According to Steve Moster, GES president, “GES was the first in the industry to develop a centralized call center, and we continue to raise the bar in providing superior service. Earning certification by J.D. Power and Associates for a fourth year in a row is a great honor that recognizes the investment we have made in the training and development of our dedicated team members and in the call center’s technology.” And according to J.D. Power and Associates the call center customers report that GES’ interactive voice response experience was excellent, and that the GES agents were courteous as they solved customer issues quickly during the interaction.

Global Experience Specialists, Inc. (GES), is a leader in exhibition, event and retail marketing services. GES provides a wide range of services, including turn-key official show services, creative and design, marketing and measurement services. GES partners with leading shows and brands, including the International CES, Spring Fair Birmingham, International Woodworking Fair, CONEXPO-CON/AGG and IFPE, Bell Helicopter, Genzyme, L’Oreal, Warner Bros., and Simon Property Group.

Congratulations to the teams at GES. Congratulations from the CCNG Magnet Program and the entire CCNG network. Well done!

This excerpt from the article gives you a flavor for their focus …

“When Ingrid Lindberg was recruited by Cigna to become its customer experience officer in 2008, she immediately sprang into action. She and her newly formed team met for three days to map out the optimal customer experience, addressing customer pain points that were derived from an analysis of voice of the customer (VOC) data.

The top pain point Lindberg and her team identified was customers’ understanding—or lack thereof—of insurance-industry jargon. Lindberg swiftly initiated Words We Use, a company-wide campaign to align Cigna’s use of language with its customers’ needs and preferences. For example, Lindberg and her team discovered that the word “provider” was particularly confusing to customers. The industry uses the term to reference the entire delivery system (e.g., primary care doctors, specialists), “but customers thought of the insurance company as their provider. So we changed our language and began to refer to a doctor as a doctor,” Lindberg says.

The clearer communication led to a more than 100 percent improvement in how customers understood their benefits. It also enabled Cigna to reduce the volume of printed materials it sends to its customers by more than 50 percent. Additionally, because Cigna’s customers understand the company’s communications better, customers have increased their engagement in the company’s chronic-condition support program by 8.3 points.

Another action item that resulted from Cigna customer feedback was a need for the company to provide 24/7/365 customer support, which is still fairly rare among U.S. health insurers. “How on earth could you not be available to your customers when you’re talking about people getting sick and needing someone to call?” Lindberg asks.”

Congratulations to Lindberg and the teams at Cigna. Congratulations from the CCNG Magnet Program and the entire CCNG network.

This excerpt from the article gives you a flavor for their focus …

“Our company doesn’t necessarily position itself to be a price leader in the industry,” says Payne, assistant vice president, contact center, for The Standard. “What we pride ourselves on is the differentiation in the service that we provide. It’s giving customers what they want, how they want it, when they want it.” The article goes on to say describe how achieving this starts with enhancing the employee experience for the call center team. Payne knows that engaged agents are more empathetic—and when it comes to The Standard’s customer interactions, empathy from agents is essential for customer satisfaction and retention.

Payne’s agent engagement strategy primarily focuses on improving the day-to-day employee experience. For example, he implemented processes to improve training and scheduling. And calls are now routed the right agent with the right skills, which helps to ensure a more successful interaction. Additionally, he led the company to set up walk stations, so agents can work and get their blood flowing at the same time. “Contact center employees are traditionally tied to their desk, on the telephone. They’re sitting for long periods of the day,” Payne says. “We created a few stations that have a computer and a cell phone, where they’re actually standing on a treadmill.” The treadmills only reach a maximum speed of two-anda- half miles per hour, but the movement can be refreshing.

The Standard aims to continue its focus on its contact center staff and technologies that can support them as a way to increase customer satisfaction by at least 20 percent by 2013. “For us, customer service is the true focus, not an afterthought. Payne emphasizes. “It isn’t something we’re doing merely because we have to.”

Congratulations to David Payne and his team at The Standard. Congratulations from the CCNG Magnet Program and the entire CCNG network. Well done!

StanCorp Financial Group, Inc., through its subsidiaries marketed as The Standard — Standard Insurance Company, The Standard Life Insurance Company of New York, Standard Retirement Services, StanCorp Mortgage Investors, StanCorp Investment Advisers, StanCorp Equities, StanCorp Real Estate, and StanCorp Trust Company — is a leading provider of financial products and services. StanCorp’s subsidiaries serve 7.5 million unique customers nationwide as of June 30, 2011, with group and individual disability insurance, group life, AD&D and dental insurance, retirement plans products and services, individual annuities and investment advice.

Arizona Public Service (APS) is Arizona’s largest and longest-serving electricity utility and serves more than 1.1 million customers in 11 of the state’s 15 counties. With headquarters in Phoenix, APS is the principal subsidiary of Pinnacle West Capital Corporation. APS has earned numerous customer service and contact center industry accolades including recognition from J.D. Power, SQM Group, and the Chief Customer Officer (CCO) Council. In 2009, APS won the same Chartwell Best Practice award specifically for its proactive website, which is among the best in functionality and self-service in the industry.

Chartwell is a specialized information provider that helps utilities improve their customer experience and ultimately customer satisfaction. The award was presented on Wednesday October 26, at EMACS – The Customer Experience Conference.

“It gets more and more difficult each year to select the winners based on all the outstanding entries we receive, said Chartwell Vice President Dennis Smith. They (the award participants) consistently demonstrate the ability to translate a strong emphasis on internal engagement and employee satisfaction to high levels of customer satisfaction.”

We’re proud to have APS as a CCNG Magnet Program member and we congratulate them on their performance. Congratulations on a job well done from the CCNG Magnet Program and the entire CCNG network.

“We are extremely pleased to receive the MarketTools ACE Award,” said Mark Mathews, president and COO, Toshiba America Business Solutions Inc. “Our number one priority is service to our customers, and receiving this accolade again proves that our commitment sets us apart in our industry. Our goal is to continue our winning streak for excellence in service in the future.”

Toshiba earned particularly high marks in the “Outstanding Service Support Satisfaction” category. That input comes from Toshiba Business Solutions (TBS) dealers who, in accordance with MarketTools criteria, poll their customers to measure satisfaction levels. Receiving a MarketTools ACE Award demonstrates both rigorous application of enterprise feedback processes and outstanding performance.

“High customer, employee and partner satisfaction levels are critical drivers of business growth and long-term profitability,” said Scott Arnold, president and CEO, MarketTools, Inc. “We are delighted to recognize Toshiba for its commitment to achieving the highest levels of satisfaction and loyalty …”

Headquartered in Irvine, Calif., Toshiba America Business Solutions Inc. (TABS) is an independent operating company of Toshiba Corporation, the seventh largest electronics/electrical equipment company in the world. TABS is a leading provider of managed print and professional services (MPS and PS), and manages product planning, marketing, sales, service, support and distribution of copiers, facsimiles, multifunction printing products, network controllers, and toner products throughout the United States, Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean.

Congratulations on an outstanding achievement. Congratulations from the CCNG Magnet Program and the entire CCNG network.

“The Contact Centers’ mission is the delivery of measurable, best-in-class customer service to our clients and their customers through a highly skilled, motivated workforce which places high emphasis on customer satisfaction and first call resolution.” And, “At work in our contact centers are caring professionals employing state-of-the-art technologies working hand in hand with a network of top performing Service Providers to deliver Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI) scores that continually rank in the top 96th percentile. Every year, “Best of the best” awards are won for Customer Service and overall Contact Center Excellence in prestigious U.S. and international competitions.”

Cross Country Automotive Services is a leading provider of integrated vehicle and driver programs in North America. They serve the automotive, insurance, and diversified markets, enabled by a world-class service provider network and contact center resources. Cross Country contact centers operate 24/7/365, handling nearly 1 million calls per month (inbound and outbound) from six geographically dispersed, fully redundant contact centers in Arizona, Florida, Massachusetts, Texas, Canada and Europe.

Cross Country ensures the contact center environment is set up for client, customer, and employee success. Peak performance is assured through closed-loop process and customer satisfaction surveys; a Six Sigma approach to management based on Voice of the Customer (VOC) rules; quality calibration sessions; monitoring and reporting; exceptional training programs, continuous coaching, and competitive compensation plans. They use the COPC-2000 CSP Standard as a performance management framework. The standard is relied upon worldwide as a valued strategy for implementing contact center best practices that improve performance in customer satisfaction and service.

Some of the most recent industry honors that prove their approaches work include:

• They received the number one ranking for 2010 among all companies globally within the “Best Internal Contact Center (Large / 250 + agents)” category at ContactCenterWorld.com’s annual “Top Ranking Performers in the Contact Center World” World Finals Conference & Awards. Read more.

• Their customer location service product (VINpoint) was awarded Customer Interaction Solutions magazine’s 2010 Product of the Year Award. VINpoint automatically identifies the location of stranded motorists requesting roadside assistance, delivering needed help faster and more reliably. VINpoint utilizes real-time location data obtained from the caller’s phone to guide the responding towing service or emergency service provider to the disabled vehicle’s location. Read more.

• And recently they earned a 2011 “CIO 100 Award” from CIO magazine for their T3 (third-generation) connected vehicle platform which enables the simple integration of vehicles, websites, mobile devices or any endpoint to back-end content, which can continue to evolve as customer needs change.The CIO 100 Awards honor organizations that are using information technology in innovative ways to deliver business value by creating competitive advantage, optimizing business processes, enabling growth and improving relationships with customers. Read more.

Congratulations to the team at Cross Country Auto for your ongoing innovation and commitment to customer service excellence. Congratulations from the CCNG Magnet Program and the entire CCNG network.

In March, 21st Century Insurance was recognized for call center operation customer satisfaction excellence for a fifth consecutive year under the J.D. Power and Associates Call Center Certification Program. The Call Center Certification Program distinction acknowledges a strong commitment by 21st Century Insurance’s call center operations to provide “An Outstanding Customer Service Experience.” And  … when the winners of the 2011 MarketTools ACE (Achievement in Customer Excellence) Awards were announced in February this year 21st Century Insurance was presented the award for a fifth time. You can follow the links to read the for the full announcements.

To become certified in the J.D. Power program 21st Century Insurance’s call center operations successfully passed a detailed audit of more than 100 practices that encompass call center customer satisfaction measurement and analysis strategies, recruiting, training, employee incentives, quality assurance capabilities, and management roles and responsibilities. As part of its evaluation, J.D. Power and Associates also conducted a random survey of 21st Century Insurance customers who recently contacted its call centers in Wilmington, DE.; Vestal, NY; Lewisville, TX; Lake Mary, FL; and Phoenix, AZ.

The MarketTools ACE (Achievement in Customer Excellence) Award certifies, acknowledges and celebrates outstanding achievement in customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, and/or partner satisfaction. Earning a MarketTools ACE Award recognizes 21st Century Insurances’ ongoing success and effectiveness in using enterprise feedback to build satisfaction and loyalty.

Congratulations (x2) to the teams at 21st Century Insurance from the CCNG Magnet Program and the entire CCNG network.

The Call Center Certification Program distinction acknowledges a strong commitment by Nicor National’s call center operations to provide an outstanding customer service experience. To become certified, they had to successfully pass a detailed audit of their recruiting, training, employee incentives, quality assurance capabilities, and management roles and responsibilities.  They had to perform within the top 20 percent of customer service scores, which are based on benchmarks established in J.D. Power and Associates’ cross-industry customer satisfaction research.

The evaluation criteria include the customer service representative’s courtesy, knowledge and concern for the customer; promptness in speaking to a person; and timely resolution of the problem or request. Additionally, the experience with the automated phone system is evaluated based on the clarity of the information provided, the ease of navigating the phone menu prompts and the ease of understanding the phone menu instructions. And finally, As part of the evaluation, J.D. Power and Associates also conducted a random survey of Nicor National customers who recently contacted Nicor National’s call center located in Naperville, IL. The audit and analysis from J.D. Power and Associates highlighted that customers are especially pleased with the call center agents’ technical knowledge, as well as their very professional level of service.

“Our fifth consecutive certification reinforces our commitment to both employees and customers,” said Barbara Porter, vice president of business development and customer service at Nicor National. “We firmly believe that employee engagement positively affects customer satisfaction and contributes to better business results. The environment we create for our employees is nurturing and collaborative, and our customers benefit from that workplace dynamic.”

Nicor National is an affiliate of Nicor Inc. formed in 1992 to provide energy-related products and services with a home warranty focus. They currently do business in 26 states across the US and handle more than 1 million telephone, e-mail, and fax inquiries from customers annually. The company offers a wide variety of products and services to the customers of its utility partners, which helps to build brand awareness and stronger customer relationships for both companies.

Congratulations to the teams at Nicor for a clear commitment to excellence. Five consecutive years of certification clearly demonstrates a culture and an operational environment centered around the customer. Congratulations from the CCNG Magnet Program and the entire CCNG network.

Receiving an award from a major industry competition is an honor. Winning three awards–like Discover Financial Services did–is amazing … and we want to help celebrate their achievement!

The Call Center Excellence Awards recognize superior thinking, creativity and execution across the full spectrum of call center functions. This year the competition received hundres of applications from around the industry. Applications were then reviewed through a panel of respected industry experts. Awards were given in eight categories.

Discover Financial Services recieved 1st Place honors in two categories and 2nd Place honors in a third:

• 1st Place: Best in Class Call Center (over 200 Staff)
• 1st Place: Best Performance Acting on Voice of Customer and Voice of Social Customer
• 2nd Place: Greatest Job Creating Culture that Inspires World-Class Excellence

Congratulations to the team at Discover for a great showing and a great achievement. Congratulations from the CCNG Magnet Program and the entire CCNG network.

The results of the 5th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service were announced during a banquet at the Eden Roc Renaissance Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida on Monday, February 21, 2011.

Nicknamed the Stevies for the Greek word for “crowned,” the trophies were presented to honorees during a gala banquet. The event benefited Camfed, which supports the education of girls and women in Africa. Finalists in the 2011 competition were determined during preliminary judging in November 2010 – January 2011 by business professionals worldwide. The Stevie Award winner in each category was determined during final judging, which was conducted from January 24 – February 4, 2011.

Customer Service Leader of the Year
STEVIE AWARD WINNER:
Capital One Financial Corporation, McLean, VA: Heather Cox, Senior Vice President – US Card Customer Operations

FINALISTS:

• Assurant Solutions, Lawton, OK: Mark Davis, VP of Contact Center Operations
• Ceridian Corporation, Minneapolis, MN: Paul Everett, Senior Vice President of Customer Service, Ceridian HR/Payroll
• Marsh U.S. Consumer, Urbandale, IA: Ryan Wynne, Operations Manager I
• Overstock.com, Salt Lake City, UT: Stormy Simon, Senior VP of Marketing and Customer Care
• TATA Motors Ltd, India: Shridhar Joshi, Head Customer Service
• Telecom Italia SPA, Rome, Italy: Roberto Brancati, Head of the Consumer Sales for Fixed Customer Operations

We would like to congratulate all of the finalists in the category of Customer Service Leader of the Year, and especially Heather Cox–winner of this year’s award. Congratulations to you and the teams and organizations supporting you from the CCNG Magnet Program and the entire CCNG network. Well done!