Some of you may have noticed that we have a sign in the office reception area asking you to please wait until we call you up, before approaching the front desk.

We genuinely appreciate those that take the time to read it, and patiently wait their turn to be called up.

What you may not know is that there are several reasons why this is necessary:

  1. If a member has just walked away from our desk, we are often still processing things for them. To protect their privacy, nobody should be at the desk until we have finished their transaction. We may have notes on our desk, or clipboards with personal information on them, that are not meant to be seen by others. We need a moment to finish, and put things away before welcoming the next person.
  2. Shift Change: At 12:00 noon, our morning desk volunteer shift ends, and their reports need to be printed. We need to ensure things balance, prior to the afternoon volunteer taking over. This is one of the most challenging times of the day, as it needs to be done quickly. Normally, it only takes a couple of minutes, but it is much more difficult if people are right in front of us while we try to get this done.
  3. If someone walks up to the desk and scans their keytag while we are still writing notes in another member’s file, it will interrupt what we are trying to finish (and may actually insert your information in the wrong record). Scanning your keytag before we are ready to assist you, interrupts our workflow and delays your own transaction.
  4. All activity payments are processed manually. When people use their keytags (or phone numbers) to scan into activities at one of the kiosks, the payments do not automatically come out of their wallets. We have to process each of these payments manually at the front desk, in between dealing with lineups. With close to 2200 members, and several hundred payments needing to be dealt with each day, it is a huge job. If we have a moment between customers, we have to try and get as many of these things done as possible. We will look up and greet you as soon as we can.
  5. Everybody makes mistakes, and when volunteers or staff feel rushed or pressured (especially when someone is impatient with them), mistakes are more likely to happen. When they do, it takes additional time to identify and correct them, delaying assistance for the next person.

Thank you so much for being kind, patient, and courteous in your interactions with front desk staff and volunteers. We hope this gives everyone a little more insight as to why your patience is vital to helping us provide you with great service.

Heather Doré