The employees of Verizon are now well into their second month of
the strike, and it’s coming at a toll for the company. The workers are striking in order to protest Verizon relocating workers, as well as outsourcing work
to outside of the U.S.
Company representatives and union officials have been meeting in Washington to negotiate terms for a new contract. Although initially Verizon was quite
certain customer service would not be affected, Fran Shammo, chief financial officer has now reported otherwise.
Missed Opportunities
Verizon has been losing most of its money from potential customers. Customers when looking to choose an internet provider want instant installation. Due
the the strike however, Verizon simply does not have enough manpower to meet customer expectations, thus seeing a huge drop in installations and orders for
Verizon Fios.
Shammo confidently stated that although they might lose potential customers now, once they begin offering installations again, a new flood of customers
will come in, making up for any potential loss.
Although Shammo predicts that when things settle down Verizon will be able to make up for lost time, my question is: Will customers want to come back to a
company that offered a temporary lapse in less than par customer service? It’s no hidden secret that companies must always put the customer ahead of
potential costs if they want to keep the customers they have.
How do you think Verizon will be able to save face and reassure customers that they are ready to provide great customer service, even amidst the current
strike. One thing is certain, for Verizon’s sake, the strike will have to end soon.