Customer service, German version
Sep. 21, 2006
So many things we want these days—an apartment closer to Fernando’s work and to the city center, information about how to meet other expats, language lessons that fit our schedules, and to begin planning that visit to Paris we have been talking about for as long as we’ve been talking about moving to Germany. I’ve spent the last two weeks thinking that if only I had internet at home, I could be more productive during Leo’s daily nap and do some Google research. Or in the evening Fernando and I could work on booking cheap hotel and airfare for the hoped-for trip. Yet, even though back at home we did everything on the internet, it seems that here in Hannover, even if we did have a connection, it might be difficult to move forward on these projects at the speed we Americans like (instantaneous). For one thing, we’re still disoriented and don’t speak the language. So that’s our problem. But Germany just isn’t a self-service culture like the U.S. And that’s their problem—oh wait, make that our problem now, too. Back in July when we visited Solvay here to work through the details of our move and his job transfer, Fernando noticed that for every little transaction there’s a particular person responsible. There are professional, full-time, salaried, impossible-to-fire people who do what we often do ourselves back home. For example, to rent an apartment, we have an agent. To sign up for a language course, Fernando has been told to talk to a “language course coordinator”. And to take a trip, we talk to a travel agent. OK, sure, these functions also exist in the States, but you don’t use them if you don’t want to. Here, however, we must rely on these people not just because we’re clueless, but because it seems to be the German way of doing things. Unfortunately, these intermediaries, these go-betweens, these liaisons, these “contact people”… sometimes feel more like obstacles than facilitators. Referring to a conversation with one of these intermediaries, Fernando declared the other day that “there’s just no customer service in this country”. How could this be possible, with all these people facilitating your every financial, residential, leisure, and linguistic decision? Counterintuitive yes, but please, read on. Here’s an explanation of what we’re running up against, detailing our projects and the various go-betweens who have had the frustration of dealing with us on them.
Find an apartment to rent.
Enter Solvay’s real estate agent, July 2006. Supposedly knowing we’re a family of three and looking for a “flat”, Mrs. Farahmand spends an entire day showing us tons of available residences, from town house to penthouse, most with 4-5 bedrooms and as many floors, with a price range of 675 to 2200 euros per month. That’s a pretty big range. After the day of showing, Fernando reiterates who we are and what we’re looking for. Mrs. Farahmand is dropped, and Solvay’s other agent is called in. Once she is informed of what we want, she tells us matter-of-factly it’s absolutely impossible to get it, and certainly not before 2007. Fernando spends a quarter of an hour on the phone explaining to the woman that we’d be willing to negotiate on certain factors. This seems completely unheard of to her. She said she’d call me, and we’re still waiting, three days later…
Take language lessons.
This is done through a Solvay language coordinator. She wants Fernando to tell her what he wants, but will not suggest or offer any information about what they have to offer. He remembers vaguely that this coordinator works with several institutes, but none are named. Fernando consults with me, and then tells the woman what I want—early evening classes. It turns out I can’t have that, so, try again. Now it looks like I’ll be taking early evening classes, but private ones. Goodbye, dream of making lifelong friends with German classmates…
Plan a trip.
I tried to do this, yesterday afternoon, with a travel agent, thinking maybe there would be 3 or 4 days all inclusive package deals to Paris. I go into the agency with Leo, and to my relief, it is confirmed that English is Spoken. When I ask about their travel deals, however, the woman points to three of the room’s four walls, covered in magazines advertising the different tourism companies’ offerings. The woman suggests that I look through these thick magazines, decide what we want, and come back to book the trip. I’m almost convinced, but just as I reach for one of the magazines, I realize I’ll have an awful lot of trouble reading the German. I ask if we can have a conversation, to get a “general sense” of what’s out there. Confused, the woman cursorily asks me to take a seat and opens one of the books to the Paris section. Without asking me what kind of place we want or what our budget is, she circle two hotels, closes the book, and suggests I do the rest of the selecting and come back to book. When I ask her about flights, she quotes me three different airlines, from expensive to outrageous. I nod and smile and make a pact to never come back, and to book this trip only with the help of Rick Steves.
These people are doing their job, and clearly, by the book. But we want to be wowed. I want my real estate agent to convince me that yes, five bedrooms are a must and that six flights of stairs is actually constructive fun for a one year old. We want our travel agent to ask us questions and see what kind of trip we want to take and how much we want to spend. I want the language coordinator to find a German class that takes place in the early evening, when people are done with work, or tell me why private classes are superior.
Convince us, already!!! Sell us something!!!!
It seems like to the Germans, the product or the “service” or the thing or whatever, speaks for itself, and must not be questioned. Not surprising in a country that created the Ultimate Driving Machine and other ingenious products of engineering. In fact, they probably hate it when people try to sell them things. Oddly enough, what I want right now is a car salesman type person as my next intermediary. We probably will be buying a used car some time soon. Will we be able to do a test drive, or should just looking at it be enough? We’ll keep you posted.
So many things we want these days—an apartment closer to Fernando’s work and to the city center, information about how to meet other expats, language lessons that fit our schedules, and to begin planning that visit to Paris we have been talking about for as long as we’ve been talking about moving to Germany. I’ve spent the last two weeks thinking that if only I had internet at home, I could be more productive during Leo’s daily nap and do some Google research. Or in the evening Fernando and I could work on booking cheap hotel and airfare for the hoped-for trip. Yet, even though back at home we did everything on the internet, it seems that here in Hannover, even if we did have a connection, it might be difficult to move forward on these projects at the speed we Americans like (instantaneous). For one thing, we’re still disoriented and don’t speak the language. So that’s our problem. But Germany just isn’t a self-service culture like the U.S. And that’s their problem—oh wait, make that our problem now, too. Back in July when we visited Solvay here to work through the details of our move and his job transfer, Fernando noticed that for every little transaction there’s a particular person responsible. There are professional, full-time, salaried, impossible-to-fire people who do what we often do ourselves back home. For example, to rent an apartment, we have an agent. To sign up for a language course, Fernando has been told to talk to a “language course coordinator”. And to take a trip, we talk to a travel agent. OK, sure, these functions also exist in the States, but you don’t use them if you don’t want to. Here, however, we must rely on these people not just because we’re clueless, but because it seems to be the German way of doing things. Unfortunately, these intermediaries, these go-betweens, these liaisons, these “contact people”… sometimes feel more like obstacles than facilitators. Referring to a conversation with one of these intermediaries, Fernando declared the other day that “there’s just no customer service in this country”. How could this be possible, with all these people facilitating your every financial, residential, leisure, and linguistic decision? Counterintuitive yes, but please, read on. Here’s an explanation of what we’re running up against, detailing our projects and the various go-betweens who have had the frustration of dealing with us on them.
Find an apartment to rent.
Enter Solvay’s real estate agent, July 2006. Supposedly knowing we’re a family of three and looking for a “flat”, Mrs. Farahmand spends an entire day showing us tons of available residences, from town house to penthouse, most with 4-5 bedrooms and as many floors, with a price range of 675 to 2200 euros per month. That’s a pretty big range. After the day of showing, Fernando reiterates who we are and what we’re looking for. Mrs. Farahmand is dropped, and Solvay’s other agent is called in. Once she is informed of what we want, she tells us matter-of-factly it’s absolutely impossible to get it, and certainly not before 2007. Fernando spends a quarter of an hour on the phone explaining to the woman that we’d be willing to negotiate on certain factors. This seems completely unheard of to her. She said she’d call me, and we’re still waiting, three days later…
Take language lessons.
This is done through a Solvay language coordinator. She wants Fernando to tell her what he wants, but will not suggest or offer any information about what they have to offer. He remembers vaguely that this coordinator works with several institutes, but none are named. Fernando consults with me, and then tells the woman what I want—early evening classes. It turns out I can’t have that, so, try again. Now it looks like I’ll be taking early evening classes, but private ones. Goodbye, dream of making lifelong friends with German classmates…
Plan a trip.
I tried to do this, yesterday afternoon, with a travel agent, thinking maybe there would be 3 or 4 days all inclusive package deals to Paris. I go into the agency with Leo, and to my relief, it is confirmed that English is Spoken. When I ask about their travel deals, however, the woman points to three of the room’s four walls, covered in magazines advertising the different tourism companies’ offerings. The woman suggests that I look through these thick magazines, decide what we want, and come back to book the trip. I’m almost convinced, but just as I reach for one of the magazines, I realize I’ll have an awful lot of trouble reading the German. I ask if we can have a conversation, to get a “general sense” of what’s out there. Confused, the woman cursorily asks me to take a seat and opens one of the books to the Paris section. Without asking me what kind of place we want or what our budget is, she circle two hotels, closes the book, and suggests I do the rest of the selecting and come back to book. When I ask her about flights, she quotes me three different airlines, from expensive to outrageous. I nod and smile and make a pact to never come back, and to book this trip only with the help of Rick Steves.
These people are doing their job, and clearly, by the book. But we want to be wowed. I want my real estate agent to convince me that yes, five bedrooms are a must and that six flights of stairs is actually constructive fun for a one year old. We want our travel agent to ask us questions and see what kind of trip we want to take and how much we want to spend. I want the language coordinator to find a German class that takes place in the early evening, when people are done with work, or tell me why private classes are superior.
Convince us, already!!! Sell us something!!!!
It seems like to the Germans, the product or the “service” or the thing or whatever, speaks for itself, and must not be questioned. Not surprising in a country that created the Ultimate Driving Machine and other ingenious products of engineering. In fact, they probably hate it when people try to sell them things. Oddly enough, what I want right now is a car salesman type person as my next intermediary. We probably will be buying a used car some time soon. Will we be able to do a test drive, or should just looking at it be enough? We’ll keep you posted.
posted by J&F at 11:23 PM
1 Comments:
Wow. Welcome to the Machine. You know the service industry is in tough shape when you are longing for a used car salesman. What's next? Staring at the phone, praying for a telemarketer to call?
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