Despite the many challenges during 2020 caused by the pandemic, utilities still had to forge ahead with day-to-day operations while ensuring the safety of its employees and often offering support to some consumers who were struggling with hardships. While the early days of the pandemic included shutdowns and closures, the Wake Forest, N.C.-based Wake EMC, a distribution cooperative serving seven counties in north central North Carolina, was teaming up with Cooperative Response Center, Inc. (CRC) to offer call handling services to the cooperative’s more than 43,000 members.

CRC offers utilities across the country seamless contact center and alarm monitoring solutions, including call management, line crew dispatch, AMI/CIS/OMS integration, CRCLink® outage communication software, and alarm monitoring. CRC also offers dynamic greetings, outage texting services, video monitoring of substations, a Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance solution which utilizes live agents for billing calls, and English proficiency translation services. From outage calls to billing calls, disconnects to emergency locates and more, CRC is there for its membership 24/7/365. By partnering with CRC, members find peace of mind as well as a cost-effective solution to their call handling needs.

Wake EMC joined CRC’s contact center membership in May 2020, subscribing to its overflow services. CRC’s overflow services are utilized by those utilities that have in-house 24/7 member services and/or an interactive voice response (IVR) unit and dispatch their own line crews. CRC is then utilized in times of need when call volume is too great for a utility to handle internally.

Thanks to the teamwork between CRC and Wake EMC employees, a smooth transition took place in an otherwise chaotic world. “CRC was fast and efficient to work with during our implementation phase,” said T. Scott Poole, vice president of customer service. “This all occurred in the midst of COVID-19 and we did not suffer from remote deployment.

“The staff was great to work with and we continue to build on the relationships we have developed,” he added. “CRC’s interface with NISC is tremendous, and that relationship enabled us to foster meaningful conversations between us and CRC during the time of implementation. We have also been very pleased with the level of service provided during our first year.”

Chris Holt, CRC’s president and CEO, is thankful for Wake EMC’s membership and that its contact center services meets the cooperative’s call-handling needs. “As always, CRC’s strives to offer products and services to complement our membership’s customer service goals,” he said. “We work with our vendor partners to integrate services to meet or exceed user expectations. Working with CRC offers a one-stop solution to a utility’s call handling and customer service needs.”

About CRC
CRC is a nationwide, cooperatively owned, 24/7 contact center and alarm monitoring center. Founded in 1992, CRC has steadily increased the size and scope of its operation with offices in Austin, Minn., Dunlap, Tenn., and Abilene, Texas. CRC serves nearly 520 members and associate members in 47 states, representing over 11 million consumers. Visit CRC on the web at www.crc.coop.

For more information about CRC’s services, contact Cheryl Haney, regional business manager, at 800-892-1578, ext. 8707, or cherylhaney@crc.coop.