Originally Posted By Mr X ***We can never quite understand the flashing wands during crowd control. When we look at them they seem to go back and forth with no emphasis on one direction or another. To the CM shaking it to tell us what direction they go in, they know in what direction they want us to go. The CMs often seem to get annoyed with us for not knowing which way we are supposed to go. Is there a method to their waving?*** lol. Good question. I'd say in that case, best to go with the flow...move in the direction everyone else is moving. (anyone else reminded of the movie "Airplane!", where the guy with the wands on the tarmac points out directions to his friend and crashes a plane into the terminal in the process?)
Originally Posted By FerretAfros *GAST!* There's a sale at Penny's!!! Great movie! My mom went to high school with the guys who made it (the Zuker brothers), and said they were a little...odd. Either way, they sure did a great job on the movie! : )
Originally Posted By lesmisfan well to answer the wand question, they aren't supposed to waved them all around only slight movements were the crowd is supposed to be moving. I have seen cast members move those things alot and it can be difficult for guests to know which way the cm means to wave. Thats why they should also be saying were to go.
Originally Posted By Goofyernmost >>>the important thing is for them to respond appropriately to the rude person in question and NOT let it carry over into some sort of bad attitude towards ALL their customers.<<< Just for clarification, I wasn't talking about general attitude. I'm not the smartest guy on the planet, but, I am willing to say that if someone is directly spoken to, in that manner, the chances are pretty good that there is a reason. We are all innocent as the dickens when it comes to these things. I didn't do anything and they were "rude" to me. The other side of the story...I'll bet they did do something or didn't do something they should have done to warrant that type of response. I deal with public relations all the time and if there is one thing I have learned from the experience is that the ones that yell foul the loudest are the ones that created the situation to begin with, and you can take that to the bank. I didn't mean my post to be a generalization of a groups behavior towards everyone, and you will seldom see that situation in real life. If you are good to someone, they are usually nice right back. It is, however, a two way street, both have to play the game and the smart money is "generally" on the CM. I have never seen one that didn't try to resolve a problem in some positive way. Unfortunately, not all the "public" is interested in any way but their own way. They get what they deserve regardless of what they would like you to believe.
Originally Posted By Sweeper No. It is not the responsibility of the guest to treat a cast member in the way the cast member thinks they should be treated. That idea would clearly indicate a need for a job change in my book as it is clearly entitled. Disney used to spend three days laying out the way cast members were to behave NO MATTER WHAT. I have heard this training has been shortened and that's too bad. CMs create the magic. That is job #1. Obviously I am not talking about abuse by a crazed guest. And in my experience as a sweeper and working parade crew, I never had a situation where being rude to a guest was ever called for. I did meet a few CMs who had become the 8th dwarf (surly) and they should have quit long ago. It is the CMs job to be safe and courteous. There is a reason courtesy is #2 on the value list for Disney. That is one of the ways Disney makes a difference. And Disney should NEVER let that value become negotiable.
Originally Posted By Mr X ***No. It is not the responsibility of the guest to treat a cast member in the way the cast member thinks they should be treated. That idea would clearly indicate a need for a job change in my book as it is clearly entitled.*** It IS everyone's responsibility to treat those we encounter in everyday life with a modicum of courtesy and respect. You can't just be vile to someone and then expect them not to react in kind. ***Disney used to spend three days laying out the way cast members were to behave NO MATTER WHAT.*** Well, that's just ridiculous though. There are some cases where "no matter what" is impossible. In those cases, though, it's the companies responsibility to have an easy method for workers to kick a troublesome customer up the chain of command until they reach someone who can decide either to compensate them, or simply tell them to get lost if they are that bad. So yes, a CM should treat customers kindly at all times, but in terms of "no matter what", if they are being abused they need to have a method for getting that person out of their face and into the face of someone in upper management who doesn't necessarily need to be as courteous depending on the situation. No, people do NOT reserve the right to abuse folks in the service industry just for their sick pleasure.
Originally Posted By SpokkerJones I've always wondered what the hit was to productivity because of awful customers. Didn't some phone company cancel a customer's account because they were that annoying? The customer is not always right. As a consumer, I would like to see businesses take a harder stance against the general public.
Originally Posted By Mr X A cruise ship company took action against some passengers who were always demanding freebies, by banning them from further cruises. Agreed. The passenger is NOT always right, and some people are difficult to please or even downright rude. Working in customer service does NOT mean you need to tolerate being abused. Not in the least. As I said, there needs to be a way for employees to kick unreasonable customers up the chain. There's no reason they should have to stand there and be berated, anyway. It's true that some Disney employees put up with a LOT of abuse.
Originally Posted By BellesLibrarian <<I'd say in that case, best to go with the flow...move in the direction everyone else is moving. >> Sometimes we just can't tell.
Originally Posted By Zwitek <<< I deal with public relations all the time and if there is one thing I have learned from the experience is that the ones that yell foul the loudest are the ones that created the situation to begin with, and you can take that to the bank. >>> This is my experience as well. It's often amusing to hear a customer ranting into the phone about all of the awful things an employee said to them, when you know darned well that words like that were never used by the employee. The amount of hyperbole just boggles the mind sometimes. <<< Working in customer service does NOT mean you need to tolerate being abused. Not in the least. As I said, there needs to be a way for employees to kick unreasonable customers up the chain. There's no reason they should have to stand there and be berated, anyway. >>> Absolutely true. And in fact, there have been lawsuits by employees for being subjected to a hostile work environment because customer abuse has not been checked. Some customers will complain just because they can. I've worked for major companies that have actually had the president call the customer to inform them that we will no longer do business with them based on their behavior. Some places understand that there is only so much one can do. Even Disney I imagine, understands this, and while some of the people that work there might think that "never" means "never," I'd counter with never say never.
Originally Posted By Goofyernmost >>>This is my experience as well. It's often amusing to hear a customer ranting into the phone about all of the awful things an employee said to them, when you know darned well that words like that were never used by the employee. The amount of hyperbole just boggles the mind sometimes.<<< So true! One of the best things that we got recently were camera's that record action and sound. For those of you that don't know I work for a municipal bus company. We will get these outragious calls from people telling us what terrible things the driver did or said to them...how totally "rude" they were and on and on. When they get done ranting we say, Please give us your name and phone number because we are going to pull the film from the on bus video and will get back to you with the results or possibly more questions to help our investigation. The next sound we hear is "click" and a dial tone. It kinda makes one grin.
