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NYCM Insurance, Edmeston, NY

Gold Stevie Award Winner 2012, Click to Enter The 2014 American Business Awards

Company: NYCM Insurance, Edmeston, NY
Entry Submitted By: Dalton Agency
Company Description: NYCM Insurance, headquartered in Edmeston, N.Y., is a personal lines insurance company serving residents of New York State.
Nomination Category: Customer Service Awards Department Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Customer Service Department of the Year - Financial Services

Nomination Title: NYCM Insurance

Tell the story about what this nominated department achieved since the beginning of July 2013 (up to 650 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

NYCM Insurance, headquartered in Edmeston, N.Y., is a personal lines insurance company serving residents of New York State.

Response time. In 2014, NYCM Customer Service implemented an employee work-at-home option to ensure maximum customer service during major weather events. Laptops and mobile equipment were issued to staff and testing began in summer of 2014. In late November 2014, Buffalo, NY was hit with 7 feet of snow within 48 hours, closing one call center. The work-from-home program allowed the company to maintain its 24/7 customer service throughout the duration of the storm.

NYCM improves E-Commerce tools. The E-Commerce team updated the website to make it more compatible with mobile devices. Additionally, a new online ‘Claims University’ enabled forms to be downloaded through ‘My Account’. A billing tutorial was added along with E-bill and E-policy options to allow customers to go paperless. The ‘Agent Lobby’ was streamlined to improve navigation and core features and all servers were upgraded to increase the speed to access information for the agents. Several other features were implemented to improve the speed and access for customers and independent agents.

NYCM is dedicated to Customer Satisfaction. In 2014 we created a Customer Experience Team which developed a customer segmentation analysis to further define our understanding of our target market. Based on six customer personas, a journey mapping program was implemented enabling us to better understand our customers and improve their experiences.

In independent testing customers that had recently experienced a claim with NYCM rated their satisfaction level at 9.1 out of 10.

NYCM Has Minimal Turnover. NYCMs employee retention rate is an industry-high 95% (excluding retirees) compared to a national average of 45%.

NYCM Uses Scorecards. In 2014 an Interaction Management Team was created to enable Quality Assurance personnel to collaborate on improving customer service. We increased the emphasis on call quality and personal emotional connections (PEC) while protecting existing information security and accuracy standards. Customer Service Floor supervisors initiated additional coaching sessions, including call monitoring and reviewing. New scorecards were developed and tested and are ready to be put into production. Group training sessions were conducted to ensure professional standards of email interactions and our existing comprehensive scoring process was expanded to include e-mails.

NYCM is Community-Focused. During November 2014’s Buffalo blizzard, when residents were unable to leave their homes for 5 days, NYCM’s Customer Experience Team and company volunteers made out-bound calls to check on customers. Many customers, especially the elderly, expressed their appreciation for the calls. We provided hot meals to emergency response teams and snow plow operators in affected areas.

Throughout the year employees and their families participate in fundraising activities including a team of 245 people for America’s Greatest Heart Run and walk in Utica, NY, and active participation in fundraising and awareness events for Cancer, Autism, Multiple Sclerosis, Diabetes and the Ice Bucket Challenge for ALS. Our “Taste of the Call Center” luncheon raised $2,406 which was matched by the company and helped needy families during the holidays.

This year the company began allowing employees to take up to 16 hours with pay to participate in volunteer activities. This was a welcome addition to our benefit package as many of our employees are EMT’s and firefighters who are called out to help in the community on a regular basis.

NYCM Earns Recognition:

• 2014 Gold Stevie Award for Customer Service Department of the Year – Financial Services.

• JD Power and Associates awarded NYCM Insurance 2nd place for “customer satisfaction among auto insurers in New York” based on its 2014 Auto Insurance Study.

• Holds an A+ rating from BBB of upstate New York.

• Rated A+ Superior by A.M. Best Company.

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