Ten minutes to write. Less time to read.

I was talking with C. yesterday; his week included what I call a drive-by goodbye from a client he’d had for over four years. This client sent him a text that her firm had hired someone else for their online marketing and could C. send her all the appropriate passwords and delete his contact information from their website and any other materials.

I suppose that’s proper protocol, the passing on of IDs and passwords, but the protocol for letting a vendor go certainly wasn’t proper in my book. It was, however, an example of a growing trend.

People no longer take time to say “Goodbye” in person. In this case, I don’t necessarily think a formal face-to-face meeting was necessary, but I do think the client owed C. the courtesy of a phone call. And a thank you for the years of good work. If I had been C. the manner in which this transition was handled equals a burning bridge.