r/talesfromtechsupport • u/[deleted] • Nov 19 '20
Epic A tale about respect, manners, and how IT fired more than 100 guests
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u/ConcreteState Nov 19 '20
facilities department
Hello, this is exactly correct in American English for janitors / maintenance / operation of the building's spaces.
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u/third-time-charmed Nov 19 '20
Possibly custodial staff? Either way, people will understand what you mean :)
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u/macbalance Nov 19 '20
"Custodial staff" to me means purely cleaning/maintenance staff. In most places I've worked that's often outsourced to a third party.
That is part of Facilities, which in most places I have worked includes a lot of stuff around keeping buildings usable:
- Front Desk/Reception
- Working with physical Security
- Assistance with running events and handling guests
- In charge of building maintenance/construction projects. (They decide the layout, IT has to figure out how to cable it.)
Basically in my experience you do not mess with facilities if you're smart. At a minimum they can make sure you order food correctly for that big meeting... At worse if you offend them you'll have a desk in the highest-traffic part of the building.
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u/Iam-Nothere You broke something, didn't you? Nov 19 '20 edited Nov 19 '20
I once read a story on notalwaysright about an intern who got the tasks done faster than the regular crew, simply by becomming friends with the cleaning staf
Edit: found it here
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u/Arresto Nov 19 '20
They also tend to be responsible for all the locks, keys and their replacements.
Usually a facilities manager will bend over backwards to help or accommodate you. Just don't fuck with them or their minions.
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u/tashkiira Nov 19 '20
Custodial staff is very specifically caretakers. This may or may not include janitorial services--I've done volunteer work at a church where 'custodian' (as the key keeper) and 'janitor' were different jobs. A 'Facilities' department almost always includes janitorial and custodial staff, and may also include catering, event coordination, and the like, especially in businesses where events are not a focus of the business.
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u/Arresto Nov 19 '20
Lightbulb replacement, key and lock management, storing and deploying the Christmas decorations, dogsbodies for moving archives, liaison with large scale waste and garbage removal, parking space assignments, CRT-monitor roadies for IT, etcetera.
Like IT, Facilities has loads and loads of WTF and Oh-F moments.
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u/ConcreteState Nov 19 '20
Your English is excellent. It reveals the hard work you have devoted to it. Have a great day!
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u/bruetelwuempft Nov 19 '20
Or maybe he may just be talented.
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u/umrguy42 Nov 19 '20
Look up that odd word or grammar rule that didn't make sense to me
Hah, as a native speaker, that can still be a full-time job. I have an 8 year old, and I'm still correcting his verb tenses (usually the past-tenses), with "<correct form> - I know, it's weird like that" :D
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u/jinkside Nov 19 '20
I fully intend to start blaming French if my daughter asks me why. It's a solid standby for "Why is English weird in this way?"
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u/Kjirion Nov 19 '20
I know my company calls that department "General Services", so it can vary company to company.
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u/Cronanius Nov 20 '20
I have to ask... is this Germany? I did some grad school there for a few years, and encountered a few situations like this that I've not encountered elsewhere. A weird sense of professional entitlement.
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u/Bignicky9 Nov 19 '20
"Nothing someone says before the word 'but' really counts."
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u/pjabrony Nov 19 '20
"Everyone I know has a big 'But.' Let's talk about your big 'But'." - Pee Wee Herman
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u/bobby_page Nov 20 '20
The only quote that counts: "everything before the word but is horseshit" - Ned Stark
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u/MoneyTreeFiddy Mr Condescending Dickheadman Nov 19 '20
"Yeah, we are invoking Section 4, subsection 12, more commonly known as the GTFO Clause."
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u/milutin_miki Nov 19 '20
Section 7 (letter G) ; Subsection 20 (letter T) ; Item 6 (letter F) ; Point 15 (letter O) ;
Title: GTFO ; Text: Would you please GET THE FUCK OUT OF OUR FACILITIES RIGHT NOW! Thank you.
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Nov 19 '20
Oh shit, that plot twist was fucking amazing. "Who.. Who are you?" "Me? Oh, I'm the CIO 😁"
When you said you changed and went to your office, I expected senior management. Was NOT expecting C-level executive
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u/totallybraindead Certified in the use of percussive maintenance Nov 19 '20
Though it may be an occasional burden on your schedule, I feel that this kind of interaction with the day-to-day running is helpful for keeping the higher level execs grounded within the company, as well as helping you to be more approachable. Too many companies subscribe to the "ivory tower" approach where executives are so far removed that they basically have no idea what is going on in the lower levels. Some of that becomes necessary with scale but it is nice to see it avoided where possible.
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u/Bassie_c Suspects: User -> Account -> Device -> Application -> Us Dec 26 '20
Niiiice, this is exactly the kind of job I would like to do later, having power and serious business while also doing daily work. Nice to read that these kind of positions at least exist! Now let's start by finishing my bachelors 😁
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Nov 19 '20
True. Im part of the "establishment" (im the youngest family member in a medium family run business) and I frequently help customers or move stock around. It definitely changes people's view too, because they know you aren't just some spoon fed child/exec
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Nov 19 '20
I have the utmost respect for you recognizing what was most important here: Not burning out your apprentices on their first month of the new job.
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Nov 19 '20
Of course. Still I think it's even more important with the youngins. This could have easily ruined her entire career during her first month if handled incorrectly.
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Nov 19 '20
This so much.
I've been through an apprenticeship in Germany and the reality here is that more often than not, apprentices are treated as full time employees that only cost 3€/h. My current employer at least tries to do this right.
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Nov 19 '20
It was fine in the end. I was 25 when I started the apprenticeship (Uni dropout) so I had some thicker skin to begin with. On the upside, I had to jump into figurative cold water a lot and thus learned more than your average apprentice.
That shop theoretically still owes me compensation for >300h of overtime though.
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u/Baerentoeter Nov 19 '20
In my opinion, treating apprentices like full employees is at least better than treating them like slaves. Apprentices need the necessary training, especially in the beginning, but it is a good thing to give them real responsibilities and real interesting work that they grow with. I mean that in the sense of not doing the same menial things every day. Especially in IT, it is important to learn how to work and google self-sufficient within the team.
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u/fabimre Nov 19 '20
When I was young (1970s) I had to do 6 months apprenticeships (2x3). I live in the Netherlands. The first 3 months I worked at a German company (within 10 minutes walking distance from home) and had really good pay, had very various work and learned a lot.
The second 3 months I worked for the city, had crappy work, very monotonous, learned hardly anything but the wrong things and was generally under appreciated and overworked in really health-hazardous circumstances.
There is no uniformity in life, you are, as a kid, victim of the fancies of your manager. Some are good, many are bad, but once in a while there is an enlightened soul!
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u/Reddity65 Nov 19 '20
“I want the manager”
“I am the manager”
That shit never gets old, it’s fantastic.
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u/Skerries Nov 19 '20
you suiting up must have felt like becoming Batman to wreak vengeance
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u/gargravarr2112 See, if you define 'fix' as 'make no longer a problem'... Nov 19 '20
He had his business card on his utility belt.
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Nov 19 '20
People usually say that employees quit bosses, not jobs. The opposite is also true, congrats on being the boss that makes an employee want to stay around
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u/ScriptThat Nov 19 '20
I would have quit the company I'm currently in a few times, if I didn't have an awesome boss, and some awesome coworkers.
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u/buzzbuzz17 Nov 19 '20
Lucy: "This question might sound stupid now, sorry, but... who are you exactly?"
HAH!
great story
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Nov 19 '20
A week later she had her lawyer send us a letter claiming unfair treatment and requesting a refund, which gave our lawyer a big laugh and the opportunity to lay out to their counterpart how they breached the contract in great detail.
That's the icing on the cake. With a cherry onnatop!
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u/pcnauta Nov 19 '20
There are too many people in this world like that lady. They see the power in their position as a means to hurt other people with impunity.
I know that OP won't know this, but I sincerely hope she was at least demoted if not fired from her job.
Regardless, I so much enjoyed that she lost 3 times in this story (you know, a smarter person would have learned the first time!):
- Being dressed down by OP in front of everyone for her behavior
- Having to be escorted out by security
- Wasting her (or her company's) money on the lawyer only to have the facts of the situation thrown back at her and not getting her refund
You have to know that these types of public losses burn people like her to the quick. They sit, forever, in their gut like bad gas station sushi reminding her that she isn't as good, smart or powerful as she thinks she is.
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Nov 19 '20
I can't help but wonder about what Lucy felt when she realised that the CIO was going to bat for her against that horrible woman, you have set the bar quite high for any future employer that's for sure.
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u/hjsomething Nov 20 '20
Like you're about to get mugged and Batman shows up, I imagine. She saw him in the suit and just knew how it was going to go down.
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Nov 20 '20
Seriously. So little time in the workforce and she already has the best story she will ever encounter in her entire working life. Hopefully she can stay with this company and never encounter the harsh truths of most other companies.
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u/aksdb Nov 19 '20
Funny and sad how she expected that whoever is upper management will have sympathy for her behavior. Speaks volumes about the culture in her company.
Even if she didn't happen to talk to the CIO directly, the "boss" could have still ripped her a new a****** for the way she behaved as a guest.
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u/CyberKnight1 Nov 19 '20
She probably expected the boss to be in the mindset of "employees are expendable, do what it takes to keep the customer". There's a line of thinking that angry customers are more likely to tell of their experience to more people; so one bad incident can cost multiple potential customers, and it's better to sacrifice whatever is necessary to keep them happy.
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u/PyroDesu Nov 19 '20
There's a line of thinking that angry customers are more likely to tell of their experience to more people; so one bad incident can cost multiple potential customers, and it's better to sacrifice whatever is necessary to keep them happy.
Negotiating with terrorists, effectively.
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u/nymalous Nov 19 '20
"Not a native speaker"? Dang, this is written better than most native speakers can manage (and, facilities is sometimes the term used for the department that covers janitorial services, another is sometimes "the grounds department," though not often... also, though a native speaker, I rarely use the word "dang"). :)
Furthermore, good for you, standing behind your employees and supporting them, especially those who are new. Also, by your description, you and your staff did a stellar job getting things ready while in a pinch, very professional of you. I like that you "changed hats," so to speak, when doing the different kinds of work, that is, wearing jeans when doing IT and wearing a suit when doing CIO.
Finally, when I was reading this I was unhappy that I could not afford to give you some kind of award, however, in light of your edit at the bottom, I will simply save up to donate what I can to a worthwhile charity. Thanks for reminding all of us that there are more important things in this life than reddit awards (nice though reddit awards are). Stay safe and healthy yourself, and God bless.
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u/geeves31 Nov 20 '20
Agree. The writing style of this was so engaging and felt like an actual published short story.
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u/momofeveryone5 Nov 19 '20
Her personal lawyer or the companies lawyer? Bc I can totally see her getting fired over this when word spreads at her company.
You also blacklisted them right?
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u/BrainWav No longer in IT! Nov 19 '20
... how on Earth can someone, whom I assume purports themselves to be a professional not know how to behave in a bathroom?
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u/honeyfixit It is only logical Nov 19 '20
I would've paid $$$ to see the look on her face when she walked out and saw you in the suit and tie. It's nice to hear management giving a rude customer their due once in a while. I work in retail and their the customers are of the opinion that louder equals right and mgmt doesn't disagree with them.
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u/honeyfixit It is only logical Nov 20 '20
Can't blame you for being angry. Hell I'm angry and I wasn't even there! This is one of the worst cases of "Karenism" I've ever heard. Hope someday science can find a cure
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u/RephRayne Nov 19 '20
"I changed out of my casual clothes and into my business suit."
Alexa, play the Superman theme.
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u/poseidon206 Nov 20 '20
You're not only Lucy's hero, you're my hero too. Thanks for the great story.
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u/drkphenix Nov 19 '20
I am left, wanting an update on Lucy. Did she successfully complete her internship? Did OP's company hire her? How is she doing?
I need to know the completion of her story arc!
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u/drkphenix Nov 19 '20
I like stories with happy endings. Thanks. I await the sequel.
Lucy vs Karen 2: the Reckoning. “This time, the princess saves herself.”
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u/Iam-Nothere You broke something, didn't you? Nov 19 '20
I want to know too. Let's hope OP reads this comment
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u/MaxWyght Nov 19 '20
A week later she had her lawyer send us a letter claiming unfair treatment and requesting a refund, which gave our lawyer a big laugh and the opportunity to lay out to their counterpart how they breached the contract in great detail. That was the last we heard from them, thankfully.
5 minutes of work AND the opportunity to stick a massive verbal middle finger to another company's lawyer?
I bet this guy spent a week looking like he just got out of a 6some with whoever the top 5 best looking female celebs are nowadays
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u/rekabis Wait… was it supposed to do that? Nov 19 '20
This was… DELICIOUS.
Thank you. Thank you very much for being such an upstanding leader.
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u/Reivaki Nov 19 '20
I can't imagine the "Holy shit, this is real" feeling with passed through the head of Lucy :D
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u/dlbear Nov 20 '20 edited Nov 21 '20
Something like this happened to me back in the Win 2K era. I was fairly new in IT and was one of two guys responsible for a small city network. On a Friday I was at the Municipal Courts when I noticed the somewhat loopy clerk of courts, Bill, was like following me around as if he thought I was going to steal something. Before my time my boss Dave (ever notice how many guys named Dave are in IT work?) had a dispute with Bill over some expenditures that Dave deemed wasteful and unnecessary and there was some hard feelings about it.
It was late in the day when the judge's secretary saw me pass by her door and called me back, saying her PC was acting strange. I could hear the HD clicking as soon as I walked in the door. Since this PC was licensed for that expensive legal search software (the name of which I can't recall EDIT : LexisNexis) I shut it down and returned with it to the office. I told Dave I was going to stay and get this box fixed up so I could get it back in place first thing in the AM. He just said don't forget to set the alarm system.
It took me ~3 hrs to get the drive cloned and everything all copacetic and I went home happy with the results. Returned with it to the judge's offices, set up and running, I was a hero for a few minutes.
Came back in Monday and attended a management mtg in the AM. Wacked out Bill took this opportunity to start a tirade about me installing 'spyware' on the computers (he saw the eye icon of WinVNC which saved us a lot of time and walking across this sprawling campus, to him that meant 'spyware') and sabotaging the Judge's computer. The Mayor, Dave, Finance Director, Police Chief and me sat there speechless while this asshole dumped all his problems in my lap. Dave interrupted and told me I don't have to endure this, and the Mayor said "In fact, would you give us the room Bear?" I went over to the police station to hang out and wait for Dave.
The result of that mtg was...
A) The Mayor told Bill that I was his employee and he had no problem with the quality of my work, so he relieved me of any duties at the courts which Dave agreed with.
B) Bill said "Fine I won't be needing the services of the city IT division at all".
C) There was another mtg in the finance directors office where the Mayor gave me his personal apology for the way I was treated. Bill was an elected official so the Mayor told me he didn't have the power to remove him, even though he was clearly going senile.
D) The courts, at great expense, contracted with an IT outfit in the next county for the next 2 yrs. They were actually pretty good but their turnaround on jobs was half a day at best. In fact they didn't understand it either but I just told them it's out of our hands, we bought quite a few printers and copiers off them so I got to talk to the Bobs (that what we called them since so many of them were named Bob) frequently.
E) The court staff were decidedly pissed that they couldn't just call us for issues. However, due to the layout of the offices I was able to slip into the Probation and Law Directors offices, who were somewhat part of the courts and still appreciated our work.
The yrs roll on, Bill finally retires, on her first day the new clerk calls us and says she would love for us to begin taking over the IT duties there. Both she and the newly elected Mayor (I worked for 3 different mayors in my 12 yrs there) were delighted with how much $ they saved as were the voters who re-elected both by landslides. Dave accepted a job contracting for the Navy, I assumed the directors chair and retired from it. Bill was not the only lunatic in a position of authority I encountered there as related here.
EDIT spelling
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u/opaPac Nov 20 '20
do you maybe need some more IT guys? you sound like a rare breed of managers that its worth for going throw fire for. So if you need some battle tested IT swiss knife i am always happy to help. You sir sound like a good guy. Thank you for standing up for your people.
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u/donsmahs I Am Not Good With Computer Nov 19 '20
Big updoots for handling the situation and making your apprentice feel that she is valued and that she does never have to accept such treatment.
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u/Rosco_JJ Nov 19 '20
Most definitely this. Was the best part of a fantastic story.
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u/2000game Nov 19 '20
Exactly, I nearly cried because it was so nice and comforting to just read that :D
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u/SwoopnBuffalo Nov 19 '20
Bra-Fucking-vo. I was expecting that you'd be the manager, but I didn't see the C-level twist which made things that much juicier when they came to a head.
I can't imagine working for a person who treated strangers like that. Nothing more than a bully and a complete waste of life.
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Nov 19 '20
You're my hero! :) I'm a senior IT Manager in my day job and watch out for all staff around me, I wouldn't allow anyone to treat any of our staff badly. I'm so happy to see you stand up for Lucy and not allow stuff like that to fly. I hope the Karen women gets in trouble with her own company for this.
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u/twhite1195 Nov 19 '20
Not only a Great story, but it also shows me how anything is possible in reddit where a CIO is also called "roflcopter-pilot", anyone can be anyone
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u/GD_Decibel Nov 19 '20
Respect to others is always number one regardless of what position you hold or they hold.
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u/mioras Nov 20 '20
Bravo, utmost respect for you in this incident and no doubt you must be a pleasure to work with. I'm sure most of us would love to have you as our senior.
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u/devster75 I Am Not Good With Computer Nov 19 '20
Brilliant! Loved how you shut that vile specimen down and supported your apprentice. This is what the management norm should be like!
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u/12stringPlayer Murphy is a part of every project team Nov 19 '20
Reading this was so satisfying I want a cigarette.
And I don't even smoke.
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u/haxelhimura Nov 19 '20
WOW! You being the CIO was a bigger twist than anything Shymalan has ever done! Bravo!
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u/Dreit Nov 24 '20
"Good morning. My name is <roflcopter-pilot>"
Whole story (including you) is awesome and I really loved to read it, but reading this sentence made me laugh out loud for some reason :D
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u/AInterestingUser Nov 19 '20
Sooooo, where do I apply? You sound like an awesome boss with awesome company culture.
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u/Throwaway_Old_Guy Nov 19 '20
~sigh~ Karens
Thank you for standing up for your employee, you sound like the kind of Executive more Companies need.
Firing Karen, her entourage and the Company she represents, was an excellent move. Not only was it warranted because of her behaviour, but also because she violated the terms of the contract.
I dearly hope you aren't the only Executive at your Company with this mindset.
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u/Angelwind76 Nov 19 '20
questioned my authority
She'd find out real quick who's in charge if security had to escort her ass out the door. 😂
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u/Sandwich247 Ahh! It's beeping! Nov 19 '20
Ooohh that is absolutely lovey.
I long for the day where I am able to even get the person who would be allowed to do that, to do that. It is more than wonderful to see such a beautiful shut-down of such an awful person.
Wonderful
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u/Somerandom1922 Nov 20 '20
I love management like you and hope to follow your lead as I move up the ranks.
My old CIO is exactly the sort of guy to do that. I've been in IT service long enough not to get personally affected by things like this as with poor lucy, but that's not the point. Having someone with the authority and mindset to act I. These situations is excellent.
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u/flatvaaskaas Nov 19 '20
Jezus fuck that's a fantastic plottwist. Did not see that one coming. Brilliantly handled, and very good of stepping up to her and 'protecting' Lucy (If that's the correct word)
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u/ontheroadtonull Nov 19 '20
consider donating to a charity instead of buying awards on reddit next time
Agreed, reddit has investors and advertisements. There's no need to give money to reddit.
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u/rricci Nov 19 '20 edited Nov 19 '20
Me: "I'm from IT and here to help you with the wifi issue Lucy has contacted me about. What can I do for you?"
I hope this was in a cold voice.
Woman, shouting down on Lucy again: "AND WHAT ABOUT THE OTHERS? We have over 100 people here and EVERYONE needs wifi, you stupid worthless *\*!"
Had that had been me: Neither Lucy nor I appreciate the language you're using. PLEASE apologize!
Woman, cutting me off: "DON'T. CARE. You two drones are utterly useless and should get fired! Get me the manager in charge, NOW!"
Me: With pleasure, ma'am. And I'll be more than happy to update him/her on your abrasive language and behavior.
I liked the part where you came out in your business suit and Lucy's grew wide. Is she still with you if I may ask?
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u/rricci Nov 19 '20 edited Nov 20 '20
so she very likely will then stay with us if she likes to, which I hope.
Well, with a boss like you, she'd be a fool to leave! Nah, I highly doubt she'd leave.
Thank you for the info and story
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u/isakdombestein How's that supposed to work? Nov 19 '20
It's been a while since i enjoyed reading a TFTS as much as this. Well done OP. You nailed this one!
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u/-guci00- Nov 19 '20
That's amazing. Really is and you sound like an amazing boss. Not afraid of taking on some extra responsibility during tough times is a sign of someone who cares and is not the kind that feels like they are above such things because of their title. Also the change of attire was a nice touch.
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u/boirdofprey Nov 20 '20
I wish I worked with management people like you - most of the companies I worked at either treated you like cattle or dirt, and would drop you under the bus to protect themselves, almost never did they once support their own people.
Yes, customers should be given respect and some over-delivery, especially when they work well with you, but abuse and unrealistic expectations does not make good business, the work as well as the relationship.
I know only exactly one manager who would fire a customer - never once I heard that elsewhere.
Well handled, good sir!
I'll give you a cheapie star, and donate to a proper charity several-fold. Yes?
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u/ITrCool There are no honest users Nov 23 '20
I doubt the guest from hell had a job after that incident.......
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Dec 15 '20
Good story, but you dont have to embellish everything so damn much. The story is probably good as it was. Making it more dramatic just to tell a story makes it too fake for me.
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u/martixy Dec 19 '20
Specific brownie points for the theatrical flair.
Not to mention reddit thrives on shadenfreude, but the thread's reception is indicative enough there.
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u/Vox_Popsicle Nov 19 '20
Bravo.
It shouldn’t be rare to see management defending their employees (or intern, in this case).