OKC Thunder
Company: OKC Thunder, Oklahoma City, OK
Company Description: The Oklahoma City Thunder is a professional basketball franchise based in Oklahoma City, OK. Formerly the Seattle SuperSonics, the team relocated to Oklahoma City in fall of 2009.
Nomination Category: Customer Service & Call Center Team Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Front-Line Customer Service Team of the Year
Nomination Title: Oklahoma City Thunder Guest Relations – Front-Line Customer Service Team of the Year
Tell the story about what this nominated team achieved since the beginning of July last year (up to 500 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:
When you walk into the Ford Center (home of the OKC Thunder) for a Thunder
basketball game, you are not a customer, client or a number; you are our Guest!
The vision of the Thunder franchise is "to be most fan-centric organization in
professional sports."
In the team's inaugural season, our Guest Relations department aimed to
establish a foundation of customer service excellence amidst what NBA
Commissioner, David Stern called “the most compressed beginning ever in
professional sports.” In pursuit of this goal, Guest Relations took the
following actions:
;- Introduced “CLICK! with your Guests" training, a comprehensive customer
service training program, that educates, empowers and motivates arena staff.
-- “CLICK! with your Guests” Overview
o C – Communicate Courteously
o L – Listen to Learn
o I – Initiate Immediately
o C – Create Connections
o K – Know Your Stuff
-- Guest Relations trained over 1,500 front-line staff,
delivering over 200 hours of service training.
- Employee Recognition
-- Championed full-time employees to hand out “CLICK! with
your Guests” chips, used to reward front-line staff for creating memorable
service experiences.
-- Further recognized exceptional customer service by acknowledging front-line
staff who received 100% scores from our secret shopping vendor.
- Introduced “T.E.S.T. US!” campaign to maximize fan feedback.
-- “T.E.S.T. US!” Overview
o Talk to us
o Email us
o Suggestion Box
o Text us
-- Offered six separate communication mediums for fans to share their
comments including a 24/7 text messaging inbox.
-- Solicited fan feedback by placing the “T.E.S.T. US!” messaging on ticket
envelopes, souvenir cups, box-score sheets, game-night programs, arena
scoreboard, the team website and more.
- Research
-- Utilized two independent intercept survey programs to collect data on the
game-day experience (over 2,400 responses)
o CSL (Convention Sports & Leisure International)
o Turnkey Sports
-- Implemented two independent secret shopping programs
o POPULOUS/HOK SPORTS
o SMRI (Sports Management Research Institute)
The results of these studies are a testament to the consistent effort put
forth by our front-line customer service team:
- Turnkey Sports Fan Intercept Survey Results
-- 2008-09 Mean Survey Results (1-Poor to 7-Excellent scale)
oService from ticket takers ; 6.6
oService from ushers; 6.53
o Overall customer service experience; 6.53
o Service from security staff; 6.39
oService from concessions kiosks; 6.37
oService from box office/will-call;6.31
oService from merchandise; 6.27
oService from in-seat vendors;6.14
- CSL Fan Intercept Survey Results
o 98% rated their overall experience at the Ford Center “Good”
or “Excellent” regardless of how the team faired
o97% rated their overall experience at the Ford Center “Good”
or “Excellent” when compared to other venues
- POPULOUS/HOK SPORTS Secret Shop Results
o #1 ranked NBA client for sales window, entry plaza, restrooms and
overall facility cleanliness
- SMRI Secret Shop Results
o #1 ranked NBA client
o Ranked 6th among SMRI’s 30 other clients in large, indoor arenas
- Employee Retention
o Achieved 95% retention of Guest Relations front-line (ticket takers,
ushers and admissions personnel) following the 2008-09 season
List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:
“Even being a former Disney cast member, I was excited and energized to hear
the Thunder’s Guest Service philosophy. I’ve worked for several great
professional sports organizations, but so far, that was the best orientation I
have ever witnessed. Thanks again!” - Front-Line Team Member
“The top-notch customer service has made my decision easy to renew my season
tickets again next year. I think the entire Thunder organization does a
magnificent job of taking care of their ticket holders and I look forward to
many more years of Thunder basketball. Thanks for the great experience this
year!” - Thunder Season Ticket Member
“I have been so impressed with the level of attention and service I have
received. I bought the $10 tickets for my son, and I wasn’t sure how much
attention the “cheap seats” would receive. I’m not sure how many personal
phone calls and emails I have received. It is wonderful to support an
organization that truly appreciates my business. I have told everyone what a
great experience this has been.” - Thunder Fan
http://www.nba.com/thunder/news/gamenight_petewinemiller_091211.html
http://www.nba.com/thunder/contact/test_us.html
Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader(s) of the nominated team:
Pete Winemiller, Senior Vice President of Guest Relations, is in his 15th
season with the franchise, managing the Guest Relations department,
hospitality initiatives and training division.
A keynote speaker at numerous national customer service conferences, he has
been a guest lecturer at Arizona State University, University of Oregon and
the University of Washington.
Winemiller has been recognized by 1 to 1 Magazine as one of a select few
executives in North America to be honored as a “Customer Champion.”
He is a graduate of Washington State University and an alumnus of the Disney
Institute in Orlando, Florida.