Things I Wish Schedulers Wouldn't Do

I emailed a scheduler today with a couple of questions because neither the shop guidelines nor the form addressed the issues. The scheduler wrote back but addressed only one question and claimed her answer was in the guidelines. I read the guidelines one more time (the fourth time!) and what she said was not in the guidelines (or the form). I had to email her again and am waiting for her response.

This scheduler has been in the business for a long time. I haven't shopped much for her but don't recall any bad interactions with her before this.

I wish schedulers would answer all the questions shoppers asked and not claim something was in the guidelines when it was not.

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It just gets worse when the scheduler writes back with a two-word response that doesn't apologize or even admit she was wrong.

This won't stop me from considering future shop offerings from her but I will certainly be wary.

The only MCS I've had that issue with has been RBG.

I asked 3 questions she thought she answered 1 and 8 E-mails, later after she had to ask the other scheduler they cancelled 3 shops I had actually completed.

But to answer your original question, it's very frustrating when you clearly ask more than one question and they only answer one.

And if it was in the guidelines, Bee, you have been shopping long enough not to have asked.

The other thing I've seen is when they adapt a report to a new client that isn't quite the same and they haven't caught all the nuanced changes.

There are a couple schedulers that seem to have reading comprehension issues. Doesn't matter how many questions you ask or how you explain yourself, they will give you a two-word answer to a question that you probably didn't ask because they didn't read your whole question.

This wasn't RBG and I don't recall anyone saying anything negative about this scheduler on this forum.

Other schedulers have done the same things (not answering all questions, misrepresenting what guidelines covered, etc.). It's frustrating, a waste of time, and makes a bad impression that affects the working relationship (however slightly). Everyone makes mistakes sometimes but it makes me wary when schedulers (or editors) won't acknowledge they were wrong.

I find it best to enumerate the questions -- i.e.

Dear Scheduler:

In reviewing the guidelines for the shop at the Acme Explosive Company, I have two questions:

1. The guidelines state that I am to inquire about explosives designed for multiple species. They state that I should ask about "road runners and." That sentence just ends there. What is the other species which I am to inquire about?

2. The guidelines state both that "the shop may be performed any day of the week" and that the shop "may not be performed on the weekend." Which is it?

I look forward to your response addressing both of these two questions so that I may collect data which is most useful to the client.

Thank you, in advance, for answering my two questions,

Regards,

Shopper

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 09/15/2023 11:41AM by Rousseau.

I agree with Rousseau, ive been listing my questions and numbering and separating them in a list.

Ive found in the past if more than one question is asked in a paragraph, they might answer the first question and that's it. I think they are very busy and skim over the email quickly.

So far this way has worked better for full responses..

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The more I learn about people...the more I like my dog..

Mark Twain

It's funny, but I have actually read 2 above in instructions. It's hilarious now that I am reading it on here.

Shopping Arkansas, Louisiana, & Mississippi.

#2 Ha Ha My reaction is they meant weekdays which to me means Monday thru Friday. My interpretation was after I read no weekends. If the instructions said weekdays that is what I would have interpreted it as. The expressions used in one part of the country may not be understandable to someone somewhere else while it is crystal clear to someone who grew up in your area. That may explain some of the confusion but the msc should take care to put in enough detail and in plain words such as Monday thru Friday that everyone will understand.
My favorite example of this local speech is this.. I grew up in NYC where "a couple" (of items, not of significant others) meant a handful. When I moved away and had a restaurant job in another state people would come in and order "a couple of donuts" or "a couple of pieces of chicken." I would always then ask, "how many would you like," and the reply would always be "a couple" and then i might ask if they wanted 2 or 3 or 4 and they would look at me like I was crazy. And I would look at them like they were crazy. To this day 45-50 years later and not having ever lived in NY again I still think a couple means a handful.

Yeah, in NY a guy with a southern accent ordered, "Tea." He was so mad when I gave him hot tea, per the norm there, over and over. He kept saying that's not tea. Years later I realized he meant iced tea. Many places in the south just don't do hot tea.

No in the South it's usually sweet tea. Iced tea with sugar in it. If he didn't specify, it was on him.

Actually he should have ordered an iced tea. Otherwise it wasn't the server's fault.

33 years living in Dallas so don't call me out on this. Or do if you've experienced otherwise.

The thing Schedulers do that I don't like is when I ask..."I may be out in Anytown USA on the 5th; nothing is definite yet. I see the deadline for the shop is the 1st. If I'm out there, can it be extended to the 5th?"

And then they assign it to me.

The funny thing is that the 4 or 5 times it happened to me...I ended up doing the shop anyway.

metro why was it funny you did the shop you asked for? there seems to be a sentence missing or my brain is missing.
I guess my brain was actually missing yesterday. Thanks for the explanation. I was thinking the scheduler was saying nothing was definite. Maybe my eyesight was missing yesterday as well and I did not follow the " ".

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/16/2023 06:21PM by sandyf.

Because metro was only asking if the date could be extended IF they ended up going that way and said their plans were not definite yet.

I hate when a scheduler assigns you to a different date than you request, then say oh I thought when you signed up for the second last day of the rotation it meant you could do any day up until that point..... Like, no, it asks you to pick a specific date for a reason .....

In my experience, the tea choices in the South are sweet or unsweet, the ice just assumed..

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Things I Wish Schedulers Wouldn't Do

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