Should I have my boss pay for it?

I was in a meeting demo a project with my Sager NP8170 this afternoon. The "boss of all bosses" who is visting our US division for this progress report accidentally spilled a good cup of Swiss sweet ice tea on my keyboard (left hand section of the keyboard). Couple seconds later the laptop screen went completely black and powered off.

After the meeting, my boss told me that "the boss of all bosses" said he will pay for the repair or a replacement if it still doesn't power on when dry. But he is leaving US tomorrow. Should I risk the chance try to power on before he leave? Um.... Or I should wait a least couples of days for the laptop to dry? and call his Asia corner office asking $3k for a new laptop if doesn't work?

Not sure if this is the way I want him to remember me in this economic turmoil..

 

Very sorry to hear this. I do hope it works out well for you, that you will get back up and running soon
_

 

To me, it would be better to take your time. Who knows, maybe the computer will turn out ok. (i've seen some electronics take a dunking and be ok after a good drying) Chances are you won't get a good quote on a repair before he leaves the country anyway.

If it turns out that the computer needs replacing/repair, it may be easier to get it fixed through your direct boss, who i'm assuming you see on a more regular basis. Even if you need to call the head honcho himself, i'd bet he feels pretty guilty about it already, and probably will be pretty understanding.

There is also the possibility of considering a business expense to get it replaced. It appears it was used for work after all.

(Just my personal opinions here)

Edit:
Oh, was going to add: Don't use it as an opportunity to gouge. If it can be repaired much cheaper than a new one, take that route.

 

Tough situation, I would probably wait until it's dry (could take it apart to make it dry faster and give it a clean). If it didn't work after that, maybe try to get it repaired on warranty (as long as there are no signs of liquid damage, hopefully cleaning it would have solved this problem).

If it doesn't come back to life then maybe sell the parts on ebay.

That's what I would do, wouldn't want to deal with the boss of all bosses, would just take a loss.

But that's just me.

 

He made the mistake, not you, so there's no reason to fear asking for reimbursement. Could you sleep, after eating a $3k loss? I sure as heck couldn't.

That said, I'm not sure it would be fair to ask them to straight up replace the whole machine. For instance, if the over $500 SSD isn't damaged, you don't really deserve a second one, do you?.

Get in touch with your reseller, let them know what happened, then get a price for repair. Present that to your company for reimbursement.

 

If he is Chinese then don't even bother reminding him. or let your boss deal with the big boss of all bosses

 

Worst case just get a fresh bare bone and put your parts in...and of course make your boss pay.

 

You should take it apart anyway, it might not dry at all while assembled.
When taken apart it wont take more than 24 hours to dry.

When does your boss get back?

To keep the cost down you'd have to take it to a shop that is very good at board level repair. Sager will just charge you almost as much as a barebone for a new motherboard.

You should first find a way to test all the parts. If the CPU and GPU are dead, then heck just ask him for the 3k since its pretty much shot.

 

I've heard that the Chinese character for challenge and opportunity is the same.

I think this is an opportunity to make a good impression for yourself to the "boss of all bosses". Make an honest effort of getting your system back at the lowest cost to him. If that means waiting a while for the innards to dry or taking time to find the lowest repair/replacement then so be it. You never know the benefits of a good impression, especially one of being hard working and cost sensitive.

On a side note, you mentioned the drink was sweet. Even if everything were dried, I'd imagine most of the sugar will remain. I don't know its effect but it can't be good. Odds are you'd probably need to use some solvent to get the sugar out. Of course, this is assuming the system has not been bricked.

 

After accidents like this, the impact is usually greatest at the beginning. I don't think the boss will be as sympathetic as he is now. My concern is that if you wait a few more days he'll have forgotten all about it and be annoyed that you're bothering him with such a minor concern.

 

Thank you all for the great advice. I have already disassembled the laptop down to each PCB. The worst compoent is the keyboard, soaked and sticky from sugar in the ice tea. I had to wash it in distilled water

Currently everything is been dried with a hair blower on low setting. I am going to put everything together in a couple of hours and see if it comes back alive. The reality is that I really don't have another day or two due to cuurent workload.

As far as reimbursement goes. I will probably put a request through or accounting department instead of contacting the "boss of all bosses" Unfortunately, I highly doubt my boss is willing to pursuit this on my behalf... He doesnt want to have anything to do with this. But he should have no problem signing the check.

 

Honesty is always the best path. If your computer is sincerely dead, then he should replace it. If it can be repaired, then he should pay for the repair. If he's worthy of the title of human being, then he should have no problem with paying for it since he obviously has the means.

 

And as stated earlier, it will most likely be a business expense. If I did that, I would certainly want to reimburse my employee for any damage I did. And depending on what you do for the company, I would rather have an employee do what is right, rather than play politics, when it concerns my company. Integrity is not bargained for. It can not be taught, except at an early age.

If it turns out it needs repair, follow the excellent advice given earlier. Do not exagerate your claim, but do not become yet another cowardly employee. The ones I respect the most are the ones that show the most honesty. You were damaged in this, you deserve reparations. Don't be afraid. He sounds like a man of integrity, allow him to do the right thing. It could help you in the long run.

 

What does this even mean? I hope you're being playful.

 

Personally, I would have it replaced. I wouldn't take the chance that it may power on, you tell him it's fine and working, and then it stops again. You're SOL then. Feel free to leave the old one for the office to use but I would want a new one.