The New Club Wyndham Website (General Discussion)

[BellaWyn]

Anybody with an IT background think this website mess is temporary?

There are too many significant issues. They took an awfully long time to deliver this mess. I see no evidence they have the skills to fix it.

Well, since "temporary" is subjective..... ---->>

The last time we were told it was a "temporary" situation it took 17 months to fix the problem.

Suspended owners were told the audits would "temporarily" lock their accounts. 10 months later some are still unresolved with no completions on their audits.

Owners with issues currently in the black hole of Triage are still waiting for some elusive moment, couched in the reference of "temporary" to get problems resolved.

Have an IT background so to answer your original question... sure, based on WYN's known history of how immediate messes like this get fixed, it is a "temporary" problem according to the illusion that surrounds the word. Temporary is a non-specific, open-ended spin to hold disillusioned owners at bay.

Do I think this website mess will be resolved anytime SOON? Not a chance in hell. Problems are too layered and, as you say, skill sets of those assigned to fix are....... lacking, at best.

 

[Roger830]

What I find disheartening is basic functions work ok at times, then don't work at other times, such as cancelling or upgrading.

Usually when after going live you find a bug when someone does something out of the ordinary.
A typical example I experienced was when a sales order was entered with a seldom used promotion code. The order entered ok, but when a line on the order was cancelled, the transaction wasn't completely reversed.
This promotion feature was overlooked in the testing done by the sales department. The bug required one simple line of code in a program that was purchased for six figures.

 

[ronparise]

I've heard that one plenty of times at a

Well, since "temporary" is subjective..... ---->>

The last time we were told it was a "temporary" situation it took 17 months to fix the problem.

Suspended owners were told the audits would "temporarily" lock their accounts. 10 months later some are still unresolved with no completions on their audits.

Owners with issues currently in the black hole of Triage are still waiting for some elusive moment, couched in the reference of "temporary" to get problems resolved.

Have an IT background so to answer your original question... sure, based on WYN's known history of how immediate messes like this get fixed, it is a "temporary" problem according to the illusion that surrounds the word. Temporary is a non-specific, open-ended spin to hold disillusioned owners at bay.

Do I think this website mess will be resolved anytime SOON? Not a chance in hell. Problems are too layered and, as you say, skill sets of those assigned to fix are....... lacking, at best.

it seems that we agree on this . we have a mess and its going to take a long time to get it right As someone with an IT background; If you were dropped into the middle of this would you be able to place a time certain for the fix?

first they have to get things working as designed (like the auto upgrade feature) and then they will have to correct the poor design features (most notably the search functions) I have no doubt that these things are going to get fixed.. but I dont know when. As you say not "soon".. I used the word temporary... what word would you suggest?


I dont disagree with anything that you say. I never have. Im equally outraged. Unfortunately, outrage wont fix anything
The question is what can we do about it? What do you suggest?

 

[rickandcindy23]

Duplicate post.

 

[rickandcindy23]

We have one reservation at GD for this week, confirmed into a 2 bed lockoff, upgraded and showing as upgraded in the system, but the client called Grand Desert. They say it's a one bedroom only. Rick has been on hold with Wyndham for 1.5 hours so far, trying to get this resolved for our guest.

Wyndham is a mess.

 

[rickandcindy23]

After Rick was on hold for 2.25 hours, we have a case opened. Be aware, all of you mega renters, many recent upgrades were bogus, and there is a good chance your guests will arrive to their check-in date and find out their reservations were not upgraded. That is what one of the guides (won't mention her name) told us today. Thousands of upgrades from smaller units (right after the new system came live) were upgraded without upgrades available.

 

[BellaWyn]

As someone with an IT background; If you were dropped into the middle of this would you be able to place a time certain for the fix?

1) Generally, IT people do not get "dropped into the middle" of a project that has been months or years in the design and planning

2) If they do, they are there to fix a plethoria of bad before a system goes live because the skill levels of the team were not getting the job done in the first place

3) Any qualified IT person worth their salt, especially a high level fixer, would not want their name or reputation attached to a broken rollout

4) A fixer brought in after the rollout..... shut it down or RUN.

There is NO professional IT team that has been brought on after the fact. We live with the skill sets of the team that rolled it out in the first place. Your question has no point. It is a deflection. Uncertain timelines were built into the equation the moment that they knowingly allowed a dysfunctional system to go live, which speaks to intent.

We agree in the respect that the dysfunctional product we now have is cumbersome and less than optimal. But it seems to stop there.

You, the NON-owner who no longer must pay MF's to use a broken toy being touted as "enhanced" postures as "it works, just not as well as it should" which spins as "meh.... oh well, live with what you have people" while at the same time suggesting there is no ill intent and motivation is to primarily make owners happy.

Me, an OWNER, still having to pay MF's for the broken toy that continues to be promoted as "enhanced" continues to express the same frustration, outrage and disillusion as other PAYING owners. I see it as a massive disservice to ALL owners, which in no way reflects a management group that wants happy customer base. More like it screams "don't really care."

Your repeating mantra is "what are you going to do about it" which smacks similar to the same posturing we are getting from WYN, both knowing there is very little owners CAN do about it at this juncture. Suggesting that owners not lower our expectations, while at the same time posturing "work with what we have even though it is broken" are positions with cross purposes.

Baskin Robbins selection of opinion as Happy put it. You can put all the sprinkles and toppings to make the vanilla seem different but at the base, it is still vanilla. Or just go with the Colorado brownies if you really want to get a sense of what "enhanced" could look like.

 

[Jan M.]

I don't have IT background but here is my opinion based on common sense. We know about the lost reservations, cancelled upgrades and overall inventory mess at some of the resorts so it would be insane to attempt anything that might result in more problems at this time. I think Wyndham will need to/should wait until after Labor Day when travel slows down considerably and then shut down for 48 hours to get things fixed. And after a few days or a week to see how things are working if they need to shut down a second time for a day or so that wouldn't be a big deal.

The next time they have a shut down and announce that the will site will be closed until a certain time they should also announce and enforce that anyone accessing their account prior to that time and making reservations or getting upgrades will have them cancelled. It seems to me that dealing with that mess has tied up a great deal time for owner care and IT that could have and should have been spent fixing the real problems not the ones created by the owners who shouldn't have been accessing the system yet. That is on Wyndham not the owners.

I didn't have any reservations I really needed to be making when I couldn't access my account until late Friday going into Memorial Day weekend but I find myself in complete agreement with OP who have said that it is grossly unfair to the large number of owners who were locked out for 5-6 days while other owners were able to book prime inventory for this summer and use their ARP for the same for next summer. When the new system came online IT certainly knew there was a large number of owners who were unable to access the system and they very likely reported that among other things.

I don't think there is anything anyone can say that would convince me and many OP that the corporate executives who had the final say in the decision to implement the new system at this time weren't warned of the expected problems. I believe that: 1. Those decision makers didn't have a clue as to how bad the problems would be. 2. They thought any problems could be easily fixed within a few days. 3. They've learned the hard way that there is a great deal more to implementing and fixing a new system than ordering their alchemists (aka the IT department) to turn lead (aka this p.o.s. system) into gold.

 

[BellaWyn]

After Rick was on hold for 2.25 hours, we have a case opened. Be aware, all of you mega renters, many recent upgrades were bogus, and there is a good chance your guests will arrive to their check-in date and find out their reservations were not upgraded. That is what one of the guides (won't mention her name) told us today. Thousands of upgrades from smaller units (right after the new system came live) were upgraded without upgrades available.

Cindy, in the convos with the rep did you get a sense of whether the bogus upgrades, post-rollout, were due to bad coding in the reservation system or intentional (aka by design) to frustrate the rental process?

Regardless, still speaks to the unreliable system we are stuck having to navigate.

 

[scootr5]

The next time they have a shut down and announce that the will site will be closed until a certain time they should also announce and enforce that anyone accessing their account prior to that time and making reservations or getting upgrades will have them cancelled.

IMHO, we should not have to worry about whether the transactions we are performing while utilizing the site are "valid". If the site is up and live, there should never be a question about it.

People don't always receive the email announcements for one reason or another, or remember timing of things.

 

[Jan M.]

IMHO, we should not have to worry about whether the transactions we are performing while utilizing the site are "valid". If the site is up and live, there should never be a question about it.

People don't always receive the email announcements for one reason or another, or remember timing of things.

There are advisories at the top of the screen when we log in and it is certainly possible to have warnings that everyone can see. When you are told not to do something, no means no.

People were told that the website would not be available until 8am on Monday morning if I remember correctly but like with any shut down they've had it was always possible to access the website sooner. The Wyndham booking system has always favored the rule breakers in the past so why would anyone expect this time to be different. Except that Wyndham seems to be making it very clear that there is a new sheriff in town.

A friend texted me on that infamous Sunday night that people were already on the website, making reservations and getting upgrades. I said then that it would be extremely foolish to trust that inventory and make plans with other people, book airline reservations that couldn't be cancelled without penalty or rent the stays. I didn't even try to log on after I got the text that was how sure I was it was going to be a mess and I didn't want to be tempted to book something.

 

[rickandcindy23]

What is really bad about this situation with the upgrades, especially at Grand Desert, is there are three of them that were upgraded and show as upgrade in our account, but they aren't honoring the upgrades at the resort because they don't have enough larger units to accommodate them. So it will show on your end as upgraded, but it is not upgraded at the resort. The resort will show a 1 bed deluxe or suite, not the 2 bedroom you think you have. This happened with THREE of ours. And guess what? These were upgraded BEFORE the new system rollout, and they were instant upgrades.

 

[Jan M.]

What is really bad about this situation with the upgrades, especially at Grand Desert, is there are three of them that were upgraded and show as upgrade in our account, but they aren't honoring the upgrades at the resort because they don't have enough larger units to accommodate them. So it will show on your end as upgraded, but it is not upgraded at the resort. The resort will show a 1 bed deluxe or suite, not the 2 bedroom you think you have. This happened with THREE of ours. And guess what? These were upgraded BEFORE the new system rollout, and they were instant upgrades.

You would have to assume that OP were able to book that inventory after the new system took over which is why it is no longer available. So what is the criteria for who gets the reservation? You would think that the oldest reservations, those made prior to the change over, would be honored first.

The problems with the inventory are a result of the change over and certainly they backed up or printed out all that reservation information prior to the change over just in case. I find it very hard to believe no one in IT did that nor that the resort managers are so incompetent that they didn't do it.

 

[vacationhopeful]

..... I find it very hard to believe no one in IT did that nor that the resort managers are so incompetent that they didn't do it.

IT should have had backups ... because that is their JOB.

Resort Managers are TRAINED to trust the computer system. It is EITHER an "ONLINE and LIVE system" or is a "DAILY DOWNLOAD to resort's computers". Resort managers are hospitality people .. trained to USE the computer for checking guest and checking out guests. If a unit is place "OUT OF ORDER", the resort staff can try & adjust OR use a not booked unit. And YES, different (nonWyndham) resort staffs have called me and ASKED, about a upcoming week is available for a swap.

 

[ronparise]

1) Generally, IT people do not get "dropped into the middle" of a project that has been months or years in the design and planning

2) If they do, they are there to fix a plethoria of bad before a system goes live because the skill levels of the team were not getting the job done in the first place

3) Any qualified IT person worth their salt, especially a high level fixer, would not want their name or reputation attached to a broken rollout

4) A fixer brought in after the rollout..... shut it down or RUN.

There is NO professional IT team that has been brought on after the fact. We live with the skill sets of the team that rolled it out in the first place. Your question has no point. It is a deflection. Uncertain timelines were built into the equation the moment that they knowingly allowed a dysfunctional system to go live, which speaks to intent.

We agree in the respect that the dysfunctional product we now have is cumbersome and less than optimal. But it seems to stop there.

You, the NON-owner who no longer must pay MF's to use a broken toy being touted as "enhanced" postures as "it works, just not as well as it should" which spins as "meh.... oh well, live with what you have people" while at the same time suggesting there is no ill intent and motivation is to primarily make owners happy.

Me, an OWNER, still having to pay MF's for the broken toy that continues to be promoted as "enhanced" continues to express the same frustration, outrage and disillusion as other PAYING owners. I see it as a massive disservice to ALL owners, which in no way reflects a management group that wants happy customer base. More like it screams "don't really care."

Your repeating mantra is "what are you going to do about it" which smacks similar to the same posturing we are getting from WYN, both knowing there is very little owners CAN do about it at this juncture. Suggesting that owners not lower our expectations, while at the same time posturing "work with what we have even though it is broken" are positions with cross purposes.

Baskin Robbins selection of opinion as Happy put it. You can put all the sprinkles and toppings to make the vanilla seem different but at the base, it is still vanilla. Or just go with the Colorado brownies if you really want to get a sense of what "enhanced" could look like.

I didnt think you or anybody could do any better than to say the problems with the website are "temporary"
you have made it clear that that saying this is a "temporary" problem is not acceptable. And you have made it clear that you extensive experience fixing things such as this.

The point of my question is simple. If you, the acknowledged expert here on all things IT, couldnt (if you were responsible for the fix) tell us how long the fix would take; I dont think you can expect the folks at Wyndham to be able to do it.

I think my experience with Wyndham and my status as a non owner, or interested bystander gives me a perspective on this that you are lacking. and leads me to this question?
Given that the new website dosent work What else can you do? other than to wait it out

 

[Bigrob]

I didnt think you or anybody could do any better than to say the problems with the website are "temporary"
you have made it clear that that saying this is a "temporary" problem is not acceptable. And you have made it clear that you extensive experience fixing things such as this.

The point of my question is simple. If you, the acknowledged expert here on all things IT, couldnt (if you were responsible for the fix) tell us how long the fix would take; I dont think you can expect the folks at Wyndham to be able to do it.

I think my experience with Wyndham and my status as a non owner, or interested bystander gives me a perspective on this that you are lacking. and leads me to this question?
Given that the new website dosent work What else can you do? other than to wait it out

BellaWyn may be an IT expert, but she has not had her hands deep in the bowels of the Wyndham "Voyager" (a.k.a. "TRIP") code (yes, that is apparently the new moniker for the system being used internally). If BellaWyn had been the PM over this IT project for the past 18 months, no doubt there would be a bit more clarity on what could get fixed when. (But more importantly the rollout would probably not have happened when it did as it would not have passed any IT Professional's Production Readiness Review (PRR)).

Given that there is a large backlog of trouble tickets right now, and that the triage process is no doubt prioritizing the fixing that "impact the many", and that the focus in on data integrity first, features second... I think we would see inventory load (resort integration) before we will see a fix to the broken search feature. I think we can expect to see broad features addressed rather than individual user issues - urgent issues will have to be handled by exception process/manual process. For example; there is something broken with my account setup. Two of the 3 accounts I have full access to, but the 3rd I cannot revise reservations (cancel, add guests, etc.) They are supporting me via an exception process. IF they had the resources to provide the IT/automated fix for this, it would be far less costly. But they don't. So instead I spend hours a day waiting to talk to an overloaded VC or OC rep; if I get the wrong one it wastes my time and theirs while we try to get a more "senior" rep; if all goes well (i.e., I am not disconnect after waiting 2 hours) I generally can get a guest name added.

Even assuming my time is worthless and doesn't count, that is a very large expense to fix a single problem. And I have several a week, as do many others (obviously). "Fixing" the problems this way is a very costly process, and guess who pays for it?

But I think a fundamental point is still being missed. The thought that a "temporary" problem means it somehow doesn't impact value is erroneous. If because of the "temporary" problem - whether that problem is a week, a month, or half a year or more - you miss the opportunity to use your points as you would otherwise without a broken system - that is a degradation of value.

So you see, fundamentally what has happened is a reduction in value for the vast majority of owners at the same time the cost for these "support services" has gone through the roof. (Yes, someone is paying the bill for all that overtime. Guess what is going to happen to your CWP fees?)

The "what to do about it" is obvious. Go to tugbbs.org and express your vitriol. Perhaps Wyndham is counting on none of the seasoned owners being able to book a vacation so they can't "taint the pool of eligible marks" being brought in with all the new availability at Extra Holidays that has been confiscated from owners paying maintenance fees yet are unable to book resort stays. Us complaining to each other on this site is clearly the answer (cue sarcastic eye roll).

 

[chapjim]

BellaWyn may be an IT expert, but she has not had her hands deep in the bowels of the Wyndham "Voyager" (a.k.a. "TRIP") code (yes, that is apparently the new moniker for the system being used internally). If BellaWyn had been the PM over this IT project for the past 18 months, no doubt there would be a bit more clarity on what could get fixed when. (But more importantly the rollout would probably not have happened when it did as it would not have passed any IT Professional's Production Readiness Review (PRR)).

Given that there is a large backlog of trouble tickets right now, and that the triage process is no doubt prioritizing the fixing that "impact the many", and that the focus in on data integrity first, features second... I think we would see inventory load (resort integration) before we will see a fix to the broken search feature. I think we can expect to see broad features addressed rather than individual user issues - urgent issues will have to be handled by exception process/manual process. For example; there is something broken with my account setup. Two of the 3 accounts I have full access to, but the 3rd I cannot revise reservations (cancel, add guests, etc.) They are supporting me via an exception process. IF they had the resources to provide the IT/automated fix for this, it would be far less costly. But they don't. So instead I spend hours a day waiting to talk to an overloaded VC or OC rep; if I get the wrong one it wastes my time and theirs while we try to get a more "senior" rep; if all goes well (i.e., I am not disconnect after waiting 2 hours) I generally can get a guest name added.

Even assuming my time is worthless and doesn't count, that is a very large expense to fix a single problem. And I have several a week, as do many others (obviously). "Fixing" the problems this way is a very costly process, and guess who pays for it?

But I think a fundamental point is still being missed. The thought that a "temporary" problem means it somehow doesn't impact value is erroneous. If because of the "temporary" problem - whether that problem is a week, a month, or half a year or more - you miss the opportunity to use your points as you would otherwise without a broken system - that is a degradation of value.

So you see, fundamentally what has happened is a reduction in value for the vast majority of owners at the same time the cost for these "support services" has gone through the roof. (Yes, someone is paying the bill for all that overtime. Guess what is going to happen to your CWP fees?)

The "what to do about it" is obvious. Go to tugbbs.org and express your vitriol. Perhaps Wyndham is counting on none of the seasoned owners being able to book a vacation so they can't "taint the pool of eligible marks" being brought in with all the new availability at Extra Holidays that has been confiscated from owners paying maintenance fees yet are unable to book resort stays. Us complaining to each other on this site is clearly the answer (cue sarcastic eye roll).

The only problem I see with this post is that it was written by someone capable of rational, logical thought. Since Wyndham hasn't shown much of that lately, most of what Bigrob says is probably exactly NOT what will happen.

 

[BellaWyn]

BellaWyn may be an IT expert, but she has not had her hands deep in the bowels of the Wyndham "Voyager" (a.k.a. "TRIP" ) code (yes, that is apparently the new moniker for the system being used internally). If BellaWyn had been the PM over this IT project for the past 18 months, no doubt there would be a bit more clarity on what could get fixed when. (But more importantly the rollout would probably not have happened when it did as it would not have passed any IT Professional's Production Readiness Review (PRR)). <snip>

Have no desire to even penetrate the dermis of the Voyager code much less jump into the bowels (but I know plenty of others that would love a peek). There are parasites in those bowels that are terrifying to consider. The "expert" part was Ron's spin on my "have an IT background." Does not translate to "expert." That was pure snark to twist the conversation to his point.

IT has as many branched specialities as legal, medical, financial and other professions requiring education and certification. However, having BEEN a PM on numerous IT projects and having had to BETA test a plethora of systems (many of which broke in the BETA), Eric is right, the Voyager rollout, as it stands, would have never happened if an experienced, qualified PM had been asked to "sign off" on the product we are now experiencing.

<snip>
The "what to do about it" is obvious. Go to tugbbs.com and express your vitriol. Perhaps Wyndham is counting on none of the seasoned owners being able to book a vacation so they can't "taint the pool of eligible marks" being brought in with all the new availability at Extra Holidays that has been confiscated from owners paying maintenance fees yet are unable to book resort stays. Us complaining to each other on this site is clearly the answer (cue sarcastic eye roll).

Yep!

Actually, TUG serves a much higher purpose than just a place spew annoyances and frustration (albeit related to Voyager - vitriol is a well placed alchemy). TUG captures and archives information. Owners come here to get information on how to use their ownerships and get updated on changes to systems, rules, tips, tricks and clarity of understanding. There are dedicated posters that are putting up screen shots and shared experiences of what is working vs what is not working. These generously serve other owners coming to visit us. When faced with limited options to obtain resolution, at least getting validation for the frustrations one experiences can be cathartic.

The fact that so MUCH is not working, right now, is just the "order of the day" and the complaints, shared stories and conversations (for good and bad) is merely the online version of poolside conversation.

Except that we can go back and revisit the conversations as often as we feel necessary.

Oh, and the ability to skip over (or ignore) the unnecessary diatribe that we don't want to have to re-read. Bonus!

 

[Jae1242]

After Rick was on hold for 2.25 hours, we have a case opened. Be aware, all of you mega renters, many recent upgrades were bogus, and there is a good chance your guests will arrive to their check-in date and find out their reservations were not upgraded. That is what one of the guides (won't mention her name) told us today. Thousands of upgrades from smaller units (right after the new system came live) were upgraded without upgrades available.

How do you explain this to your guest? I'm sure they were very upset. I had a case opened last week that is still unresolved. Wyndham IT cancelled a reservation in error. The reservation is coming up end of this week!! I can't sit on hold hours at a time!

 

[wanderround]

All my searches return the spinning wheel of death or a blank screen. Is anybody else having this problem? It's been doing this for at least 12 hours and I've tried multiple computers and browsers.

 

[Sandi Bo]

All my searches return the spinning wheel of death or a blank screen. Is anybody else having this problem? It's been doing this for at least 12 hours and I've tried multiple computers and browsers.

Earlier that was happening to me (2:30 am CT). About 4am the calendar wasn't working, still wasn't working about 10 min ago. I just logged off and back on and it is working now. Obviously you've been logging off an on - maybe they just fixed it? Good luck.

 

[joanncanary]

BellaWyn I am with you. I am also in IT but something that no one has mentioned here is how upper management that has NO clue as to the workings of specific programs will make a decision that it has a deadline and "hell or high water" will not postpone it anymore. I think that is what happened here. there was an uneducated deadline date placed on this rollout and no matter how much IT programmers may have fought it, they lost. From what I can see they have a large task ahead of them and I wonder how many of the original designers or PM are still there. Hopefully we can be patient and little by little things will start to get straightened out.

 

[ronparise]

BellaWyn I am with you. I am also in IT but something that no one has mentioned here is how upper management that has NO clue as to the workings of specific programs will make a decision that it has a deadline and "hell or high water" will not postpone it anymore. I think that is what happened here. there was an uneducated deadline date placed on this rollout and no matter how much IT programmers may have fought it, they lost. From what I can see they have a large task ahead of them and I wonder how many of the original designers or PM are still there. Hopefully we can be patient and little by little things will start to get straightened out.

I think the patience bank is pretty much depleted

 

[55plus]

All my searches return the spinning wheel of death or a blank screen. Is anybody else having this problem? It's been doing this for at least 12 hours and I've tried multiple computers and browsers.

That happens to me yesterday. Really pissed me off. It works today.

 

[55plus]

Wyndham has Apps for all their ventures except for us, WVR. They have some Apps under Club Wyndham, but they are for their rental businesses like Extra Holidays, etc. It would be easier, not that anything associated with the piece of crap website they crammed down our throats is easy and simple, for owners to search and book on a platform designed for an iPad, etc., than web based website on a Mobil device. But then why make anything easy for those who are paying them to work for us and maintain the systems. Go figure?

 

[ronparise]

Wyndham has Apps for all their ventures except for us, WVR. They have some Apps under Club Wyndham, but they are for their rental businesses like Extra Holidays, etc. It would be easier, not that anything associated with the piece of crap website they crammed down our throats is easy and simple, for owners to search and book on a platform designed for an iPad, etc., than web based website on a Mobil device. But then why make anything easy for those who are paying them to work for us and maintain the systems. Go figure?

So you are suggesting that the incompetent Wyndham IT dept undertake another difficult task at the same time they are trying to fix the current mess

Fyi I have no trouble using the website on my i phone or iPad it works just as well as on my laptop.