Call me crazy, but I think you should be nice to your software vendor’s support representative.
I know people can have a tendency to be rough with them since their organization is paying big bucks for support. But I think you’re better off being nice to them for the following reasons:
1) They are usually human beings. (I think humans should be nice to each other.)
2) They almost always are overloaded with work and pressure from clients. Being mean to them will probably not decrease their workload or pressure.
3) If your support rep is happy, he/she will probably perform better at his/her job.
4) If you get on their bad side, he/she can easily make decisions (consciously or subconsciously) to avoid helping you. People naturally are inclined to someone who is soft and caring and they naturally turn away from someone who is harsh.
5) They are more likely to go the extra mile for you when you need them to.
6) If you need them to come up with a creative solution to a problem you are having with the software, they will be relaxed and able to brainstorm better.
Are these enough reasons?
If your support rep is truly incompetent, you probably need to escalate that with your management and the software vendor’s management.
I’ve found that winning your support rep’s heart is the best way to have a good relationship with him/her. In turn, you can get a lot more done and still feel good about it.
Story Time:
A software vendor support rep once told me that throughout the day, he has many points at which he chooses which client’s issues to work on. The ones who are jerks get chosen last.
What do you think? Do you have examples where being nice to your support rep has worked well? What about examples where yelling at your support rep won the day?
healthcare i.t. worker 