It was a send off trip for our daughter who is moving from Austin, Texas to the Big Apple. We helped her move to Austin from San Francisco several years earlier and this was our chance to take in Austin with a local who had explored every inch of the city before she left for NY.
We arrived late due to flight delays of one kind or another. It was 1:35 am and we just wanted to grab our Uber and get to the hotel. The Austin airport had banished RideShare pickups and taxis to the inner bowels of a parking structure that had terrible and confusing signage.
We were making our way and finally saw the “yellow zone” we were supposed to be picked up at. And, then it happened. I went into my Olympic gymnast floor exercise impersonation. I didn’t see the plastic speed bump in front of me. My Hoka didn’t either. Next thing I knew I was like a windmill trying not to fall, but momentum won out.
The pain of landing directly on my knee felt exactly like the basketball incident I had 30 some years earlier on the right knee. That was a 9 month full reconstruction later. I had immediate flashbacks. I knew this was not good.
Going to the ER in a foreign city is always a crap shoot. I was competing with other injuries, some far worse than mine. Albeit, I was handled expeditiously by a team trained to deal with in-bound accidents. Evidently, that night was the night of “trips and falls”. I had company.
IT JUST TOOK A SECOND
I went from eager to see a city and experience its glorious offerings to seeing the insides of healthcare at its wonky pace of fits and starts and lags. Like most experiences, I immediately went into observation and record mode, taking in what was happening all around me - like watching ER on TV all those years.
Albeit, the adrenaline had run its course and my body reminded me, I was the one injured. That is when it hit me, that life can change in a second. One minute, you are swearing at who planned the ridiculous Uber pick up destination and the next you are waiting on a doctor to tell you anything about what the x-rays found.
My mind wandered to the weekend my daughter had planned for us. And, to all of my business activities that included flying to an IRL workshop in two weeks and all of the deadlines in front of me. My poor wife had to drop me off, take the bags to the hotel and come back. Handling unplanned accidents tests every part of you. I don’t know who has it worse, you or your spouse.
We managed to have our weekend, albeit hobbling around in an immobilizer and crutches. [Editor note: Austin has a great vibe and amazing food]. Of course, no doctor is available during Labor Day and the question becomes do you want to deal with medical procedures on foreign turf or get back home to known entities.
A true lesson in choices and decisions. Luckily, not life or death ones in my case, but an injury to a knee impacts every part of your normal life - walking, driving, getting around, steps, curbs, errands - the stuff you take for granted.
CUSTOMER SERVICE
Making the decision to keep our flights on Sunday vs. changing them turned out to be a wise decision. My wife immediately called Delta to rearrange our seating because my leg was immobilized and I couldn’t bend it (even if I wanted to). To Delta’s credit, they accommodated our needs by securing an empty row of seats so I could extend my leg during the flight.
Delta had arranged for the “airport services” people to have a wheelchair waiting for us at each destination - in this case three different airports due to connections. That again was great customer service. Kudos to their concierge, gate people and flight attendants.
What was the right thing to do got immediately tested when we arrived at the airport. You see, the wheelchairs are not designed for my case - a guy who can’t bend his knee. We asked for a cart/shuttle in Austin - they did not have one. After 10 minutes of communication conundrum and problem solving, we came up with putting two wheelchairs opposite of each other.
One person pushed me, while the other pulled me. It was an ingenious solution, until the Supervisor got involved. It was against policy to do what they were doing. The first thing out of their mouth was “liability”. All I wanted was to get to the gate, without the pain of attempting to walk half the airport.
Our two service folks in Austin had masterfully done their job. I asked for their names so I could write the CEO of the company. They should be recognized for going the extra mile and MacGyvering a solution because their company didn’t have the right tools for the job. Edge case aside.
That said, their supervisors had instilled the fear of god into what they had just done. They were both nervous about their job status now. Which I call BS. They were heroes to my wife and I.
Ironically, the same fate would await us at Salt Lake City and Sacramento airports. Wrong wheelchair for the situation. We joked with the SLC team that they should be used to this from ski accidents, albeit it wasn’t ski season yet. Both teams tentatively subscribed to our modality of the opposite facing wheelchair deployment.
The SLC team jumped in and just did it. No questions asked. Sacramento came down to that dreaded Supervisor yelling at her people for executing against policy. I got the stink eye and the attitude that we have all come to know from customer service people. Again, in the name of “liability”, versus solving a customer in need with creativity.
PRIDE AND DOING THE RIGHT THING
I guess I can’t help myself. When events like what I just went through happen, I become hyper aware of how people do what they do. Do they take pride in helping each other? Do they follow the rule book or do they just do the right thing?
Did they extend the empathy of knowing you have limited choice in the matter. It is what it is and you are just trying to get from A to B to get to the next step. And, they are between you and achieving that outcome. Even if I was the first version of that execution for all six people involved.
Frontline workers have become more significant today because of what we all experienced during COVID. In a world that has become obsessed with policy and liability, it is a true test of a company’s values when dealing with situations that might call for an alternative approach. And, to the credit of the frontline people who helped my wife and I to get me home through improvisation and sheer desire to do the right thing, I am thankful.
In my book, each of these employees should be given an award for their ingenuity and pride in doing the right thing. It was a highlight for everyone who walked beside us. And, it will go down in history as an ingenious moment for all of us who came together to solve the challenge in front of us.
NOW (How you are realizing this today)
What is a customer service moment that you are proud of in your recent history?
How would you have handled my situation if it meant breaking policy?
Do you enable your team to think on their feet to meet a customer's need?
NEW (How you will realize this tomorrow)
I will review all of the edge cases over the last six months of what happened vs. what could happen going forward?
I will seek out stories of how an employee solved a customer problem through sheer pride and determination from the first 9 months of 2024.
I will create a reward to honor people who go the extra mile to win the day and I will send them a hand written note.
NEXT (I see a world in which)
I see a world in which doing what it takes to get the job done is a time honored recognition, even if it means breaking policy.
THE PAYOFF
"When you assume negative intent, you're angry. If you take away that anger and assume positive intent, you will be amazed" ~ Indra Nooyi, CEO of Pepsico
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If you are seeking a way to optimize your customer service communication strategy, book a free consultation with me, and let's consider the possibilities. My work has raised a collective $1B+ for the companies I have worked with over the last 10 years. And, I have helped dozens of companies and executives to find their narrative voice.
Wow Tobin. So sorry to hear of this. Jeff mentioned it over the weekend. Praying for a quick 'heal'.
I am the master of randomly falling and breaking bones. Great way to turn this into problem solving by customer support teams.