Foss to Open Oregon Customer Service Center
Foss Maritime Company recently announced it will open a consolidated customer service center in Oregon in April 2016.
The company's existing Portland office will be renovated and modernized to incorporate the best available customer service technologies, including a state-of-the-art telephony system, heightened cyber security, and enhanced dispatching and vessel tracking capabilities.
"Consolidating customer service in our Columbia Snake River location will allow us to enhance both our service and our responsiveness," said Chris Wolf, Director of Customer Service at Foss. "Our highly experienced Foss dispatchers will help make this a seamless transition, without any disruption of daily operations."
Today, Foss serves regional, national and international customers in ports along the Pacific seaboard, Hawaii and Alaska, as well as across the globe, with a service center in Washington and Oregon, and two in California.
"Bringing all of our customer service representatives into a single hub will allow us to gain efficiencies and streamline our business processes," said Scott Merritt, Vice President of Harbor Services at Foss. "The newly updated Portland center will help us support our customers and crews in any location and any time zone, 24 hours a day, seven days a week."
Merritt explained that, as the first to be called in the Emergency Response Network, customer services representatives will now have enhanced tools to respond immediately to distress calls and calls for aid, and alert crews and customers to changing conditions and possible challenges.
All new and existing customer service representatives will receive extra training to ensure they are highly proficient in the operations of each region Foss serves. "During this transition, we will have an expanded team of customer service representatives, including a solid core of our current highly experienced Foss dispatchers, in place to help implement a new standards-based training curriculum," said Wolf.
"Customer services representatives will spend time in each region, getting to know the crews and the vessels, and getting a feel for the geography and the unique characteristics of each port," he said.
To minimize the impact on existing staff, Foss will offer a variety of transition options including relocation assistance, retention incentives, a generous separation package or support in applying for other job openings throughout Foss and other Saltchuk companies.
"Consolidating customer service in our Columbia Snake River location will allow us to enhance both our service and our responsiveness," said Chris Wolf, Director of Customer Service at Foss. "Our highly experienced Foss dispatchers will help make this a seamless transition, without any disruption of daily operations."
Today, Foss serves regional, national and international customers in ports along the Pacific seaboard, Hawaii and Alaska, as well as across the globe, with a service center in Washington and Oregon, and two in California.
"Bringing all of our customer service representatives into a single hub will allow us to gain efficiencies and streamline our business processes," said Scott Merritt, Vice President of Harbor Services at Foss. "The newly updated Portland center will help us support our customers and crews in any location and any time zone, 24 hours a day, seven days a week."
Merritt explained that, as the first to be called in the Emergency Response Network, customer services representatives will now have enhanced tools to respond immediately to distress calls and calls for aid, and alert crews and customers to changing conditions and possible challenges.
All new and existing customer service representatives will receive extra training to ensure they are highly proficient in the operations of each region Foss serves. "During this transition, we will have an expanded team of customer service representatives, including a solid core of our current highly experienced Foss dispatchers, in place to help implement a new standards-based training curriculum," said Wolf.
"Customer services representatives will spend time in each region, getting to know the crews and the vessels, and getting a feel for the geography and the unique characteristics of each port," he said.
To minimize the impact on existing staff, Foss will offer a variety of transition options including relocation assistance, retention incentives, a generous separation package or support in applying for other job openings throughout Foss and other Saltchuk companies.
