'You should fire us!.. Ok.': Freight company follows through on client's empty threat, calls their bluff and stops servicing them

There's a prevalent school of thought that prevails when it comes to client servicing: Do anything (and everything) possible to keep them happy and contracted; having worked in these sectors in the past, upper management never likes seeing a contract cancellation notice pass across their desk, even if that contract was costing the business money.

Like what you see? Follow our WhatsApp channel for more.

Posted by Brad Dickson

via Caleb Ruiter

I've seen sales departments signing clients at unserviceable rates, with wildly unfulfillable resource estimates. Why? Because the sales team got a commission for each client they signed, and everyone up the chain from them received bonuses for “expanding” the business. It wasn't until the contracts needed to be actually serviced that red flags started being raised — by then, the company was well on its way toward receivership.

So, when this trucking company had it suggested by their client that they should cancel their existing contract, it triggered a reflection that caused the trucking company to realize that they'd actually rather not service this client any longer.

A glorious example of an empty threat — and attempted power play — backfiring spectacularly.

Keep reading to see screenshots of this story, as posted to Reddit's r/MaliciousCompliance subreddit this week by Reddit user u/Wildcatb.

For more malicious compliance, check out this CEO who laughed off a worker's request for a raise and challenged them to find a new job.