August 20, 2007
This is not the first time I deal with difficult clients, but I always thought staff working at one of Toronto's top University should know better. I guess not.
Today I have exchanged 6 emails 3 phones in total with this one client. First, she sent most of the content to me last week. In her emails, she attached some documents for content, except she would send another email like 30 mins after saying ignore the previous one becuz she made more changes.
Also, she sent an email to me at 9 this morning, saying she'll be going on vacation this friday and she wants to see the site before that. This means she is giving me 4 days to work on the content she sent me. I knew about her going on vacation prior to this email, but does she thinks I only work for her? That I don't have other projects to do except hers?
So far, she has already displayed her indecisive and unreasonably demanding trait in her character.
It goes on by her not delivering what she promised. So at least one part of the content is still outstanding.
One very interesting thing is that I noticed another section of the site does not have any content from her yet, so I politely asked if she has anything for that page. That page is something similar to current projects which needs to be updated very often. Her response was "The person responsible for this page is not me, and he can't do anything until the site is live because that section will have to be updated frequently. We should launch the site and then update that page." The moment I finished reading this was thinking to myself...what am I dealing with here? How can people be so ignorant these days? Launching a site with a blank page? Any one with common sense would know that current projects section can be tailored to what's going to happen during the launch date before hand. I honestly have no clue what is on this person's mind.
Anyhow, that's not it. Since she said she wants to see the site complete before she goes on vacation, I wanted to exceed her and updated everything within two hours and send it back for her to review. This was a mistake I regret so much. Because after I sent her the site, she comes back with more changes. They changed their department name like 10 million times over the period of 3-4 days. So, I did what she requested. Sent her back the updated version. Guess what? She called me on the phone for more changes. Okay, even though my patient was running out, being the nice person I am, I still said okay too all her requests. Finished the site, sent back to her. I think you can predict what happened next already. MORE CHANGES.
She sent me the first version of a file last wednesday, she changed it on thursday. She asked me to add something to the form early in the day, she changed it in the afternoon.
I mean...please make up her mind about those changes because she is wasting both of our times here and going nowhere. I don't understand why she would want to ask me to change things as they come to her mind. She worked there longer than me, way more experienced than me, so then why? why do clients still do these things?! I can't sit there to serve her 24/7 about some minor changes of the site.
Now she sent me emails after hours saying she has to change the files yet again after meeting with her supervisor and she wants to meet with me tomorrow morning. WHY COULDN'T HER TRY TO GET EVERYTHING READY (get approval, make up her mind and finalize the changes) BEFORE SENDING ME THE CHANGES!? I don't know how to deal with her tm, cuz I have schedule other projects for the rest of the week and I have no time to go thru this stupid process again!
clients...sigh...















haha I know it's rude to laugh at this point, but you have to look at it in a cynical point of view.
We are in a service-oriented business, and the rationale of service is to please your clients until you're sore, all battled out, and bleed till you can't bleed no more.
And then here's the other thing about service-oriented business. You do all the dirty work with the lousiest kind of pay.
I think you'll learn how to deal with this a bit better, as time goes. A bit better as in not let it affect your mood swings and cause you all kinds of stress-related problems.
E-mail me away when you're stressed! I'm keeping my fingers crossed about your meeting tomorrow! Remember, keep a cool head. Don't let the client drive you mad.
cher, I would just tell her straight up to make up her mind and give me the final requirements (in a polite and professional way of course). tell her sometimes things are harder to change than do it from scratch so its better to have requirements straight at the beginning.. thats what i told my other dept a few weeks ago lol
-newbi
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