As in any industry, you have your “white hats” and your “black hats.” The “white hats” are usually those who are in the industry because they love what they do. They usually have excellent dealings with their customers and they present themselves in a professional manner.
The “black hats” are those who are, usually, just trying to make a quick buck. They will cut corners wherever possible and treat their customers just nice enough not to blow them off, and sometimes not even then!
The above is something I have observed, first-hand, in many different fields, as I’m sure you have also.
Before you misjudge, this post is not about Cendecon being better than everybody else. As above, there are good companies and bad. The truth is, that there are a number of “white hats” in our industry. It would be prudent to think that we are the only ones capable of providing excellent-quality crime scene cleanup services.
We at Cendecon don’t like to play dirty and trash-talk other companies. I personally would not hire any company who trash-talked a competitor – it’s just plain unprofessional, in my opinion. You may think this post a little hypocritical, but I am not here to name names or point fingers. I’m only giving some examples of what I have seen in this industry so that you know what to look out for should you ever find yourself in need of a crime scene cleaner.
One crime scene cleaner landed a TV deal. I don’t believe it was on for very long and, after watching it, I’m glad! This particular crime scene cleaner was disrespectful to his staff, minimally respectful to his customers (at times, less than that) and exuded an air of arrogance. Now, before you think I’m being judgmental, let me just say this is all taken with a grain of salt. I’m sure (at least I hope) that a good part of the “drama” and attitude was exaggerated for effect and ratings, but the fact remains that this is how he presented himself to the world and, unfortunately, portrayed the crime scene cleaning industry.
For one example, after his staff had completed a decomposition cleanup, they were meeting with their customer. This guy noticed something he really liked, picked it up and walked up to the customer and said, “I want this.” I don’t know about you, but my jaw dropped and my eyes almost popped out of my head. Seriously, who does that? I mean, you could see the shock on this poor girl’s face. You could also tell she was reluctant to let him have it because it was one of her father’s prized possessions! Why press the issue after you found that out?
I can’t speak for all other companies out there, but I know that our crews are compassionate and professional and this is certainly not something any of us would ever think of doing.
On another episode of this train wreck, this guy was lying on the deceased’s bed at a suicide cleanup with his hands behind his head. His comment was something akin to “I don’t think about the people. All I think about is ca-ching, ca-ching, ca-ching.”
Now, there is no rule saying that all crime scene cleaners have to be compassionate or discreet. But, who would you rather have working for you: Someone who’s compassionate and discreet; who does the job and gets out so you can attend to everything else you have to deal with, or some scavenger of shiny things who is only there for the money and could careless about you or your feelings?
The worst thing about this show was that the world now knows of this guy and may feel he’s their only hope in a time of crisis. This irks me to no end because I don’t feel anyone suffering the loss of a family member should be subjected to such insensitive behavior. However, in fairness, I don’t know him personally – only how he presented himself for the world to see.
There are great companies out there, who focus not only on their quality of work – but their customer service. We want you to know that you don’t have to do business with people who don’t respect you, your feelings and your current situation. The “white hats” will always be there to ride in and save the day.
