Most people couldn’t imagine starting their day without a cup of coffee. So, when customers Don and Robin Smith from Somerset, Kentucky, saw KU trucks outside their house, Don was worried the crews would shut off power before he could brew his morning cup of Joe.
What the Smiths may not have realized is that the crew – like their co-workers at LG&E and KU – keeps the customer experience top of mind.
A day earlier, Billy Barnett and Chad Francisco, service technicians, met the Smiths after the couple reported the lights inside their home were constantly flickering.
After completing an inspection, both men noticed the transformer connected to the house needed an upgrade.
“We could have easily changed the wires, and that may have fixed the problem in the short term,” said Barnett. “But we wanted to do the job right, and that meant replacing the transformer, too.”
The following day, line technicians arrived at the Smiths’ house bright and early, and connected with them before starting work. The crew made sure the couple had time to make their morning coffee and get ready for the day before shutting off power to their home to replace the old transformer and wires with new ones.
The effort is just one example of how LG&E and KU employees strive to “Go BEYOND” in their interactions with customers.
Initially launched in 2009, the “Go BEYOND” Customer Experience initiative was designed to create an awareness among employees that everyone, regardless of whether they work in a customer-facing role, impacts the customer experience.
“Keeping the customer experience top of mind in everything we do is a key part of our company culture. We want employees to feel empowered to make decisions that positively impact customers’ interactions with our company,” said Debbie Leist, director of Customer Service and Marketing and lead of the utilities’ Customer Experience advisory committee – comprised of directors throughout the company, brought together in 2015 to help broaden the effort.
As part of the initiative, an internal, mobile friendly webpage provides employees with tools and practical ways to enhance every customer interaction.
