Providing excellent customer service is an essential part of our business. It’s a key factor in re-engineering properties and is an important building block of the house. The level of customer service we provide is what makes us different. It separates us from others in the industry. However, this is an area we’ve come up short of late. But we’re focused on the solution.
In our most recent customer service survey, our overall score increased to 3.3, with 26 properties improving their scores. While it’s short of our 3.7 goal, we’re moving in the right direction.
Among the properties making improvements, one stands out. City Walk at Woodbury in Minneapolis. The team at City Walk posted an impressive 3.86 in June — an outstanding achievement led by partner and senior director Michelle Murphy.
In December 2022, City Walk’s customer survey score was 2.98, and the property was at 50% occupancy. Changes had to be made. That’s where Michelle comes in. With a proven track record of re-engineering customer service at properties, Michelle packed her bags for Minneapolis in January, set to take on her biggest challenge yet.
“Michelle has an exceptional track record for fixing customer service,” said partner and regional head Brad Dykes. “She fixed Glenmuir’s customer service. She fixed Stonebridge’s customer service. Now she’s fixing City Walk. Her approach to customer service is why when she fixes a property, it stays fixed.”
The numbers don’t lie. During Michelle’s time at Glenmuir, Michelle increased the customer survey score by 0.82 points, positioning the property for a $103.7 million sale. She had a similar impact at Stonebridge of Arlington Heights, improving the customer survey score by 0.53 points on the way to a $131 million disposition, the seventh largest in company history.
While Michelle knew City Walk would present unique challenges, she knew to fix customer service, she needed to go back to basics.
“We didn’t do anything mind-blowing. We just focused on the basics. We answer the phone, follow up on work orders, say hi to residents on property and remember their names. We’re just nice,” said Michelle. “Really, the only thing that changed was we made customer service a priority and are holding ourselves accountable to delivering the level of service we know we’re capable of.”
Michelle’s impact is undeniable, but customer service is a team game and providing elite customer service requires full commitment by everyone on the team.
“This team is 100% committed. Austin (McCalley) doesn’t leave until all the customer service calls are completed. Kayla (Nieman) and Alexa (Bridges) role-play customer service calls daily. Tanja (Carter) has taken ownership of the renewal process and has done an exceptional job at creating relationships with the residents. Everyone on the team is All In,” says Michelle.
On the service side, lead tech Aidan Cunha is leading the charge, setting a standard for going above and beyond for residents.
“Aidan is extremely committed to doing what’s right for the residents. Whether it’s completing work orders right the first time or communicating solutions to our residents, he’s always looking for ways to make sure our residents love where they live,” said Michelle.
While Michelle is proud of the team’s recent accomplishment, she’s excited about the long-term impact.
“Seeing the jump in the score is a huge win for this team. It’s a real momentum builder and goes to show the process works as long as you commit. It makes the hard work, long hours and finding the right solution all worth it.”
See our full June customer survey results below!
