(no subject)

[akage.livejournal.com]

Okay, so I get a new manager calling in because the printer goofed on the email address on his business cards. Now, what he would like is to have a second email address created that matches the typo, that would then forward everything to his correct email address. When I explain to him that he has a snowball's chance in Hell of getting this request honored, he begins to whine.

"But it's not MY fault that the cards were wrong!" Guess what? It's not mine either. Maybe you should ask the printer to give you an email address. Or to give you your money back. Or maybe you should consider the idea of PROOFING shit when you get it back. My guess is that he got the cards months ago, has been passing them out like candy before he noticed the problem, and now wants us to bail his ass out. Frankly, if I had access, I'd be tempted to create the account for him, then have it forward everything to an IRCBot that would read his emails off periodically in channel.

Comments

[wyrdrune.livejournal.com]

I can't see why this is a problem? I had to do something similar for one of my users when the member of the accounts staff who placed the order suffered finger trouble. And what would you do if someone had got married and needed their old surname forwarded to their new?

But maybe my employers aren't as strict as you.

[poppycat.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was just thinking the same thing actually. I have forwarding with my emails because we change ISPs, and email addresses as a result, frequently enough that it was necessary to create a constant for people to use. Doesn't seem like that big a deal.

[akage.livejournal.com]

Considering it virtually takes an act of Congress to get email name changes done around here, I'm just telling the guy like it is. Besides, it was the attitude that annoyed me. The printer screwed up, so now it's OUR responsibility to make a special case for him?

[wyrdrune.livejournal.com]

Considering it virtually takes an act of Congress to get email name changes done around here, I'm just telling the guy like it is.

Ah, so they're much more restrictive than my lot then.

Besides, it was the attitude that annoyed me. The printer screwed up, so now it's OUR responsibility to make a special case for him?

When it happened with us, my managers attitude was that we (IT) were there to help the business, and making this simple change (adding another alias under Exchange - took about 2 minutes, and most of that was logging in to the server) helped the business.

[erulogos.livejournal.com]

See, this is what's wrong with so much of the business world, and why tech phone drones suffer. Everyone gets the idea that because they can just cover it over with some IT magic instead of fixing it properly, they should go that route.

Yes, the alias is easy and will help, but then the printer isn't made to correct their mistake and/or the executive is held responsible for his lapse in attentiveness. Thus, both will likely screw up again later.

Quick solutions are for emergencies only, otherwise, buckle down and do it right.

-={(Erulogos)}=-

[wyrdrune.livejournal.com]

Now that's where our lot differ. We did both. We put a fix in place /and/ we bollocked the person who should have proofread the cards. That way business wasn't interrupted and the twit gets the bollocking.

[wyrdrune.livejournal.com]

They don't need us, we need them, because without them there is no work.

*nod* - at our place they also acknowledge that without the IT department there's no network, but ultimately it's them that brings in the money that pays our wages. The IT team have to be aware of that.

[attackgypsy.livejournal.com]

I'd make the account, then sign him up for beastiality pr0n.

But then, I'm a miserable bastard anyways.

8-)

[jecook]

+1, and have it forward to his boss as well as him. ::snicker::

[usekh.livejournal.com]

It's that hard to make a new address and a .forward file?

[usekh.livejournal.com]

Well there is an argument that 30 seconds of vi is too much :) but it is not like it is hard at all.

[sketchydave.livejournal.com]

Eww, you made me agree with management. I understand his position, printing the new cards costs money, creating an email alias is more or less free. Its really weird that the company would be more willing to shell out the money for the business cards instead of setting up an alias.

Was is mispelled or incorrect? Like first name / last name instead of first imitial / last name? My company gives us mulitiple aliases for that very reason.

Unless of course they misspelled the domain name, then they are SOL!

[the-s-guy.livejournal.com]

Unless of course they misspelled the domain name

I've heard of those, or people who just make up any old random shit as an email address and then expect IT to 'just fix it'.

My preferred approach to most of these requests is to say "Sure, that'll cost $20,000 to buy the domain and hire someone to set up the mail for you" (or however much I feel is about right). Best when they use completely random symbols for email - "Sure, that'll take around twenty trillion dollars and fiften years to rewrite every email system in the world."

The people who pull this kind of stupid crap are often management, sales, or other subhuman slime who can't understand anything unless it's in dollar/time terms. So translate for them - and be sure to have a camera on hand to capture their expressions.

[sketchydave.livejournal.com]

See, thats the main problem when you deal with techs and engineers. We can always make it work, we can always find a way. Nothing is impossible.

Yes, I can make that happen. I need an army of programmers, a field of coffee beans, and a sack full of money. Make sure the sack has a $ sign on it and have it delivered by a Lara Croft look-alike.

[harry-whodunnit.livejournal.com]

That was a constant refrain at the last provider I worked for.

"I've given the printer the wrong address and now I have a thousand cards with the wrong email on them. You HAVE to give me that address!"

Sorry, someone else already has it.

"You'll have to take it off them!"

No.

"But I'm running a business here!"

The answer's still no.

"Well, call them and ask if they'll give up the address!"

Once again, no. But feel free to contact them yourself. I'm sure they're curious to know what caused the increase in spam they've had recently.