Omo, something’s Dey tire person to rant cos WTF is this rubbish naa. Like why person go Dey wicked to the detriment of lives. The way am so pissed ehh, you wouldn’t even advise me to write. Cos na mine voice supposed do justice to this rant.
Yes, I understand. In business, mistakes happen. E fit be me, it can also be you. Nobody is perfect but taking accountability shouldn’t be an option.
A package can be damaged in transit. A customer can receive the wrong item. A product can arrive in a condition completely different from how it was sent. These things may sometimes be unavoidable but how a business responds when something goes wrong is a choice.
That is where accountability comes in.
Accountability is more than admitting that something went wrong. It is taking responsibility, investigating what happened, communicating honestly with the customer, and making a genuine effort to correct the situation.
Imagine I sent some tailoring stuffs from Onitsha to Ogoja for one of my colleagues through Onitsha South Motos. And she ended up getting one of the items damaged even after the weigh bill was delayed and sent bit by bit without any notification.
After going through the stress of going to their office to know what’s up with the delay because their number wasn’t available. Poor me, thinking that’s the end of it… boom my colleague calls me later in the day to tell me she got one of the items damaged. Omo, na so I come weak for this kind case. Apparently, she already spoke with the manager in Ogoja and she was told to reach out to Onitsha branch.
Ok oo, as the person that registered the package, I had to go there the second time to lay a complaint but before heading to their office. I choose to speak with them over the phone to know if it’s something that can be resolved immediately without visiting.
Guess what, they decided to show me pepper by hanging up on me immediately I spoke about the damaged item. Ok oo, innocent me. I choose to convince myself that it was probably network so I dialed their number again. Lo and behold, I was wrong cos the number became unavailable. It wasn’t even ringing let alone registering as missed call. Now the next question should be…
Who is responsible?
The customer may not have caused the damage which I did not. Though they tried blaming me for inappropriate packaging but it doesn’t change the fact that they mishandled the item for it to get damaged. See me, thinking the package got damaged during transportation, only for me to get to their office and find out that they actually got it spoiled in their office before transportation.
Honestly, this was what got me to pen this story down. The level of their wickedness, how can they be this nonchalant to send the goods like that without informing their client. Mind you, I carried this package in the market while getting other stuffs before handing it over to them yet it wasn’t ruined in my possession. Considering the hours of movement I had this package in my care, the weight of the paper didn’t break the board in transit but broke the board at rest in their office after spending few days.
Regardless of what caused it, the first responsibility of the service provider should be to acknowledge the problem and investigate it.
That is accountability. But no, they did not neither did they apologize for the damaged item. Now, my colleague is obviously not only dealing with damaged goods. She is dealing with disappointment, inconvenience and uncertainty because this is not the first time Onitsha South motos has done this to her.
When a customer pays for a service, they are placing their trust in the business.
Whether it is fashion, transportation, catering, logistics or any other service, the customer expects reasonable care.
If goods are damaged while under a company's responsibility, the customer should not simply be told to accept the loss without investigation just to make the client bear the cost of someone else’s mistake.
Another thing that got me worked up was the management, the system was clearly not working at all. Obviously there isn’t no difference between a registered package under the company and the one you sent through the driver. After the whole meet the person to this person to another person, nothing was acknowledged let alone settling for a compensation.
To be sincere, I wasn’t happy the way they handled this complaint. You know what they say, little things matter. This board doesn’t cost much yet they couldn’t handle the issue, how much more if it were something worth a fortune.
Well I don’t blame my colleague for letting it slide because she feels it isn’t worth more to cause chaos… but how long will she keep swallowing this injustice. If you don’t speak out, they ain’t gonna change.
Accountability Is Good Business No business will operate perfectly all the time.
There will be mistakes,misunderstandings and unexpected problems. What separates a trustworthy business from an unreliable one is not necessarily the absence of mistakes.
It is what happens after the mistake.
A business that takes accountability shows that it values more than making money. It values trust, relationships and reputation.
And in a world where customers have countless choices, trust can be one of the most valuable things a business owns.
Because when something goes wrong, saying “it's not my fault” may end the conversation but taking responsibility can save the relationship.
Thanks for Reading.
Bye
