Follett responds!

["H. Grant" <hgrant@GATECOM.COM>]

Last week, I posted great frustration with Follett's technical
services.  They were too busy to answer the phones so you were switched
to an answering service and Follett was supposed to return your call.
(They haven't unless you count the one from this guy after I left for
the day.)  I received many emails from you sharing my concern and giving
me horror stories greater than my own problems.

I did get through with my first concern on Thursday right before they
closed for the evening.  They had put my order (for plastic borrower
cards) on hold and never planned to bring it off hold and send me my
order.  That got me concerned about my barcode order that I faxed to
them in April and still hadn't received (barcode printing takes longer
so I was giving them ample time).  They claim that they never got an
order.  I have all my fax info so I know it was received.  I re-faxed it
Friday afternoon and will wait again.  Customer service did not offer to
rush print these.  Now, I am stuck waiting until after the summer to get
my new 6th graders in the computer!

Here is the response:

"I noticed your concerns posted to LM_NET and was hoping to contact you
this afternoon to clarify the information you received from our staff.
Unfortunately, I was unable to reach you in your office, so I left a
message in voice mail and elected to follow-up via email.

First, please allow me to apologize for any confusion and frustration
you
have experienced as a result of speaking with our staff.  Next, let me
assure you we remain committed to providing excellent service to our
customers throughout the year, and especially during the busy periods as

school library staff work to close out the school year in the spring,
and
prepare for the start of a new school year in the fall.  We understand
time
is of the essence when library staff are calling for assistance with
orders
or use of the system and know we need to provide immediate response.

This year we have experienced higher call volumes than expected, and
have
taken steps to ensure that we are able to provide a live answer without
long
hold times.  As such, we have added additional staff to handle incoming
calls.  While the new staff are eager to help, they do not yet have the
experience and knowledge of the regular staff.  Therefore, we are using
the
new staff to answer and route all incoming calls based upon the type of
question and/or problem encountered.  However, heavy volume during peak
periods can delay our response.  We strive to provide a return call
within
the same day, but in some cases, we are not able to make contact until
the
next day.

We recognize the value in a direct response rather than a call back, and

are
working diligently to expand our capacity and skills to provide the
quality
of service and support you expect.

John W. Dierker
Executive Director of Services
Follett Software Company
a Follett Corporation Company
jdierker@fsc.follett.com <mailto:jdierker@fsc.follett.com>
800.323.3397  ext.  7467"

H. Grant
Media Specialist
Highland Middle School
Highland, Michigan
hgrant@gatecom.com

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