TriCities.com and 11Connects shines the spotlight on Karen Puckett, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of CenturyLink.
Responsible for not only company-wide customer experience and operation performance, she also creates synergy between CenturyLink and the companies it acquires. While visiting the CenturyLink call center in Johnson City, she says many executive decisions begin with feedback from the frontlines.
Puckett is not satisfied sitting in a corner office. She often visits call centers, constantly searching for ways to improve service.
“The key thing is listening to your frontline employees and your customers and you typically can't go wrong,” she says. “And, quickly self-adjusting. So, if you pull a lever and its not working, readjusting quickly is important.”
When many customers recently dropped their landlines and went strictly cellular, Puckett readjusted and turned the company’s focus to being a broadband leader to make up for the loss.
“From my standpoint, we are experiencing a high-performing team and it’s pretty incredible and pretty amazing and inspirational for most of us in our careers, and allows us to grow in different ways as we challenge each other,” Puckett says.
As much as Puckett’s visits inspire those who work with customers every day, she says she is energized by team members.
“When you get around the table and talk about what could be, what are the possibilities versus what you can't do, it’s amazing what comes out of those discussions,” she says. “And what could be can then become reality.”
Under Puckett’s guidance, CenturyLink recently completed its acquisition of Qwest Communications, making CenturyLink the country’s third-largest telecommunications provider.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement