Poor Communication

I have held a few jobs in my lifetime, and although I have had a job since my freshman year in high school, I have had very few miscommunications in the work place. One of my jobs was as a neighborhood lawn mower, so miscommunication never occurred since I was the only one in my business. I always tried to make sure that the customer knew when I was going to mow/when they needed to pay. Only on a couple occasions was a person gone when I mowed their lawn, so I would have to prove to them that I had done it while they were away. Otherwise, no miscommunication occurred.

While at my job at Firehouse Subs, the only miscommunication that occurred was with customer orders. Although we were told to make a specific sandwich, sometimes the cashier would ring up the wrong sub and we would have to make an entirely new sub for the person. This miscommunication was very costly to the restaurant, especially during peak operating hours (mostly lunch time on weekdays). We would have to put that sandwich ahead of every one else's, causing a back up on tickets, and sometimes, causing people to leave because the line was long. The customer might receive a negative image about Firehouse Subs, but we would try to fix it with bringing the correct sandwich out quickly, and sometimes we would offer something for free to make up for the mistake. This miscommunication could have been prevented by the cashier taking his/her time to make sure the order was correct. By repeating the customers order, the customer could make sure that it was all correct before any mistakes were made, saving the customer time and hassle, and saving us from having to make extra subs.

Although this happened, it did not happen as often as someone would think, especially during the hectic times. I believe communication in Firehouse Subs was handled very well, and everyone within the business made sure everything was communicated properly and clearly. If anything was ever misunderstood, someone would clarify the situation and make sure the person would have the correct knowledge for future use.

I have been fortunate enough to not have to deal too much with miscommunication. I do believe, however, that if I was involved in miscommunication I would be able to deal with the problem very well, based on my experience with my lawn mowing business and Firehouse Subs. I know what it takes to solve the problems, and what customers expect, since I am also a customer and have been in their shoes.