Devonte R. begins his work day at 5 a.m. at Heathrow Airport.
With an average of 650 aircraft arrivals each day, slow mornings are a foreign concept to the Heathrow team – but Devonte wouldn’t change a thing about his experience over the past 11 months as a Management Trainee Intern.
Over the course of his internship, he has quickly sharpened his skills and made a name for himself – so much so that a customer recently wrote a letter of appreciation about his positive attitude and enthusiastic disposition.
On what Devonte described as one of the trickiest days of his internship, a customer interaction resulted in a rewarding and memorable experience for both Devonte and the customer.
“It was a holiday weekend, and there was a shortage of cars,” says Devonte. “The team was extremely busy but even amidst the chaos, the interaction with this customer was refreshing.”
With his two children in tow, the customer approached the desk and was immediately greeted by, according the customer, Devonte’s “massive welcome smile.”
“In this trivial age of immediacy and self-concern, it was refreshing to receive a sincere welcome at reception, care and attention for my kids, high fives and laughs,” says the customer. “Even though it was a very busy day at the airport, I was in a car within 10 minutes.”
Reflecting on the experience, Devonte says he implemented one of Enterprise’s best practices: energetically greet the customer and introduce yourself.
Back to the basics
With nearly 200 customers cycling through his shifts, Devonte interacts with a diverse range of customers. He believes it’s impossible to deliver great customer service unless he’s following the basics and embracing a positive attitude for the work.
“Our team really enjoys each other,” he says. “If you enjoy yourself and stay in a good mood, the positive energy is infectious and spills out to the customer. I’m glad this customer could feel how happy I am to have this experience.”
The biggest customer service takeaway Devonte has learned comes down to two actions.
“Listen and be patient,” says Devonte. “And never forget, we have the power to help no matter what the challenge.”
Devonte is one of more than 2,000 interns at Enterprise this summer.
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