All Boundaries

Scenario:

Redgirl sits at front desk, minding own business

Action Begins:

Phone rings

**Blllriiing**

Me: Happy Hotel in Danville! This is Redgirl...

Yolanda: It's Yolanda...I have an emergency! I work with you guys in PR and I need some rooms tonight!

Me: Ok, how many rooms?

Yolanda: Like three or four!

Me: What sort of rate do you usually get? (I'm figuring if she works for or "with" us, she might have a special rate)

Yolanda: Oh, she usually drops it down to $90 or comps them (blah blah blah)

Me: If you'll give me last names, I'll see what she did before...

Yolanda: (starts throwing out names, but I have already identified a problem. She doesn't speak very clearly. With just about every name she said, I had a general impression of what she said, but not enough to even type it in the computer. Every time I would ask her to spell an easy sounding name, she would start spelling something completely different.)

Finally:

Me: I'm so sorry, I don't have any of those names in my system, so the most I'd be able to offer you is our AAA rate, and that doesn't sound like what you're after, and I can't call my manager (...for YOUR emergency on a WEEKEND at EIGHT PM)

Yolanda: Oh! I need those rooms....I'll just...I'll just...I'll call (owner). He'll take care of it... (click)

Me: (well, if you have (owner)'s personal number and you think this is the time to use it...go ahead. But I know for a fact that he's snowed in an airport in the south and probably won't take kindly to your call...especially as he doesn't insert himself in the business to that extent)

So I basically forget all about the call. It's still filed away for sure, but unless anything else comes of it, there's no reason to keep it in the front of my mind and keep stressing about it.

The next section I find out about on Monday morning from my general manager, who I'll call Lindsey. Lindsey says she is in bed and *beeeeep* gets a text from an unknown number. It reads (she showed it to me) "need comp or reduced rate rooms 2nite emergency!" So of course, she has to call the number, because she doesn't know who it is or if it's actually important. She tells Yolanda that she can do a $90 rate, but comp is out of the question (b/c of the lateness of the call). If Yolanda wants this rate, she must call by 11pm. She does this because she doesn't want the night auditor to have to deal with it.


Then Lindsey calls me: Did you just speak with a very frantic woman named Yolonda?

Me: Yes, yes I did...

Lindsey: (she tells me what's up; including something along the lines of "who the **** does she think she is to be texting me on a weekend?)

So I basically put the entire thing out of my mind. Because again, if she calls, I'll remember what to do, but if not, I don't need to worry about it.

Fast forward to 11:00pm:

Night auditor arrives, then promptly scurries off before I can remind her (again) to stay at the front desk. You see, as soon as 11 hits, it's her job to aid me in getting out of there as soon as possible, not to run off to the kitchen for who-knows-what. Phone rings....at 11:10pm. Guess who?

Yup.

Yolanda.

Yolanda: Hi!! I think Lindsey spoke with you about a special rate...?

Me: (in the midst of counting out my nickles) Well...I did speak with her. (pause) I know she told you to call by 11. (pause) It is now 11:10. (pause) But since I'm still here I'll see what I can do. (pause) I need to finish counting out first...can you hold for a few minutes?

Yolanda: Oh yes!

I finish counting out my nickles and pennies, then print it. Maybe 1 min 30 sec. Maybe 2 min. Point is, she's hung up when I go back to the phone. "Oh well," I figure, "I didn't actually promise her anything, and I have to leave. The entire point was to have it not involve our night auditor."
I finish doing my end of shift things, relay all pertinent details to the NA. I also give her the bare details of what Yolanda and I were doing so that, even though she won't be making any reservations, that she knows what the lady is talking about. Right as I'm about to take off...

**bllrriiiing**

Me: I'm not answering that.

NA: Happy Hotel in Danville....I'm sorry...I don't know anything about that....No, she had to leave. (makes eyes at me) Please hold. (to me) She's already sent them over!

(aaaaaaahhh!!)

Me: I didn't promise anything...she hung up on me!!! Hmm..ok. Go through all the names of the people she has coming and verify that she doesn't have any reservation numbers. Ask her if I actually even made reservations with her. Then, say that you'll try to get a hold of me, but that you can't promise anything; and that you'll call her back in 5 minutes.


She does all this. During the five minutes, I tell her the next script. "I was able to get a hold of her. She said she waited for your return call, but had to clock out. She gave me special permission to extend to you the rate of $90 that Lindsey and you discussed." Then I advised her to NOT try to make the reservations on the phone, because Yolanda was indecipherable. She agreed. She called Yolanda back and repeated what I'd said.


Conclusion Time:

What did I want? I wanted an apology of some sort...all the things she did "wrong". I really don't know what I expected though....

(a) She called with HER emergency and tried to make it MY emergency--it wasn't

(b) Called my manager on a WEEKEND at NIGHT from an unknown number to demand rooms. Honestly, if I had a manager's personal cell phone, I would save my emergency card for something more serious

(c) Was given a specific time HOURS in the future that she had to call by...and called a clear 10 minutes AFTER

(d) Hung up on ME and neglected to call back for 15 minutes

(e) Had the presumption to send people over before we had even made arraignments

(f) Acted like the offended party and insinuated that "of course I had taken care of everything"


So in every area possible, she muddled over all professional boundaries. Obviously, this was a normal thing for her. So I don't know why I expected an apology. What she said was, after the last little bit "Oh, I'm so sorry she left before I could call her back." Yup. Now it's my fault again.

Remember the last time that happened? Spoon Man. Grrr