I hate to interrupt my healthcare special, but this one deserved my attention.

We have a client. They bought some software. 25 licenses. When my team installed the software, the software began to give errors after 2 licenses were installed. So we went to their website, found "contact customer support," did as instructed and explained the problem, which was that it was reporting licensing errors. This is the reply we got. 2 days later:

Hello,
This is a 25 user serial number. Please contact Technical Support if you are still having issues.
Regards,
Customer Service

Now my Latin is a little rusty, but the basic translation if I’m not mistaken, is this:

Hello,
I don’t give a shit. I’m leaving in an hour, so by the time you get this and respond, it will be somebody else’s problem.
Regards,
Useless

Here’s the thing: Well, hell. Do I need to explain the thing? It’s service. It’s being a professional. It’s taking ownership and solving problems. It’s human decency.

Two lessons:
1. If this is your job? Do it. Do it well, take ownership and have some self-respect.
2. If you run a company? Get down on the front lines and find out what is really happening. This kind of service will kill your company in short order.

That is all. Back to health care!