As part of OCWA’s monthly series highlighting some of our dedicated employees and the important jobs they perform, this month we’re featuring Nicole G. from our Customer Service Department. Each month we’re asking a different employee a series of ten questions about his/her background, what he/she does at OCWA and some of the employee’s most interesting work experiences.
1. What is your current position at OCWA?
I am a customer service representative in the billing department.
2. What other jobs have you held, both OCWA and non-OCWA position?
My first job was a teller at Countryside Federal Credit Union. I worked there through college and then moved over to Empower Federal Credit Union where I held a couple different positions in the financial institution world. Before coming to OCWA, I was an elections clerk for the Onondaga County Board of Elections.
3. When did you join OCWA, and what brought you here?
I started at OCWA April 9, 2019. Before OCWA, I did not feel like I had found my forever career. But now I hope this will be the place from which I will retire.
4. What does a typical day at work look like for you?
A typical workday starts out with opening and preparing the payments that come in through the mail. After the mail is complete, my workload varies from day to day. The most consistent thing is, answering calls from customers who have questions regarding their bills and water usage or scheduling appointments. The work that could vary from day to day is researching accounts and information for certain situations such as courtesy adjustments or unmetered accounts.
5. What is the most rewarding part of your job?
The most rewarding part of my job is working with our customers, whether it is helping them discover the location of a leak or assisting in the transfer of an account due to a property closing.
6. What has been your favorite project at OCWA?
I have not been a part of many projects at OCWA yet, but I enjoy doing research whether it is information for a courtesy adjustment or helping collect data for the collections side of billing.
7. Before working at OCWA, what was the most interesting/unusual job you have ever had?
During college I worked as a volleyball scorekeeper through the town that I lived in. Basically, I would show up early, set up the nets and flip the score board. Not the most interesting work, but it was a very relaxing part-time job that gave me some extra money. I also used to work at an ice cream stand at the NYS Fair on the midway, and that job resulted in some interesting stories.
8. What three words best describe you?
Outgoing, talkative and hardworking
9. What is your educational background?
I graduated from Le Moyne College in 2014 with a B.A in both Journalism and Advertising and a minor in Film Studies.
10. Why did you select the career you are in?
There is no specific answer why I decided to go into the career I am in. Since I was 16, I worked in various jobs that all were based around customer service, so I am very comfortable working in customer service. I like to learn new things and hope to grow professionally through OCWA.