5 stars, and not one single U.S. airline rated above 3 stars. Where is the pride? Don't they want to be the best? That's what I don't understand.

[pattis]

Intlgirl...SO TRUE!! I have to say though that as much as I used to get stressed out and frustrated with people such as u describe when I worked commercial airlines. That was a breeze compared to working at an FBO/business aviation which I do now. I wish I still worked commercial. Self entitlement with business /private air runs rampent. I HATE MY JOB!!!!