I attended a presentation given by a famous behavior analyst, who spoke about an almost unbelievable success story. The child had extreme problem behavior that was very successfully treated. In addition, the child had learned many great language skills, social skills, and academic skills. The data were incredible. Yet, the parent was complaining. How could it possibly be that a program with this level of incredible success did not have a happy client? I think this problem is not uncommon. Why? What’s going on here?
If you go to a restaurant and get a great meal, excellent service, for a good price, you are likely to return. But what if after that one great experience, the meals were lousy? Eventually, you would get annoyed and stop returning, right?
Something about behavior analysis makes us think our services are different from any other service. I suspect it has something to do with the emotional energy put into the work. If you talk to many of us when a client is unhappy, we start to tell the story of the great success we have achieved with this client. That’s not going to work. We deliver a service, like any other. We are in the business of What Have You Done for Me Lately?
Can you imagine a restaurant fixating on their past service, while ignoring what’s happening in the present?
Customer: This meal is not what I ordered, it is cold, and there are bugs on the plate.
Restaurant Manager: Yes, I know we are having some trouble today, but remember when we gave you a great meal two years ago?
In many situations, once you have solved the client’s initial complaint, that is just the start. In most situations, after we solve one problem, there are usually lots of other problems that need to be addressed to help clients live rich, full, and meaningful lives. We are paid to solve problems. As soon as you are not effectively solving problems, expect to have complaints.