Stars of customer service announced

Monday 10 October 2016

Jersey’s best customer service providers have been recognised in a special ceremony.

Held at the Radisson Blu on Thursday, the TravelSolutions Customer Services Awards saw the full spectrum of the business community out in full force to celebrate their workers’ commitment to customer care.

The awards - chosen from over 12,000 nominations made by members of the public - ranged from States sector to self-employed, with the overall winner announced as Tamba Park’s Michael Bee, who took home the Tourism prize.

For Social Security, the event was a particular success, having three employees listed as finalists in the Public Sector Award category. Chris Guillochon from the Customer Service Centre took the top prize, while Kim Le Blancq and previous winner Jacqui Stroud - both from Back to Work - were named runners up.

Award-winner Mr Guillochon said that “honesty and sincerity” are the keys to success. “At Social Security, we are often the first  stop for many new people on the Island, and somewhere people have to come at points in their lives that may be stressful or difficult already - so it is really important that people leave the building, or put the phone down, feeling we have helped them, or that we have made life easier in some way.”

According to Jersey Chamber of Commerce Vice President Eliot Lincoln, the annual event - now in its sixth year - saw a “substantial increase in entries, so much so that the decision-making process took far longer."

Amanda Eulenkamp, Director of headline sponsor TravelSolutions, said that the awards reflected that Island businesses “take good customer service very seriously and that local companies and individuals understand that a great customer experience is essential for local business success.”

CEO of Jersey Business, Graeme Smith, echoed these comments. Given the changing customer service landscape, he described it as “really encouraging to see local businesses embracing the various new channels of communicating with their customers”.

He added: “Congratulations to this year’s winners and shortlisted finalists - they should be extremely proud of their achievements.”

Full list of category winners:

Self Employed Rob Mallett, CI Smartmove
Aspiring Star Callum Tisdale, Ports of Jersey
States/Public Sector Chris Guillochon, Customer Service Centre, Social Security
Best Service by an individual employee David Thomas, Waitress
Tourism Michael Bee, Tamba Park
Food, Drink and Hospitality The Inn Hotel
Humble Volunteer Jonathan Bugbird, Brighter Futures
Best Team Snowgoose Café
Best Business QuidsIn
Overall winner Michael Bee, Tamba Park