At UGI Energy Services we are proud to say that we have a highly-experienced and success-driven Sales team. There is no “I” in team, so we would like to spotlight the regional Sales Coordinators who go to work behind the scenes for our Sales team! They have always played a huge role in the success of our company, and we would not be where we are today without the help of our Regional Sales Coordinators!

We asked them the following questions relating to the company’s success in recent years. Here is what they had to say.

What is the role of a Sales Coordinator?

Christina Santiago: “The role of a Sales Coordinator is to ensure the efficient running of the Sales team. They essentially function as the backbone of the team. The Sales Coordinator also supports the Sales team by providing quotes and pricing in order to help enroll new customers, and to maintain existing customers.”

Julie Argenas: “Our roles may differ depending on what geographical area we work in.”

What qualities make for a good Sales Coordinator?

Rana Foley: “I think the qualities that make for a good Sales Coordinator are knowledge, organization, and time management. We can get very busy, so organization and learning to appropriately manage our time are key components of the job. Of course, we also need the knowledge of the business as a whole as well as knowledge of our systems. We can also run issues by each other. We have a great team!”

Kelly Iocco: “A good Sales Coordinator understands that we work in a volatile commodity market. Response time and organization are key in getting the sale, hedging the deal, enrolling, and confirming billing is set up properly. Things can go wrong sometimes but understanding our internal systems and having good relationships with the back office ensure that we can meet any challenge in front of us.”

Lisa Angell: “I believe a good Sales Coordinator needs to be flexible and be able to communicate with others to get their job done. They need to be a team player and be able to help when needed. They need to work proficiently and handle many tasks throughout the day.”

 

What does your typical day look like in this position?

Julie Argenas: “Many of the tasks that I complete on a day-to-day operation include pricing, credit checks, coordinating with utilities, customer support, creating contracts, and running reports on contract expirations. But there are many more things that come with being a Regional Sales Coordinator!”

Christina Santiago: “I support three Sales Representatives. Each morning, I go over my Outlook calendar to see what is due that day to send to each Sales Rep their quotes, pricing sheets, etc. Each day I receive emails with Requests for Pricing (RFPs) that come through our pricing desk, Sales Reps, or customers. These need to be entered, updated, and maintained in our system database. I assist in preparing Sales-related documents like contracts, tax forms, etc. for the customer to sign and send back. I also handle messages or calls that come in to update business names, addresses, account numbers, etc.”

 

How do you assist the Sales Reps and other departments?

Stephen Turner: “I set up the prospect accounts that the Sales Reps bring in and run their pricing. If the customer signs with us, I handle the administrative tasks to create the documents and submit the order to procure their gas, along with finalizing the buy once our desk fills it. I work with the other departments to ensure accounts are enrolled on time and billed properly. Outside of the Sales Reps, I am most in contact with our Operations and Billing departments.”

Erica Hertzog:” My primary function is to coordinate the information that the Sales Rep needs to sell our products and communicate the sale accurately to the Supply, Operations and Billing groups. This is a start-to-finish process, and I am involved in all steps of the process. I am responsible for accurately setting up a new prospect in our system, providing pricing to the Sales Rep or directly to the customer, and entering the business into our system so that Supply, Operations, Contracts and Billing can correctly process the deal on their ends. If at any point there are questions or concerns, I am a primary contact to resolve any issues in a timely manner.

How do you help provide a better customer experience?

Lisa Pike: “It doesn’t matter where you are in the sales process, understanding the customers’ needs is the first priority. Listening and managing how to best provide what the customer is looking for timely and accurately goes a long way.”

Jaquilla Price: “When interacting with my customers I always have listening ears.  I make sure I understand their needs and how our company can be of service to them.”

Dawn Crystle: “Timely and accurate responses to all requests show UGIES provides value added service - providing high level back office support the Sales Rep needs to make the deal and manage the account. We handle everything from the set-up of the account through and including troubleshooting invoice questions and concerns. We do this by understanding internal processes and systems and the requirements for both pricing and enrollment on the Utilities/Rate Classes for all the customers the Reps quote and/or service.”

How do you communicate with other departments to ensure deals are done correctly?

Lisa Angell: “I communicate via email and/or Microsoft Teams. Within Microsoft Teams it is easy to message or call the person with whom you need to discuss any issues.”

Kelly Iocco: “It's important to circle back on deals to make sure nothing seems out of place. If we do find an issue, we have email groups that allow the Sales Coordinator to contact that particular business group directly.  If it is an issue that may require a conversation, Microsoft teams/email is the best way to communicate and resolve the situation.”

Rana Foley: “Communication is key. Email is usually the most frequent form of communication since we are all in different locations. Usually booking deals is pretty seamless, but anything out of the ordinary is communicated to the Basis Group to make sure the deal sheet gets filled correctly.”

 

How closely do you work with each utility?

Erica Hertzog: “I do not have much direct contact with the Utilities but must know the ins and outs or the utilities on which I work.”

Stephen Turner: “I have experience with all the NY utilities, but our Operations department is the main contact if there is an issue.”

How important is flexibility and organization in your role?

Jaquilla Price: “Flexibility and organization are a must when you are working in the Western region of PA. Each gas and electric utility has different regulations and rules for each of our customer groups. You must stay organized and be flexible with changes as they come along.”

Dawn Crystle: “Flexibility and organization are the most important skills to being successful in this role. We must frequently reshuffle priorities to meet all the needs of the Reps on our team. Having the ability to multi-task and understand how to prioritize the task at hand allows for everyone to get what they need, when they need it (internal and external customers).  It is not unusual for us to have many balls in the air. In order to be organized and stay on top of everything, we must know where a request stands and follow up to ensure we have what we need to complete the task and meet the deadline.”

Lisa Pike: “Organization and flexibility are key in my role as a Sr. Sales Coordinator. Having an organized process from system files, to keeping a calendar is imperative. My day is filled with new requests, most of which seem to be top priority. Being flexible and organized allows me to respond in a timely manner to meet the needs of the Sales team and customers.”