Contacting Schools: a plea for communication
Is this familiar? The contacts usually go something like this:
Call the school Reception.
"Hello, my name is Mark Eagers and I would like to speak with X [name garnered from the staff list on the school's website, if they have one published and which is actually up to date]"
"What is it about?" [Surely that's between me and the contact?]
"well, it concerns the learning support your students might need either before they come to your school or over half terms etc etc"
At this point, the receptionist will make a judgement: to put through or dismiss me with a contemptuous swat.
"I'll just see if X is in."
X's office is called.
"Some bloke/chap/man (delete as appropriate) wants to speak with you about learning support etc"
"I'm really busy. Tell him I am teaching/in a meeting/not in the office/field trip/SLT/Assembly (delete as appropriate)..."
At this point, I too am playing bingo: which reply will I receive? It's the only way I can keep my humour and sense of perspective. But it is pretty soul destroying.
"I'm afraid to say that X is teaching/in a meeting/not in the office/field trip/SLT/assembly. What is your number and they will call you back" [No, in 98% of cases they won't]. And/or "Please send him/her a mail and I'm sure they will reply". Again, see above though the stat is probably about 95% probability of 'no reply'.
Since the end of the last century - such is my age - I have been in senior positions in schools and Colleges (as Deputy Head, Head and Principal) and to speak with me I have always had the Receptionist and my PAs as gatekeepers to keep people at bay. The ball is firmly on the other foot now in my current role and I really should know better.
However, my plea is that while a call may be hard to take during the busy working day, answering a mail politely is really very quick to do (PAs can even do this!).
Managing Director at Cambridge English Class Ltd.
8 年It is such a shame that teachers are so busy that they have little time to seek out new solutions to problems, except perhaps at the start of term or in their holidays. Like you Mark, I have had similar responses. The irony is that since I stopped being in a teaching role in a school, I have more time to explore all the things that would have saved me time and effort.
This is why I have a "Hannah". A firewall against cold callers. We probably get about 20 cold callers a day - that's on top of salespeople we actually deal with who want to "touch base", or "work with us" to increase our order values. If I took all those calls, I wouldn't have time to do the work I'm actually paid for!
Sales Performance Consultant
8 年In our Conceptual Selling training, we have a concept called Valid Business Reason which is the compelling reason why he/she should want to engage with you expressed FROM HIS/HER POINT OF VIEW not yours. This means understanding and articulating what they are trying to FIX, ACCOMPLISH or AVOID. If you can condense this into a message, voicemail or email subject header, you might catch their attention. If it wasn't already obvious, hope this helps
Part Time Tree Surgeon's Assistant
8 年So true Mark, It also happens to me when I phone Local Authority staff who you I know and email regularly! My wife (Suzie) has this all the time when tries to speak to art teachers, you are not alone in this.
I have probably had 'They are in a meeting' 3 times today then the usual send an email to the info@ email address. Sometimes fibbing can help, saying that you have already spoken before may get you through. It is just the cold calling world that baffles many of us trying to get our heads in the door for one reason or another.