Problem Solving

Over the years I've noticed that people at work can generally be divided into three groups when it comes to solving maintenance problems at work.

Group One - People who consciously or unconsciously never actually notice a problem.  I can't prove whether the cluelessness is deliberate or not.  But if you point out the problem to these people, they will say - wow, yes, there is a problem, but I did not notice it.

Group Two - People who notice the problem but choose to do absolutely nothing.  Sometimes it's because of ignorance - yes, there's a problem, but I don't know who to contact about it.  Sometimes, I attribute it to laziness - why should they do anything?  If they ignore it long enough someone else will take care of it.

Group Three - People who see a problem and actually take action to correct said problem.

Me, I tend to fall into Group Three.  It may not be my property, but there's no reason to let things deteriorate.  If I let something get to a point that it takes a LOT of money to fix, the company may decide to pay the money to fix it and then cut back in another area which could possibly cause me some annoyance.  Why chance it?

Example:  one day I'm walking to the break room shortly after getting to work to put something in the refrigerator.  No problems.  After lunch I walk to the break room to get my item out of the fridge.  On my way there, I have to walk by the soft drink machine.  On the first trip, no problems.  Second trip, there's a big damp spot in front of said vending machine.  Not good.  I get a piece of paper and a pen and write down the number of the company that owns the vending machine.  I give them a call.  They immediately know what is causing the damp spot.  They come out promptly, fix the problem and use a water-extracting machine on the carpet.

Note:  when I called the vending machine company, they reacted as though I was the first person to call.  It was never mentioned - oh, yes, that has already been reported.  Nope.

Now, I do not know the exact number of people working in the building.  But, between 8:00 AM and 1:00 PM, I was NOT the only person to walk past that machine.  Yet, nobody else called.  The number of the vending company was prominently displayed on the front of the machine.  Yet, nobody else called.  Writing down the number, walking to my desk and calling the company took less than five minutes.  Yet, nobody else made the effort. 

Sheesh!

Papillon