As someone who lives and breathes technology, there are few things more frustrating than when tech fails, and you know what the problem is, but the world around you insists on "solutions" that don't address the root cause. If you've ever been the tech-savvy person in the room, you know exactly what I'm talking about.
You've diagnosed the issue down to the deepest layer—maybe even figured out the broken API endpoint or the backend failure—but the advice you get is the same as always: "Have you tried refreshing?" Cue the internal screaming.
Let me give you a real-world example that perfectly sums this up.
A Techie's Journey to Panera: More Than Just Macaroons
Recently, I stopped by Panera for a quick treat—some macaroons and a drink. As part of their "Sip Club" loyalty program, my drink should've been free. Easy enough, right? Not this time.
The kiosk I approached had a message saying that their loyalty system was down and the kiosks were operating in "guest mode." Annoying, but fine. I figured the cashier could just look up my account manually at the register.
But when I got to the counter, the cashier tried to charge me for the drink. When I explained I was a Sip Club member, they just shrugged and told me to "refresh the app."
Now, here's the part where my tech brain kicked into overdrive. I opened the Panera app and saw this error message:
We're working on it. We are working diligently to be back up and running in our digital channels. In the meantime, ovens are warm, bread is baked, and our team is ready to serve you in our bakery cafes! Please visit any of our locations to enjoy your faves. See you in our cafes.
At this point, it was obvious the issue wasn't on my end. This was a backend problem, likely something to do with their API or loyalty database being unreachable. Refreshing the app wasn't going to magically fix this.
Explaining APIs and Backends to a Non-Techie Cashier
I tried to explain to the cashier what was likely happening:
- Their loyalty system's API wasn't responding, causing both the kiosks and the app to fail.
- This wasn't something a simple refresh could resolve.
But, as you might expect, my explanation didn't land. The cashier repeated, "Just refresh the app. It'll work." At that point, I realized no amount of technical reasoning was going to get me my drink for free without paying upfront and dealing with a refund later. Frustrated, I paid and left, macaroons in hand, but techie dignity slightly bruised.
Calling Tech Support: The Endless L1 Loop
This isn't an isolated incident. As a techie, I've faced this same frustration countless times—especially when dealing with tech support. You've already diagnosed the issue to an L3 (Level 3) level, but when you call in, you're stuck with an L1 agent whose script starts with, "Have you restarted your device?"
It's like diagnosing a car's engine failure and being told to check if there's gas in the tank. The process feels redundant and, frankly, insulting when you know what you're talking about. Yet, there's no way to bypass the script.
A Message for Panera (and Others Struggling with Tech Failures)
Here's the takeaway for companies like Panera: when your systems fail, your recovery plan matters. A good app or digital platform should have a robust fallback system for these scenarios.
- Clear Messaging: Let customers know exactly what's happening. The "guest mode" message at the kiosks was a good start, but it didn't offer any solutions.
- Fallback Options: Give employees tools to manually validate memberships or process discounts when systems are down. Your frontline staff shouldn't rely on the same broken system to solve the problem.
- Technical Expertise: Invest in stronger app infrastructure and disaster recovery protocols. A loyalty program outage should not affect an entire chain's operations.
If Panera—or any other company—wants to improve their app's reliability and create a better recovery mode, I'm happy to help. Seriously, Panera, contact me. Let's fix this.
The Techie's Dilemma: Knowledge Can Be Frustrating
At the end of the day, being tech-savvy is both a blessing and a curse. You see the issues others miss, but you're often stuck dealing with the same basic troubleshooting steps everyone else has to endure. And when technology fails, knowing what's wrong doesn't always mean you can fix it—especially when you're not the one in control.
So, to all my fellow techies out there: I feel your pain. And to companies like Panera? Please, let's work on making things better—for your customers, your employees, and yes, even us techies.
