I love British mystery shows! I recently checked the PBS App to see if there were new murders in some idyllic English village. I almost skipped the "featured" program (Mr. Bates vs. the Post Office), but I liked the lead actor Toby Jones in Sherlock and decided to watch the preview. I was immediately hooked and binged the show over a couple days.
About the show from the PBS website: When money started to seemingly disappear from its local branches, the government-owned UK Post Office wrongly blamed its own managers for the apparent loss. Hundreds were harassed, accused of theft and fraud, even sent to prison—leaving lives, marriages, and reputations in ruins. But the issue was actually caused by errors in the Post Office’s own computer system; something it denied for years. (Here is a link to the preview. The show originally aired on ITV.
Legal Disclaimer: There are still on-going investigations and trials regarding this situation. This commentary is based on the TV program and will not include any information that is not publicly available. Also, I am going to share tips on testing and documentation. Company policies and laws vary. If you are in doubt, check with your company/legal advisor and if you are ever part of something like "one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in British legal history", talk to a lawyer (or solicitor or barrister).
In the first episode, someone calls Tech Support due to a discrepancy in the totals in the POS (Point of Sale) part of the software. They are told that "no one else" has had problems with the software and were given very strange "workaround" steps to try to fix the issue. The difference doubled!! That scene inspired this article. I won't spoil anything else from the show.
Lesson 1: Tips for Summitting a Case to Tech Support
I know you are probably upset and frustrated...but try to document as much information as you can including:
Get the name of the person that is helping you with the issue and ask if a Support Ticket number should be used if you need to call back.
Take a screenshot of the error. If support connects to your workstation to help troubleshoot, ask if you can record the session (this is possible via Zoom and Microsoft Teams). If you can’t take a screenshot, if it’s legal/permitted take a picture of your screen/the issue with your phone (something is better than nothing).
User ID and workstation information where you had the error. (Bonus points if you can find out if this happens for all users/workstations)
Has this ever happened before? If you have old support ticket numbers or emails, let the support person know. These might help them find the cause of the issue.
Discuss with support: Was there a recent software update or any new hardware?
Explain what happened versus what you expected to happen. Write down the steps that were done when you experienced the error.
I used Faststone Capture for the screenshot above. I love it and it was only $19.95 for a 1-user lifetime license! If you don’t want to buy a program, Microsoft includes the Snipping Tool with Office. You can set a delay in both options (this is perfect for showing dropdown menus). You can also record what you are doing on your screen.
Type Snipping Tool in the Search box of your Windows workstation.
Lesson 2: hOW TO IMPROVE TESTING AND SUPPORT
As I watched the show, it became clear that even when some of the characters did all the right things, they still were not believed and received terrible support. Watching how people were treated broke my heart!
There are countless people around the world that offer quality support! I know it is difficult!
It is important to keep calm! The person you are helping could be scared, frustrated, angry, or all of the above. Do not expect every customer to know how to speak in a way that your developers can understand. You are the interpreter! Keep calm and be respectful! (For tips on how to deal with difficult customers, read this article.)
Here are a few things I do:
Connect to their workstation via Zoom, MS Teams, or GoToAssist. I also offer recording the issue and will take screenshots. As I do that, I explain what I am doing and encourage them to do this next time they have an issue. If they don’t have a screenshot tool/don’t know how to use the built-in Microsoft Snipping Tool, you can send this link. (If your company can offer this type of service, it can really be an awesome way to see the issues that are being reported.)
Check if the person has a new workstation or is connecting in a new way. I have had issues with clients that did a new workstation setup and missed installing all the required add-on software.
If you are testing new software or newly added/changed features, make sure that your test environment includes the same setup. (I had a client that did not update the System Database, so testing didn’t catch a checkbox that was different on production.) Best practice is to have a mirror copy of production in an environment that will not update between test and production. Note that with GP, adding another company to the same SQL instance can cause issues when System Settings are changed during a testing project.
If you are testing, your job is to try to break it! Click all the buttons! Skip fields! Try different User profiles! Do the craziest things that the program allows so you can find the errors before your customers do! Once you have your perfect testing process established, turn it into a testing matrix. There are lots of tips and tools available online. If a new version is released, pull out those testing matrixes and “wash, rinse, repeat”.
I created a Knowledge Base in OneNote of tools and articles that I have used in the past. (If your company has a more formal portal for this information, develop a policy for submitting new articles and updating existing ones).
Sample “OneNote” with GP Tips.
I hope you learned a couple tips in this article. I just was so moved by the beautiful way such a tragic story was told. Sometimes with Tech Support or Software Testing it is easy to forget that bugs, bad training, and bad support can cause people pain and suffering outside of “normal business hours”. On the other hand, if you can make a program that solves their issues or offer support to fix a problem or improve a process, you help them have a better day at the office, and maybe even help them be a happier, calmer, and better person when they get home!
