Who was crazier???
Many moons ago (you know, the mid-80s), I was running a Customer Service operation for Citi in Melville, Long Island.
We occupied the same building @ 100 Baylis Road as other Citi back-Office businesses, including Dealer Finance. (DF was responsible for our indirect lending at various car dealerships around the area, as well as financing the dealer’s floor models, etc..)
When you have loans on your books, you always tend to have customers who don’t pay their bills, so Dealer Finance also had their Collections Dept there to handle delinquent accounts.
One unwelcome aspect of such a shop is that you often get some very angry & irate customers, especially if you’re threatening to tow their car away for non-payment.
And receiving bomb threats (in any manner whatsoever) was always taken seriously.
On more than one occasion, the entire building was evacuated with all personnel in the entire building filing out into the parking lot.
Well, it happened again…but this time, it was a little different.
We’re waiting outside when a member of management (possibly Facilities Management or Security) approach me & two other officers.
They ask for our help in searching the building!!!
“Pls look in the bathroom stalls, trash bins, store rooms & closets for any type of suspicious package. If you discover anything, don’t touch it, but notify us immediately.”
That was a pretty-weird request, not to mention the potential danger associated with performing such actions.
The sicker part, however, was that…
…we actually accepted the responsibility & performed a thorough search of the 3-story building!
It finally dawned upon me, as I’m opening doors to the bathroom stalls, how very dangerous this was.
And how stupid I was for agreeing to do it (not to mention their stupidity for even asking us).
Nothing was found, the police arrived & everyone was allowed back into the building.
The moral of this story???
Don’t be stupid.
Don’t ask your people to do stupid, much less, dangerous things.
And don’t be stupid to willingly accept such idiotic requests.
If the statute of limitations hadn’t already run out…
Thanks for listening!
(Just like every story & experience I share with you, this one is 100% true & accurate.
In this case, unfortunately…though it could’ve been much worse!)
Posted in: Stranger Than Fiction
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