Our parking attendant, Felix, got fired last week. His customers - a disconnected batch of urban strangers — rose up in revolt. Felix has his job back, and we clients have returned to the anonymity of our various makes and models. But with satisfaction, a sense of justice, a perhaps a keener look at the unknown impact of our own employees.
Here's what happened: Seems a customer, from whom Felix collected the flat fee of $9.00, decided after 15 minutes that he didn't want to park after all. Instead, he wanted his $9 back. Felix declined, pointing out that flat fee means just that, whether 15 minutes or five hours. The customer - surely the operational definition of a jerk - called the cops and elaborated on his anguish, accusing Felix of threatening him with a dust broom. The cops left, customer complained to management, and management fired Felix for failing to phone the front office after an incident.
OUTRAGE IN THE PARKING LOT! Customer after customer, looking for Felix's face in the morning, inquired and were told the tale. And independently, customer after customer asked for the boss' phone number, called, e-mailed and protested. OK, he forgot to call management after the incident. A warning is perhaps in order. But you don't fire an employee like Felix. You send him to the Bahamas with a thank you note.
You see, Felix has made the parking of cars an act of kindness. He eases us into mornings that may have begun less warmly with our spouses. He never ever complains, even when we decide to leave unexpectedly and he has to move 7 carefully arranged cars to get to the one we buried.
He totes heavy bundles, opens doors, warns of impending flat tires or funny auto dunk dunk sounds. And once, when I dissolved in tears at the frustration of not finding my car key (OK, I'm not proud, but it was a bad day), Felix sent his wife to get me a spare without even asking me, just so I'd have an easier time.
You do not fire an employee like Felix. Not if you know about him, about his impact on your customers, on your product, on your brand. His manager knows now, reporting that he was flooded with protest and asking Felix to return to work. Felix has returned, though he is demoralized at the moment, shocked to find that he could give so much to his job and be treated so cavalierly by his boss. I would imagine it will be some time before his job performance recovers.
In the meantime, what about you? Do you know how much each person on your staff does or does not contribute to a general aura of well-being? Do you have employees whose subtle impact goes unrecognized? And, bottom line, when you are at work, are you the Felix or the jerk? Because we all lean one way or the other.
