Team Georgia-Georgia Customer Service

Joy Sanders, an investigator with the State Board of Workers' Compensation in Albany, investigates and prosecutes identity theft and fraudulent workers' comp claims. Joy's job requirement is to catch the perpetrators, but in cases like these, the victims often have little recourse. Joy, however, sees it as her duty to help the innocent.

Joy recently helped a young man in Texas regain his identity after someone used it to file a false workers' comp claim in Georgia. After receiving a letter from the victim's mother describing how her son's life had been turned upside down, Joy not only saw to the arrest of the perpetrator, but also reached out to the victim and his mother. Joy made calls on their behalf, helped prepare documentation and answered their questions.

"Joy has exemplified through her actions the meaning of 'customer service' and 'the extra mile,'" said her director, Stan Bexley. "She saw a problem – a young man stranded in Texas – and then did what she could do to solve it. She put herself in his shoes."

"In today's world, people of her character are few and far between," the victim's mother wrote about Joy. "She is by no means self-centered but lives by the Golden Rule."

Jeannie Lewis Rhodes, a biologist with the Dept. of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division in Brunswick, is tireless in her efforts to protect Georgia's exceptional coastal resources for the benefit of all residents and visitors.

Over the past 18 months, Jeannie collaborated with DNR teams, state and federal agencies, local governments and planning and engineering firms to develop and implement new "green" techniques for managing stormwater runoff on the Georgia coast. She realized that the traditional methods used by most states were designed for inland areas, not coastal areas. The new techniques mark the next generation of stormwater management, elevating Georgia to a national leader by focusing on prevention of polluted runoff.

Demonstrating her skills as a facilitator and team player, Jeannie also worked with several agencies and organizations to ensure other key Georgia initiatives meshed well and worked together to achieve multiple compatible goals. She spoke with stakeholders and concerned citizen groups to educate them and get their input. Additionally, Jeannie helped coordinate training sessions for both public and private environmental managers.

"We know that coastal ecosystem health declines with the amount of land converted for roads, houses, shopping centers and other hard surfaces," said Jeannie. "We are adding innovative strategies to our toolbox to better protect coastal waters, wildlife, habitats and human health."

Keith Richardson is the Information Technology supervisor for the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs. Because this office protects consumers and businesses from unlawful, deceptive and unfair practices, it is critical that citizens are able to contact them.

Last year, Keith was vacationing in Brazil when he received notification from his IT team back in Georgia. The power was turned off in the building, affecting all OCA systems. In these situations, systems must be brought back up in a particular order. Keith had left behind detailed instructions, but due to various complications the on-site staff could not get things running again. Because he had planned ahead for remote access in case of emergency, Keith was able to logon and create workarounds for the problem.

“I assume responsibility for keeping systems up and running well. I do whatever it takes to make it happen. Even if I am on vacation, if there’s a need, I fill it,” said Keith. He added, “My immediate customers are internal – the office staff who depend on network systems. But indirectly, all of Georgia’s consumers are my customers. If I don’t do my job, they cannot contact us and get help.”

Twrnia Venson with the Dept. of Corrections offers advice for helping difficult customers. In her job, she deals with probationers who sometimes become hostile.

"People are not intentionally hostile; they just want answers. When we listen to what their concerns are and address the problems, I always see a change for the better in their attitudes. Every time, the probationers will apologize for their previous actions, and then they trust you because you did not react to their hostility. They feel that you have their best interest in mind. We should always have the best interest of the customer in mind when we are serving them."

Bill Roa, assistant director of photography and creative imagery at the University System of Georgia's Georgia Perimeter College (GPC), lends his talents as a photographer to provide high-quality photos for many of Georgia’s universities, state agencies and customer service award winners.

One colleague, Fran Mohr, wrote, “In addition to sharing his expertise, Bill brings his positive attitude, laughter, and engaging smile to all photo shoots. Bill treats his customers with respect and exemplifies the attributes of being helpful, courteous and responsive. His images make customers feel honored.”

Echoing this sentiment, GPC's Vice President for International Advancement Jeff Tarnowski said, “Bill always goes the extra mile to be helpful to each and every person that he interacts with – whether it is a student, employee or donor. It is an honor to work with Bill each day because of his team spirit and the service that he provides to us all. The many compliments that I receive on a regular basis about Bill and his work always have the same themes – friendly, patient, great sense of humor and a faithful willingness to help.”

Clarice Seagraves and Marcresha Farmer are Probation/Parole Specialists with the Dept. of Juvenile Justice's Gwinnett County Court Service Office. Marcresha supervises children committed to DJJ care, and Clarice works closely with children and families in the High Intensity Team unit. For both women, helping others is at the heart of their work.

"I enjoy working with at-risk youth because I want to make a difference in a child's life and the community," said Marcresha. Clarice said of her job, "This is where God wants me to be, so I can teach life lessons to our young people. I would like to teach them you can survive and be a productive citizen without committing crimes."

DJJ Commissioner Albert Murray received a letter from a parent praising Marcresha, Clarice and the entire Gwinnett team. "I cannot speak highly enough about this group of overworked, underpaid, professional, efficient and concerned above and beyond the call of duty probation officers," wrote the parent.

"Our communications were honest and thorough, and they took the time to listen to our concerns and wishes on the behalf of our son. They made excellent observations and recommendations and followed through immediately. Our son is now residing at a treatment facility and doing quite well. The most amazing part of getting to know this department is how well they function as a team to best serve anyone who is entrusted to their care. Thank you for employing such fine people."

Joy Chapman, a call center agent for the Georgia Dept. of Corrections, focuses on providing caring, helpful service. This means a lot to her customers, including the families of inmates. Joy abides by this rule: "Remember that despite everything else, the inmate in question is some mother's darling."

"Joy's approach to helping her callers is systematic and precise," says supervisor Craig Waddell. "What sets Joy apart is the fact that she takes the time to listen to the caller, paraphrases to ensure understanding, and asks probing questions when further clarity is needed. With her vast experience, she is then able to provide detailed and thoughtful answers to our customers."

For example, Joy always tries to look up the inmate ID or name while the customer explains the situation. "That way you can begin to understand the story a lot sooner and start the problem solving," says Joy.

One customer recently called back to praise Joy for providing "world-class" customer service, especially for taking time to fully explain the department's processes and ensure understanding. Joy was "helpful and outstanding while providing really good information," said the customer.

Hilda Butler and Donika Harallambi are cashiers at Bolton Dining Commons at the University of Georgia. Because of its location, Bolton feeds more first-year students than any other dining facility on campus, which can lead to some challenges in August when all of the first-year students are brand new to the University

Donika and Hilda are the first people our customers see when they enter the building, and they take that responsibility seriously. They welcome each student, and take extra time with the new students to make sure they know how to use the biometric turnstile access system. Our new customers never feel bad if they swipe their card upside-down, because either Hilda or Donika will be right there to assure them with a smile that it's no big deal, and show them the right way to do it. They both use this opportunity to learn their customers' names, and always try to put them at ease by asking questions about where they are from or what they plan to study at school.

For most of our customers, this is their first time away from home. Donika and Hilda will both tell you that they are a little like a second mother to these kids — after all, Mom is always there before a meal, waiting with a smile to ask how you are doing today!

Thanks to Kris Ingmundson for submitting this story online. Submit your own story or tip!

SGT Jonathan M. Posey serves as an Assistant Post Commander with the Georgia State Patrol at Post 13 in Tifton. In 2008, SGT Posey made 390 arrests, worked 38 accidents, stopped 526 vehicles and worked 141 radio hours, in addition to his primary administrative duties. He has also served 523 hours as a trooper school instructor.

On February 4, 2009, SGT Posey's actions caught the attention of a bystander, Clyde Young. Mr. Young was so moved by SGT Posey, he took the time to write a letter of commendation to the Georgia Department of Public Safety's Commissioner. On that day, Mr. Young witnessed SGT Posey assist an elderly citizen pump gas at a local gas station. SGT Posey then proceeded to not only pay for the gas, but gave the gentleman the change to purchase a meal.

SGT Posey went above and beyond what it means to be helpful. In that single day, he showed not only unselfishness, but also compassion for his fellow citizens. When asked what inspires him to provide quality customer service, SGT Posey said, "My interpretation of service is helping others to the best of my ability, whether I am in my uniform or not. By not providing quality customer service, this would bring discredit on me as a person as well as on my department as a whole."

Dot Lukens Dual Enrollment Program Assistant at Chattahoochee Technical College in Marietta, is always ready to help students and visitors. "Many students get turned around on our campus and will stop by my office and ask for directions or information," says Dot.

"I keep copies of the school campus so I can not only give them directions but I can give them a map and point out the different buildings to them. This has come in handy more than once. Also, if they need other information, I will make calls to get them to where they need to be or the answer to their questions. I try very hard not to brush them off to some other room or person. No one likes a run-a-round."

Thanks to Dot for submitting this story online. Submit your own story or tip!

Graham Wilson executive service coordinator at the Georgia Dome, wouldn't let a customer's broken leg impede his enjoyment of the ACC basketball tournament.

The customer wrote in a letter praising Graham's service: “Graham could not have been more accommodating or helpful to us. Upon locating our seats, he concluded that we could not navigate them, so he seated us in the handicap section, which made everything so much simpler for us. For the rest of that day, and each day for the next three days, Graham stopped by several times to check on us and to see if he could do anything for us. He was always cheerful and extremely helpful. His professionalism was outdone only by his kindness. We would like to commend him to you for a job extremely well done.”

Lorri Chin-Shue is a Fatherhood Coordinator for the Gwinnett Technical College division of the Technical College System of Georgia. Her responsibilities as Coordinator include training, counseling, transition planning, and career advice for fathers who have become delinquent in child support payments.

Lorri really takes a strong personal interest in each case that she works. In one circumstance, she was given the case of a father of a developmentally disabled child. The child's mother had full custody, and was receiving child support payments from the father, even though the child was living with the father. Lorri helped the father start his own business in home repair, and also helped him to receive full custody of the child. The father and child still keep in contact with Lorri to this day.

Lorri is a person that cares about the people she works with, and helps to make a difference in the lives of others.

Toni Smiley works as a Call Center Supervisor for the Office of Child Support Services. In the past, Toni has also taken on the role of a trainer, IT guru, and mentor when it was needed.

Toni has provided outstanding service for the Office of Child Support Services. Toni took it upon herself to drive her car to many agents' homes to set up their computers for teleworking. She also resides in Alabama and voluntarily stayed in Atlanta for a week at her own expense to be on hand to assist agents in need.

Toni has gone out of her way to assist her fellow co-workers, which has helped the Office of Child Support Services advance as quickly as it has. When asked what motivates her, Toni responded by saying, "I am motivated to provide quality service because I realize that for some, child support is not a luxury, it is a necessity."

Julie Spriggs serves as a Juvenile Probation and Parole Specialist for the Department of Juvenile Justice in Houston County, Georgia. On one particular occasion, Julie showed just what a determined and committed employee she really is. She went out of her way to assist the deaf parent of hearing children. She contacted the legal department to inquire about obtaining an interpreter. She worked though tedious paperwork, and in the end obtained an interpreter for the parent to better understand and communicate throughout the legal proceedings.

When asked what inspires her to provide outstanding customer service, Julie responded by saying, "By being enthusiastic and showing strong convictions as well as showing that I care, I believe that it inspires and motivates the youth to change. I strongly feel that as we help to make changes in each child's life that they will see from my actions that by taking the time to listen and show attention to their specific needs that they will in turn do the same for others."