No airline wants to kick a passenger off for bad behavior.  It costs time and money to remove someone who, while they need to go, won’t leave without “help”.  Companies, whether government contractors or not, will typically go to great lengths to impress customers with great service.  It is, after all, easier to keep an existing customer than to attract a new one.  There are limits, however, on how far a company can go to keep a customer happy and sometimes it’s better to let a bad customer go than to try and fix an impossible situation.  This can be a tricky business for government contractors.  Performance requirements are spelled out in each contract and companies must meet clear contract terms.  Failure to perform can result in a negative performance evaluation, with more severe cases leading to an expensive dispute and, potentially, land a company in front of a suspension or debarment official.  What happens, though, when a task order isn’t so clearly written?  The best defense against a customer service issue is a good offense.  Contractors should communicate early and often – in writing – to obtain clarification before work is done.  Most customer service issues can be defused with good communication and record keeping.  Sometimes, though, it becomes clear that the customer wanted a Cadillac, but specified and funded a basic Chevrolet.  No matter how functional the “Chevy” solution, the customer won’t be happy with anything other than a Cadillac.  That’s when it’s time to bring in some outside help or new contacts to try and resolve the situation.  No contractor can continually deliver a Cadillac solution below cost and stay in business.  Unfortunately, the customer that doesn’t see that may never be assuaged, requiring the contractor to cut losses and move forward on hopefully better projects.  Even the best companies can find themselves in such situations.  While service to the customer is important so, too, is being able to live to do business again another day.  It’s true that you can’t make everyone happy.