There’s slacking, there’s lazy, and there is just plain old “useless”. The first two types of people can be dealt with while keeping them employed. That last type, however, needs to be thrown out on their ass with “YOU’RE FIRED!” stamped on their forehead in red ink. Here’s such a case…this guy, our friend in the phone center of an engine company, just spoke with two of the biggest winners in the Unemployment Lottery I’ve ever heard of.
“This just happened. One of our customers called us from (big name parts store). They couldn’t find the NGK plugs we recommend for our 383. We give individual plug number. I gave him stocking number. They had no listing for that either. Up until now the customer was relaying my instructions. Finally just put me on speaker so the (store) employee could hear me. I told her to check for interchanges as I am not allowed to give other plug numbers. She didn’t know how to do it.”
Maybe she’s new. You can understand if you have a new person and they don’t quite know how to run the system. So let’s bring in some help…
“At this point another employee had entered the fray. I told her to click on the parts interchange tab on her computer screen and enter the part number. This is where my product manager broke out laughing. Now, I am telling two different employees how to do their jobs over the phone. They both still failed. Finally I gave them the interchanges I found in the net.”
Yep, that happened. Clerks: If you don’t know what the hell you are doing, ASK!!
You haven’t convinced me – I’d rather have dumb, clueless employee then know-it-all employee. You know the one, drives a craptrap Honda and cannot get it through his head that you can take a part and modify it for use in another application? hell, I go to the equivalent of Hobby Shack for car parts (interior stuff) and those folks are far better and helping and giving helpful suggestions then any of the Schmucks or their ilk box store.
Dammit Bryan, now you got me started.
What is even worse is when upper management from one of the big chain stores comes in and actually tries to work out on the parts counter, I’ve seen a new air filter walk away because upper management installed one on a Impala SS, then the register crapped out and the customer left.
I worked for Chrysler for 15 years. In the middle one of my dealers closed in 2009. So I went to work for a NAPA franchise in Vegas. They only hired experienced guys and paid a little better than the other chains. The guys I worked with were very good and I learned a lot about other makes.
But I can tell you 40 stories just like this one as I try to get parts.
Same story in the bicycle industry, plenty of shops who would rather send the work to the manufacturer than do it, learn it, themselves and claim a sympathetic ignorance to the retail customer who none the wiser and willing to pay.