Happenings
Division 34 Announces 2023 Q4 Top Performers
Coach of the Quarter
Satish Palakurthi
Satish Palakurthi, Division 34’s Coach of the Quarter, is a senior developer for eCommerce Application Development. He is being recognized for his leadership of the website applications team through the application pipeline conversions and server migrations to Red Hat Enterprise Linux. As the ecommerce web applications lead, he helped plan the migration of more than 60 applications. Satish not only served as a great coach to the team, but he also continued to support multiple areas including Development and Development Operations. He is an outstanding coach because he takes the time to explain new processes and follows up with detailed, easy-to-follow instructions. His team and stakeholders know they can count on his exceptional performance and commitment to high-quality customer service.
Associate of the Quarter
Erin Hanna
Division 34 has selected Erin Hanna, statistical programming analyst I for Program Integrity Modeling and Analytic Support Contract (PIMASC), as the Q4 Associate of the Quarter. Known for her relentless pursuit of excellence, Erin is very effective in communicating complicated data analysis, coding results and issues using jargon-free language with her teammates, upper management and external partners. In addition to completing tasks accurately, she focuses on improving efficiency. Recently, Erin and her teammates completed a major code upgrade of their reports that reduced run-time with most reports experiencing decreases of 70 percent or more. In her daily work, Erin completes thorough research and maintains a high bar for deliverables, which helps ensure her assignments never miss metrics.
Process Improvement of the Quarter
Interactive Voice Response System Changes
Division 34’s Process Improvement of the Quarter was implemented by the Call Center Technology Group (CCTG). Prior to this improvement, an external vendor executed changes to the Interactive Voice Response (IVR) messaging system. The process was costly and time consuming, requiring the exchange of information, estimates, customer approvals, and a two-day minimum turn around. The vendor’s changes then had to be tested and approved by management before being implemented.
Through research, the CCTG team learned of a software program called Studio by WellSaid Labs, Inc. that is a more efficient and less expensive alternative to the vendor. With management approval, the team purchased the software license and got to work customizing it to manage system changes. Now, the team pastes the approved IVR script changes into Studio and the software converts the text to voice within seconds. By bringing this function in-house, the team significantly reduced script implementation time and eliminated third-party costs. The CCTG team also has used the software to improve other system functions.
Team Members:
Deirdre Asbill, Isaac Badillo, Christine Brown, Kendrick Crawford, Shane Locklair, Billy Osborne, Jason Sumpter, Alexandr Umanskiy, Chris Upham and Jeanine Valvano.
Team of the Quarter
Avaya Oceana™ Implementation Team
The eCommerce website team was named Division 34’s Team of the Quarter for their efforts transitioning the chat services on multiple Palmetto GBA websites from ChatBot to the Avaya Oceana™ platform. They successfully implemented the Avaya chat system with limited vendor support. This transition required the team to coordinate with several Palmetto GBA teams, train Palmetto GBA users on the new software and meet with each area to answer questions related to specific contracts.
Prior to implementation, the team held multiple meetings with management to ensure all requirements were being met. They also discussed optional solutions for issues that could not be addressed before the new chat service went live. Once the Avaya chat went live, the team listened to the concerns of operators and management and resolved issues quickly. To keep the process working smoothly, the team participates in a weekly meeting with senior management to discuss the project status and any issues.
Team Members:
Venu Gopal Boppa, Georgette Cantey, Gerald Eichelberger, Vishvada Ganapati, Sherri Gibbons, Carol Harper, Steven Hester, Amukta Jambula, Marlowe Leverette, Katie McLean, Satish Palakurthi, Derek Roberts, Quentin Rodriquez, David Russell, Santhosh Thota and Ramya Smitha Vaddempudi.
