T-Mobile won't let me have a new phone

I decided to get myself a smart phone. I have a contract with T-Mobile already. I thought it would be simple to get one through T-Mobile's website. I selected the phone and the contract I thought suitable including options. I then identified myself by logging in. The offer disappeared. I could not get it back.

I called T-Mobile and gave my password. I explained the problem. The person at the other end on a poor connection from a distant land asked me if I didn't want another phone instead. She said I should go to my local T-Mobile shop as it would save post and packing. I gave in and ended the call.

I then received a series of texts asking questions about the service. I replied and T-Mobile didn't get good marks.

I went to the shop today (no, I know they didn't deserve it). I asked for the phone of my choice. They hadn't got any. The assistant said they might have some on Friday. I asked if they could save one for me until next Tuesday when I would be in the area. I was told they couldn't. Apparently if I call them on Monday and they have any they will save one until Tuesday. Wonderful!

I guess the reason for the stonewalling, the website set-up and the problem in the shop is that they simply don't have the phones available. It would be more honest just to say so. As I have a contract I am paying T-Mobile money while I am waiting. Of course I could change provider but that would involve more hassle and probably more obfuscation. What a terrible example of poor customer service by a company that doesn't seem to care about its customers.

The perils of under-resourcing

One of my family members who is now rather frail but insistent on staying in her own home has carers to visit her four times a day, to get her in and out of bed and to prepare meals and attend to other needs as necessary.

Obviously we have to deal with the agencies providing the carers and it may surprise you to know that we are now employing the third agency in about four months.

The first two agencies were a disaster. Their visiting times were erratic and sometimes they failed to come at all, leaving the poor lady in bed until lunchtime as we only later found out. They failed in many other irritating and occasionally unfortunate ways, but I will spare you the details.

Some of those agency employees were indeed caring. They explained that things went wrong because they were understaffed and trying to cover too many clients. They had no back up if one had a major problem with a client and could not send a relief person to deal with the next client on the list, which was why our relative was left to lie in bed until lunchtime on that occasion.

Finally we were referred to another agency, who it has to be said are a bit more expensive. They have a smaller staff and fewer clients, but even so they have more than enough employees to cover all their clients' requirements. Our invalid is very happy. She doesn't worry about when the next visit will be. We don't worry because we know that she is at last in good hands and we will not get that telephone call to go to the rescue at whatever time of the day or night.

There is a business lesson here, it seems to me. The first two agencies were chasing every bit of business they could and accepting everything flung at them by the local authority. They were never honest and said “we are at full capacity and we haven't the resources to meet your or the clients' needs.” That means that they will continue to fail and they will always lose clients as quickly as they get them. Even though it is a narrow sector they have a high client churn rate and lose what should be long-term business.

The current agency charges more. They provide a great service, which is why they get referrals rather than have to fight to stay afloat. They have the staff to cope. They do not have to tout for business; it finds them. They take away the clients' pain and they take away our pain in terms of worry.

Most of us are in business to take away our clients' and customers' pain. If we can provide a great service we will get more referrals and we will be able to charge more too, because relief from stress is what everyone wants, and the price is worth paying. Don't you agree?

© Jon Stow 2010

Care for the elderly

We currently have a situation in which an elderly lady home from hospital via a respite care home is unable to cope. It is true that she needs a lot of care and the social services have appointed a care agency to send in someone four times a day. Unfortunately these people, some of whom are clearly caring, are too rushed to do a proper job. They do not arrive early enough to get the lady out of bed and to the toilet, and they leave her with her breakfast but without removing the tray on her trolley to allow herself to attempt to get to the bathroom. During the day they do not ask if she needs to go to the toilet or take account of the fact that as she is confused she may not be able to ask. They do not ensure having disposed of one incontinence pad that they have given her another. You can imagine the result of such a failure. They do not ensure she has taken her medication and in general they are not doing their job.

The lady is frightened to be left on her own, mainly because she is not offered enough opportunities to get to the bathroom, and in her most lucid moments has asked if we can find her permanent care, which we must do because we cannot be there for her every minute of the day, and because we cannot ensure that the care provided by the agency through the social services is even adequate, let alone good.

How does she get to find a permanent care home? Apparently we need a broker, who has visited, but it takes time. We haven't got time, though my wife spends many hours a day with her. The lady is frightened and vulnerable now. To get interim respite care apparently we need another broker but she doesn't answer her telephone, any more than the care agency did this morning after another serious failing.

Why does it all take so long to get anything done? If there is a shortage of staff perhaps they could tell us. Could they give us a timescale? How many agencies do we need to get an old lady some comfort?

When we thought the lady might be able to manage at home we asked about a bath lift and were told the wait was five months for her to be assessed. This about gives the flavour of the situation. I am not apportioning blame. I do not know who is to blame because no one is taking responsibility apart from us except a couple of volunteers who shouldn't have to.

Gordon Brown said last Thursday in the Sky News leaders' debate “Now when we look at the needs of pensioners it is absolutely true to say that we need help with urgent needs, social care in the home and that is what we are introducing over the next few months so that people don’t have to go in to old people’s homes if they want to stay at home, they can get the home helps and the health visitors that are necessary for them so that they can have comfort in their own homes.”

It is a pity that as of now, our elderly lady has not been afforded any dignity by the social services and agencies that are supposed to help. She has no confidence left to allow her to stay at home even if it were a viable option.

Have you experience in this area? What do you think?

Studies in human nature

Sometimes we have abilities of which we are unaware, especially when young. Mind you, I can hardly claim to be multi-talented. I wish I could draw and paint, but never had the know-how.

In my professional life, as a junior employee I pretty much did I was told, including making the tea and coffee, but that was the office junior's lot along with putting away everyone else's files. There was not much engagement with clients which was left to more senior people, and it was not until I took on more responsible roles that I met clients face-to-face.

As soon as I did, I started in the professional sense to learn the art of people watching. Of course my elders would tell me their opinion of clients, their attitudes and preferences and whether they were to be trusted. This was long before we had to worry about Money Laundering Regulations and the like. It was simply whether clients could be relied upon to tell the truth. I learned to gauge professional clients but somehow never transferred this to my personal life.

I don't know why it never dawned on me that a “nose” for understanding different characters in the people I met could not be translated into one's personal life. It took the devastating shock of being deceived in love back in the eighties to shake me out of an ignorant complacency, though after that I had some years of being deeply suspicious of the motives of many people I met on a social basis.

Over the years, though, I have been more relaxed about these matters, which is fortunate since otherwise I would not have eventually been more lucky in love. I do find it quite easy from having met people a few times to know exactly how they think; whether they are really friendly or just pretending, whether they are generous or mean, how they are likely to react in a given situation and therefore how to avoid offending them.

I guess that I have a talent for empathising and putting myself in other peoples places with their mindsets. That is really useful in business, but golly, it is so brilliant in “normal life”. I wish I had known how this worked when I started out in my adult life.

Resurrection

"Flotsam" is so far put together from a collection of old blogs I have left lying around in various parts of the web; hence the title. I am now consolidating and think I will try to make this my commentary on current mainly non-business events, or not about serious business anyway.

The previous entry about alleged lack of cooking skills is not current and fortunately my wife is not about to go into hospital. What is surprising is that some questions we asked five years ago we still have no answers for even though the man himself has been tackled formally on the subject. Mind you, maybe it's not that surprising. Ho-hum!

Let's see where this all goes; the blog that is, not the interrogation of our former Prime Minister. That's not going anywhere.