By Susan Agee – Town of Collierville
Sandra Helms recently received her pin for five years service with the Town of Collierville. Helms has been with the Public Services Department for one-and-a-half years, and before that worked at the Collierville Burch Library as a Circulation Associate for three-and-a-half years.
(Helms is pictured at right with Public Services Manager John Fox)
Helms noted that the common denominator in the two very different departments is customer service. How does she define good customer service.
“I think it starts with genuinely caring for people, being patient, just trying your best to be respectful, friendly, and professional with each caller, no matter what the request,“ said Helms.
Helms said that learning the best way to provide excellent customer service is a constantly evolving process, given the fact that some calls are positive and some are negative.
But she’s found that both at the Library and at Public Services, the Golden Rule is the primary guide: treat others the way you would like to be treated.
If you placed one of the over 900 calls that came in to the Collierville Public Services Department during our recent snow event, or one of the nearly 1200 calls the next week that led to pothole repairs, you spoke with one of three Collierville Public Services employees who triaged and directed the calls, according to the problem being reported. One of those employees was Sandra Helms.
“The average number of calls that can be fielded by one call center employee is typically 40-60 calls a day,” said Collierville Public Works Manager John Fox. “Throughout the storm, each of our personnel were taking approximately 60 calls a day or 180 calls a day total for all three employees.”
“Sandra comes into work with a smile every day, and provides our residents with a great customer service experience,” said Fox. “She’s a great asset to our department, and it’s dedicated employees like Sandra who make our department what it is today.”
“Helms is married with two children, and has been a resident of Collierville for 25 years.
She enjoys working for the Town because she is able to see the Town grow from the inside out, and is able to be a part of the staff serving the public as the population grows.
“I definitely believe that as the Town of Collierville grows, each and every department in the Town needs to grow with it in order to provide the needed services at the highest quality level possible,” said Helms. “I look forward to the residents working with the TOC to give ideas and suggestions to improve the Public Services Department in order to better serve the Town‘s best interest as a whole. Let’s work together and grow together!”
The Collierville Public Services Department is open from 7:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday, and can be reached at (901) 457-2800.
