At what point should I publicly throw this guy under the bus

[Rudemouthsky]

  An employee of a certain Ducati dealer in my area, who I have stuck my neck out to defend on this forum, is really getting my meter in the red. 3 times now when I call for parts or tech information on the phone I've been treated so fantastically rude that I would want to smack the guy in the mouth if it happened in person. I was literally informed that I'm being a nuisance because they're busy with "customers"...as if I'm not one myself.

 I'm hot enough right now that I want to get the guy fired if I could...and that's about as much of a prickish, low down thing you could do. I don't ask for an ass kissing from my Ducati dealer by any means but some human decency and common courtesy are not unreasonable requests.

[Rudemouthsky]

   Jealous of you guys that have awesome dealers to work with. I have this asshat and another one that sells about 6 other brands beside Ducati.

[Rudemouthsky]

I'm pretty certain he doesn't know who I am when I call, which actually pisses me off more. Because I know he must do it to a lot of people.

[Spy+]

I give people the benefit of the doubt 3 times.. then, it is open season

[hbliam]

I'm gonna take a wild guess....starts with a K and ends with an evin?

[scduc]

Must be something in the air. Not sure where your from, but my parts dealer and service tech have been extremely far from personable as of late as well. My service tech won't even talk, he's to the point where everything has to be done via e-mail. I've chalked it up to them being busy. And my response to that is, I will buy as much as I can online and do as much service my self. F'em. I can get all of the knowledge I need from this board.

[Rudemouthsky]

Must be something in the air. Not sure where your from, but my parts dealer and service tech have been extremely far from personable as of late as well. My service tech won't even talk, he's to the point where everything has to be done via e-mail. I've chalked it up to them being busy. And my response to that is, I will buy as much as I can online and do as much service my self. F'em. I can get all of the knowledge I need from this board.

[Curmudgeon]

Having managed a couple of dealerships, I'd want to know if a valuable client was being abused. As long as YOU are not also an asshat, then I'd take the appropriate action. If the "other side of the story" didn't ring true, that employee would be history. Of course, even in this marketplace, good help can be hard to find.

[Skybarney]

Sorry to hear it Buck!  I have a pretty darn good dealer.  They remember my name when I come in, are super helpful and they even sent me a gift card for my birthday.  Too bad not everyone can have the same experience.  My dealer makes me feel like a valued customer and I buy a ton of my aftermarket stuff elsewhere!

[Rudemouthsky]

Having managed a couple of dealerships, I'd want to know if a valuable client was being abused. As long as YOU are not also an asshat, then I'd take the appropriate action. If the "other side of the story" didn't ring true, that employee would be history. Of course, even in this marketplace, good help can be hard to find.

I agree with that sentiment. I actually once got fired from a management position for standing up FOR my employee. The customer is not always right. But I'm honestly the anti-asshat. I  always give the worker the BOTD over The Man.

This guy has a split personality. When I'm actually at the dealer he's about as nice as can be. And when I call to inquire about buying anything pricey he's A1. (big surprise). He just acts like a shit when I need something inexpensive and they're busy. I'm not even rude in response.

What chaps my ass is the whole; "I have CUSTOMERS to help" crap, all snarky and pissy like. I buy most of my aftermarket stuff online but I never ask them to service it or advise about it, and I've had all my major mechanical service done at this dealership. And I WANT to buy my M1100 there next year, I really do.

[hbliam]

This guy has a split personality. When I'm actually at the dealer he's about as nice as can be. And when I call to inquire about buying anything pricey he's A1. (big surprise). He just acts like a shit when I need something inexpensive and they're busy. I'm not even rude in response.

You aren't describing a split personality, it's obviously all about him. If you are calling with something that will make him money or make him look good for making the sale then you are golden. If not then he doesn't have time for you. Typical short sighted douchebag.

And you failed to confirm my suspicion from above.

[Curmudgeon]

What chaps my ass is the whole; "I have CUSTOMERS to help" crap, all snarky and pissy like. I buy most of my aftermarket stuff online but I never ask them to service it or advise about it, and I've had all my major mechanical service done at this dealership. And I WANT to buy my M1100 there next year, I really do.

If you are saying that this employee is basically helpful but needs some serious training, then have a face-to-face word with him, and if that gets you nowhere, speak to the GM, provided he's "enlightened". No way I want potential big buck clients voting with their feet. As a manager, often you don't know until a survey reveals this by which time it's too late to correct.

I've been on the wrong side of this and been thrown under the bus too by J.D. Powers IQS which creates an absolute tyranny in the car biz for asshats. An enlightened manager can tell the difference between an isolated incident and a "pattern".

No idea how my dealer treats most. I give my name when I call. Usually that gets the desired result. My parts contact is the parts manager and he's so good, I think he holds the place together as he has extraordinary people skills whereas the dealer himself is a bit dry, although an exceptional mechanic/engineer. I appreciate people who can cut to the chase but some clients prefer a long slow dance.  That drives me bonkers but is an occupational hazard in retail.

If there are six people standing at the parts counter, your guy needs to take your number and then without fail get back to you when things quiet down. That dealership may also need another counter person or at least someone on the phones. I can appreciate that your guy may be flooded with calls from asshats and you've been thrown in there with them. If a client can't wait for a return phone call, the GM needs to decide whether that client is worth having and make staffing changes.

You'll need to "wing" this one because I'm not there to observe, but if it were my store, I'd want to know your POV. Unlike you, I'm more neutral in any dispute and just evaluate past employee worth/performance vs the merit of the slighted client's beef. In this case it appears some training is needed at the least and maybe some structural staff changes. If there is a pattern though with this particular employee and he can't made adjustments, then he needs to go.

[SDRider]

Have you tried talking to him about his attitude on the phone?  Maybe he doesn't even realize he's doing it.  Maybe just take him aside and casually mention it to him in a non-confrontational way.

[Privateer]

if he's an employee, he has a boss.  It's not your job to coach him on how to treat people.  That's his boss' job.  Your job as the customer is to tell the boss he's acting like a delta bravo.

Chomp on the boss, and if that doesn't make things better, chomp on the dealer principal.

[lawbreaker]

...Yet another reason to ditch the dealer and utilize the forums and their knowledgeable members for tech, and the sponsors and Indy shops for service and whatnot.