This Could Have Been So Much Easier
If you read my scathing rant last night about a particularly screwed up work assignment, I have an update for you. I spoke to one of the other account managers—one who is consistently much more responsible about her job—this morning and told her of my troubles. She was able to get into the other account manager’s email, where—lo and behold—we discovered the source of the request!
The client had sent in a request to get a Quark template so they could use it as a base to do a redesign for next year’s magazine. THAT’S. IT. I’m not sure, but I bet they could easily use any of my existing sets of Quark files from earlier in the year, since the design is irrelevant—they just want a set of completed data that they can work with as a real-world example. Do you know how easy it would have been for the account manager to hit the FORWARD button and send me that message, so I would have some context? About as easy as blinking your eyes…and that’s about how long it would have taken, too. But no. Because she either didn’t think or just didn’t give a shit, my entire night was ruined. I’m just glad the other account manager was able to help me, because now at least it looks like my whole vacation won’t have to be ruined likewise.
Once we started to figure out what was going on, the helpful account manager sent an email to the troublesome account manager, telling her that we found the source of the Quark request and it looks like we could just send over any existing Quark files for the client to work with. In short, we asked for a confirmation of that fact. The matter won’t be fully resolved until we hear back, but I’m hoping that by then, I’ll be able to rest easy.
So let this be a lesson to you, children. A few extra seconds of thinking ahead might make or break your day—or the day of your fellow employees. Don’t be a cackblaster. Think.
Edit @ 11:34 AM: “Confirmed!” Turns out the client will be fine with an older set of Quark files which are already produced. All I have to do is email them over. God…what a nightmare this has been, and for no good reason! But at least it’s finally over.
Categorized as Rants