<aside> 💡 Customer refusal from the company's side is intentionally and explicitly communicated information that indicates the termination of interaction.

</aside>

Refusals to clients can be categorized into several types:

1. Pre-interaction:
   1. In case of significant mismatch with the "target client".
   2. If necessary contact information is missing and there is no way to obtain it.
   3. If the client has been unresponsive for a long time and the initial contact has not been made.
2. During interaction:
   1. In case the client violates the terms of the contract.
   2. In case of rude behavior and inadequate conduct from the client.
      1. Refusal in this case can take several forms:
         1. Changing the manager and engineer from X side.
         2. Refusal to provide further services in X.
         3. Refusal of communication "right now" with or without the possibility of correction. (see forms of refusal)
   3. In case of disclosing trade secrets.
3. After interaction:
   1. In case of non-payment for the next period of service provision in the established order.
   2. In case of systematic violation of interaction terms.
   3. If the client's activity and load on the company's systems do not correspond to their segment (a low-tech client that causes headaches for the account manager and technical support is not needed).
4. Due to lack of response:
   1. This is a case similar to 1.c. - only in this case the initial contact was made.

Forms of refusal:

• Direct:
  • Our cooperation cannot be continued due to the following circumstances: "list of circumstances".
  • Due to the violation of the following points of our interaction "points", our cooperation will be terminated "description of when it will be terminated, for example, date".
• With a chance for correction:
  • We are not ready to cooperate in this format, if you are willing to reconsider the format of the dialogue, let's continue. If not, let's discuss how we will end our interaction.
  • The current format of interaction is not suitable for our company. Let's discuss how to change it or end it here.
• "Pre-interaction":
  • Delete the deal card.
  • Do not call because there is nowhere to call.
  • Write to the immediate manager about the impossibility of continuing or starting interaction.

<aside> 💡 Refusal can be based on one of the collaboration points and does not necessarily mean refusal of the entire interaction. In such cases, it is important to specify which exact point is not suitable and explicitly indicate that the refusal applies to that point.

</aside>

• Mechanism and formula of operational refusal using Upwork as an example

Examples of Applying Operational Refusal:

Upwork Refusal Example:

Hello Dmitrii,

Thank you for reaching out to Upwork Support.

I see you want to know how to reduce the weekly limit of your direct contract. Let me assist you with that.

I've checked and I see this concerns a direct contract titled "Private Cloud Proxmox" with Dmitry. I completely understand you want to reduce the weekly limit of hours your freelancer can log due to system limitations, unfortunately, we don't have the capability to do that as it can only be set during the contract proposal.

I see 2 options you can choose to address this issue: First, ask Dmitry to send you a new contract proposal with the updated terms/hour limit you both agreed upon. Second, Dmitry can continue working on this existing job for now. He can simply log fewer hours each week, and if he logs more hours, you can dispute it if necessary.

If the reduced weekly limit will be a permanent agreement, I would advise choosing the first option so you can be sure the exact amount will be billed to you every week. However, if this will only be temporary, for example, if he needs to log fewer hours for a few weeks, you can choose the 2nd option.

At the same time, I take this as feedback and will definitely forward it to our higher management for consideration. I know it's best if you manage to get the work done using what you have now rather than starting anew. Most of the improvements we make are based on ideas and suggestions like yours.

I hope the alternative solution I shared helps. If you need my assistance to contact Dmitry to resolve this issue, please let me know, and I'll reach out to him on your behalf.

I'm just an email away if you need further assistance. Take care, Dmitrii!

Regards,

John

How to apply this in RGD

Operational refusal is a situation where it's necessary to decline a client's request for a service or action based on limitations within our system, tariff constraints, or inability to fulfill the requirement.