Unfiltered Story #278208

I work for a non-profit agency that certifies counselors to work with a certain at risk population. Our state mandates that people register to get certified within six months of new hire at an entry level position and become fully certified through testing within two years of new hire,

Most people can meet the requirements for testing within eight to twelve months of new hire, but a good half of them wait till the last minute to test. If they fail they could be fired for non-compliance with state rules.

A woman applies under both her maiden name and her married name. We should have caught it, but didn’t. She called several times trying to get info about getting into the final test before her two years expire. We give her conflicting information depending on which name she gives when she calls. At the time the testing company was only giving the test every three months, so she very much needed to test, but missed the deadline for getting all her paperwork into us.

We are a small agency so our Executive Director answers her call. He is on the phone for a while, and I can hear his frustration at the caller (good administrator, good counselor, but he didn’t have the best customer service skills). I motion that he should put her on hold. I tell him he should give the phone to me and tell her he is going to bump her up to the Assistant Director (me). He looks like I kicked a puppy, “But I’m the Executive Director…”

I tell him yeah, but she doesn’t know that. A light dawns. He tells her he’s bumping her up to me and I take over the call.

She starts complaining about all the problems she’s had and I quickly figure out we have two files and merge them. She has most, but not all the required documents with us. She continues to berate me about the poor service we’ve been giving her, and how she’s going to sue us if she doesn’t get into testing. So I interrupt her.

“I’m sorry (counselor) that there were problems on our end, but your inconsistencies using your two different names didn’t help the situation. If after we are done with this phone call you wish to lodge a formal complaint with our board of directors, you are well within your rights and I encourage you to do so if you feel strongly about it, but what do you really want at this time? If what you want is to make your complaint to me, I will take the time to listen to you, document it, and bring it up at the next board meeting. Now if what you want is to get in the test, I need you to gather these forms together and fax them to me, then we can do a three way call to the testing company in New York, but since they are in another time period we have to act quickly before they close.”

I shepherd her on the line to get all the necessary paperwork done and in to us. Halfway through she stops and starts in berating me again about how this never should have happened, and badmouthing the guy on the phone before me. I stop her.

“I told you earlier, if you want to make a formal complaint to me, I will sit and listen to it, that is part of my job, but if you want into the test we only have a half hour to get this done. So which do you want to do, make a complaint or test?”

In a meek voice she says, “test”.

“Ok, then here’s what you still need to do…”

We get her faxes in and do a three way call with our rep at the testing company. We get it straightened out, I fax the rep what she needs to get the woman into testing and promise to overnight a check. By this time the counselor and the rep and I are all laughing about the silly mixup and I end the call having just spent well over an hour on the phone working on this.

My boss gets up and gives me a standing ovation. I tell him I’m going to take a break now and go outside and sit in the sun. He tells me to take a cup of coffee and my book and take a good long, much deserved break.

She never did lodge a complaint and thank heavens she passed the test!