Greg Wilkerson, Customer Service Representative
Greg became a member of the SIGMA family in 2005 through an acquisition. SIGMA bought his former company, Florida-based PCI, acquiring the employees and the inventory. He worked in the SIGMA Orlando office, and when the company began to centralize operations in 2010, Greg was at a crossroads. He explains, “I had four kids in school and I couldn’t relocate my family. I will always be grateful to our National Sales Manager Greg Fox for giving me a chance to stay with SIGMA, keep my family together and let my kids stay in their schools. He created a position that enabled me to continue supporting outside sales and handling customer service. I knew I had a maximum of 90 days to show that it was a good plan, and I was determined to make the arrangement work. I hit the ground running and I never stopped. The key to success in this job is to respond immediately; customers don’t want a voice mail or a slow reply to an email. They want answers now.”
When asked about his job title, Greg is circumspect: “My title is CSR, but what I really do is manage customer expectations. I always try to anticipate the needs of customers and make sure to meet, or even better, exceed them.” Greg is something of a guru on customer service, having given talks and trainings at various professional events over the years. His approach is straightforward: “I put myself in the position of the customer. I know that anxiety arises when things do not turn out how you expect. Something as simple as a quick trip to Target becomes stressful when there is a wreck, and a 5 minute ride takes 30 minutes and you are now late for an appointment. I work really hard to avoid that type of experience with my customers. If they request a product tomorrow that I determine won’t arrive for a week, I will tell them. They need the worst-case scenario, not the best. That way, they are prepared and they know what to expect, but if the item arrives early, they are happy.”
Greg is keenly aware of his role as a representative of SIGMA. He likens the company’s leadership structure to a pyramid, with the executives at the point and the remaining employees forming the base. But to his customers, the pyramid is turned on its side and he is the point: “I am the point of contact. To that customer I am SIGMA. It does not matter to them who the CEO or the President is, if they are not happy with me and the service I deliver, they are not happy with SIGMA.” And this is something that Greg works tirelessly to avoid: “I love SIGMA. The people are nice. It’s the best company I’ve worked for.”
We salute Greg for his productive tenure at SIGMA and wish him continued success.