[BC] Professional Respect - from the other side of the street...

[Cowboy]

On Friday 15 December 2006 09:43 am, Jeff Welton wrote:
>Perhaps I should have avoided the example,

 OK.....

>I guess what I'm looking for are answers and ideas.....
>
>- what can we do to make your job easier (I'm not talking about doing the job 
for you, just taking some of the stress out of your life at 3 am).  We all 
know stuff breaks; now, what should I be expecting from you and what do you 
expect from me when you pick up that phone?

 You *should* expect from me to have the competence, and to have taken
 the time ( made the effort ) to exhaust anything already in the manual.

 Probably, you'll get a call from me hoping you can answer my question
 faster than I can find it in the manual, though I don't always expect that
 from you. ( some might )

 Realisticly, you can expect a reasonably competent broadcast engineer
 ( in most cases, and if not suggest they find one ) who is simply unfamiliar
 with the failure mode being exhibited, and possibly completely unfamiliar
 with your product, or this particular model anyway.

 There *is* a rumor that no one knows about Nautel, because they never break !

 You can expect him to volunteer any information he thinks may be pertinant,
 which may or may not be sufficient. You should expect a reasonable response
 to a request for additional information.

 You should not expect the station to have a dummy load, although they
 really should have one.
 You should not expect the engineer to have a bridge handy,
 though some of us might, and if so the ability to use it may be absent.
 You should not expect the station, if a DA, to have a common point bridge
 in their phasor, though many do.

 What I expect from you, are accurate answers to the questions I might ask,
 PROVIDED I've given enough info to make that possible.
 I expect you to ask for more specific information before giving me that
 answer, though I strive to avoid that step, or to have already collected
 it and have it available before calling.
 I expect the transmitter indicators themselves to provide most, if not
 all, of that information. If they don't, that's a design issue, and a
 discussion for another time, but then you should expect me to know
 nothing that the transmitter can't tell me.

 I expect you to know, or have access to, just about all information regarding
 your product.
 I do NOT expect you to know, or even be willing to troubleshoot the 
installation,
 EXCEPT as may be necessary to diagnose the problem limited to the TX.
 In other words, you should be able to reasonably assess a bad load, but
 should not go into much about how to verify that, beyond the transmitter
 readings that would indicate final loading, such as final voltage and final 
current ratio.

>- how can we get information to you?  This goes mostly to station engineers, 
but would also apply to contractors.  As an example, how many of you are 
aware we've put "live chat" on our website? 

 For me, I'll never use "live chat."
 I'd rather talk to a real human being by phone.
 I'm good with e-mail, too, but not for anything I might have to
 consider picking up the phone, such as at the site after hours.

>- what is your preferred method of receiving information on 
software/hardware/firmware upgrades and whether or not they apply to your 
specific equipment? 

 E-mail in one of two forms.
 Either including the information, if brief, or notifying that there is
 new information on the web site AND providing a copyable link
 directly to that info, preferably without sales nonsense, dancing
 bears, and flaming fireballs, or ANY kind of flash movie.
 ( not that you do )

>- it's been raised before, but at what level will you accept that we may need 
to find somebody else with the answer? 

 Wow ! This can get tough, as we all have our own preferences.
 I'd say anything that can take a station off the air should be available
 at any time, but will make a reasonable allowance that the guy on the
 phone might have to wake someone else up to find out.

 One company actually said to me, in a real off-air situation, that I'd
 have to call back after lunch !  NOT acceptable !
 If the station has a backup, and it's 2 AM, OK, but come on !

 Reduced power ? If the guy doesn't have to wake someone up, 
 otherwise it can wait until morning. No one will die just because a
 station is at 50%, or 30% power. Maybe the most common failures
 that would cause this to happen, but not necessarily in depth analysis
 by the designer.

 Installation type questions, yes, *IF* I've extended you the courtesy to
 notify in advance and request availability, otherwise no.
 Pretty much no one does that after hours, but it would be a plus for
 your company if you did.

 I'm thinking a cut-over that must be scheduled over night, where a
 situation might occur, but I'd also be reasonably expected to schedule
 the possibility with you in advance, not make an "emergency" call because
 I have failed to properly plan. This will be common with HD for a while yet.

>This is the kind of information I'm looking for - along with any other ideas 
you may have.  I certainly didn't intend to start a lambasting session of the 
possibly hypothetical station in my example. 

 Hypotheticly, that station needs more than you can be reasonably, or
 unreasonably for that matter, expected to provide *for free* !

 For free, give 'em my number, and hang up !
 ( "my number" being used as an example. Refer 'em to someone
 who can deal with their "issues" locally )

 The opinions expressed here ARE the opinion of my employer, that
 being me, having dealt with such situations in the past.

-- 
Cowboy

http://cowboys.homeip.net

Confidence is the feeling you have before you understand the
situation.