Escalation Procedures Training

Overview

Every office staff member must know Spartan's escalation procedures before handling calls independently. This card defines what requires escalation, who to escalate to, and how to handle the transition professionally.

Who This Applies To

All Office & Admin staff who handle inbound calls or dispatch at Spartan.

Escalation Decision Tree

Escalate to Operations Manager Immediately:

• Customer is hostile, threatening, or abusive
• Customer demands to speak with a manager (never argue — escalate immediately)
• Customer reports a safety issue at their property related to Spartan's work
• Complaint about a technician's conduct or professionalism
• Customer claims Spartan caused damage to their property
• Any media inquiry or legal threat

Escalate to Operations Manager Same Day (Not Immediate):

• Billing dispute that cannot be resolved with available information
• Customer requesting a refund
• Customer reporting callback work not completed satisfactorily
• Repeated reschedule issues for a single customer
• Scheduling conflict that cannot be resolved within current schedule

Escalate to Josh Ferguson:

• Any situation Operations Manager has escalated upward
• Customer asks to speak with the owner directly
• Insurance or legal matters

How to Escalate

Stay calm. Do not react to the customer's tone.

Tell the customer: "I want to make sure you get the right person to help you. Let me connect you with my manager right now."

Place the customer on a brief hold (maximum 60 seconds).

Notify Operations Manager via phone or in person — brief summary: customer name, job number, issue.

Transfer the call. Stay available if Operations Manager needs you for info.

Log the escalation in ServiceTitan under the customer's job record.

What NOT to Do During Escalations

• Do NOT promise refunds, credits, or free work — ever
• Do NOT argue with the customer or defend the technician before getting facts
• Do NOT leave a customer on hold for more than 2 minutes without checking back
• Do NOT disclose internal information (tech names, pricing structures, internal notes)

After the Escalation

Log in ServiceTitan:

• What the customer said
• What action was taken
• Who the escalation was handed to
• Resolution or next step

Related SOPs

• Inbound Call Script (Phase 3)
• Complaint Handling & Resolution (Phase 5)
• De-Escalation (Phase 3)