A customer blows steam

Yes, I have been insulted by the customer on numerous occasions. The caustic reaction from the customer ranges from the emotional outburst to veiled sarcastic comments after checkmating me. There is not much to write about these veiled sarcastic comments. This one causes enormous damage! It ends up making you look like a fool and also feel every bit of it! On the other hand, it is the emotional outbursts which provides entertainment.

As part of a goof up, a young gun was in charge of the damage control. The damage control was a two step process. The first step was to ensure the users are able to proceed with their validations. The second step was to assess impacts on other parts of the system. Yes, this should have been done first. Now, it is too late in the game. So, the consensus was to do a black ops. Assess the impact silently and rectify it before anyone notices it!

The young gun was interacting with the users primarily. As users are aware of neither the underlying technology nor the enterprise level impact of the system, it is easier to get them going. All was well till a technically proficient old timer got involved in the proceedings. The old timer asked questions and the young gun became evasive. Very soon, the age difference, cultural difference and language barrier formed the three major factors for blowing up the fuse.

I was called in. Even before explaining the situation and what to do about it, the old timer blew out some steam.

The old timer said. “Could you please… I repeat… PLEASE… tell the young gun that I have been programming before he was born!”

Picture Courtesy: http://ieet.org

Tags: Musings,Customer,Young Gun,Old Timer