Summer 2007 - SCANA Corporation

the night before and was asked to keep it quiet until the
next day.
“I thought to myself, ‘How am I going to do this?’
I’m surprised they didn’t figure it out because the night
before the awards we were out entertaining customers,
and I kept saying, ‘We need to go ahead and call it a
night. We don’t want to miss the meeting tomorrow
morning,’” laughed Chapman. “I’m just so proud of them
— all of customer service engineering is proud of them.
They work hard and do a really good job.”
Lucas and Stevens knew they worked hard — you
didn’t have to tell them that — but winning the award
showed them something they didn’t know — just
how much that hard work was appreciated. From
picking up the phone to let their customers know
about approaching storms to finding a better rate for
an individual store, the EEI award proved it’s the little
things that sometimes make the biggest impact.
“It was so exciting to see them win because they
constantly make me feel like I’m the most important
customer. This is proof that they’re giving this same
level of customer service to everyone, not just me,” said
Dillard’s Goetz.
“SCE&G winning is because of their dedication to
national accounts,” said DePalo. “They really stand out
because of their proactive communication, which is
what we need.”
Now all Lucas and Stevens have to do is keep it up
— and as easy as that sounds, they both know there’s
no “easy button” when it comes to excellence in
customer service.
“We keep going back thinking, ‘What exactly did we
do last year?’ because we did it without thinking about
it,” laughed Penny. “We’ll just keep doing what we’re
doing because obviously they appreciate it.”
Photos by Robert Clark
McDonald’s honors account manager
Penny Stevens joins elite team as energy efficiency ambassador
One trademark of excellent customer service is going
above and beyond the customer’s expectations. So, when
McDonald’s approached Penny Stevens about joining
their extended energy team, she didn’t think twice about
the extra hours or travel, she just said “yes.”
Stevens is now one of just 15 account executives
from utility companies around the country who act
as an energy efficiency ambassador for McDonald’s.
In that role, she travels to the company’s national and
international conventions educating franchise operators
on energy usage and ways to use energy more wisely.
“She has great interpersonal skills, communications
skills, as well as a wealth of knowledge,” said Steve
DePalo, national energy manager for McDonald’s USA.
“Her professionalism and knowledge about the industry
were key to her being invited to join the team.”
McDonald’s bases selection on three factors: the
utility company must be large enough to serve a
significant number of local restaurants; the account
executive must demonstrate a willingness to help
customers; and the executive must have strong
knowledge of the industry, as well as an understanding
of the McDonald’s culture.
Stevens, it seems, has all three.
SUMMER 2007 • INSIGHTS 7