YOUnique: Tashia C. Palmer

We join Tashia C. Palmer, who has been with the company for over 7 years. While the early years of her career were spent in healthcare, doing administrative work for the National Health Fund, her focus now is the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector, as she ensures quality and service excellence for two client accounts in the healthcare and financial services industries. 

Welcome Tashia. Thank you for joining us. Your career journey has been quite inspiring. Can you tell us more about how you came to your current role? 

I’ve mostly worked in the BPO sector. I had prior experience in healthcare and then worked as a frontline Collections Representative for almost three years. When I joined itel in 2018, I started on the frontline as well, but this time as a Sales agent. It was only for about three months, though, before I moved into other roles. 

Tell us more about your journey through the company… 

Well, one day I applied for a position in Quality Assurance (QA), which we call Customer Experience (CX) and that’s where I really found my passion. Then I worked my way up to senior Quality Analyst, then Supervisor, and now I’m currently a Senior CX Supervisor, managing two client accounts.  

That’s quite impressive. Now you’ve just celebrated  7 years with itel, this March. There must be something about the company that inspires you and keeps you motivated. 

Definitely the people, especially leadership. They're amazing. Whether it's a problem you need help with or you just need support, they always find the time to assist and they have a certain way of getting you where you need to be.  

Tell me more about your role as Senior CX Supervisor. What does your day-to-day look like and what are your main responsibilities?  

I manage two key client portfolios, so my job involves a lot of meetings and constant collaboration with our team of Quality Analysts, and other departments like Operations, Training and Workforce Management. Most importantly, my job is to maintain strong relationships with our clients by ensuring that their needs are met. It is my responsibility to make sure that we meet and exceed expectations from a quality standpoint, whether that’s through accurate and timely reporting or things like overseeing agent coaching sessions. 

You are also involved in itel’s latest innovation, the rollout of itelligence®, the company’s internally developed AI platform. Can you tell us more about this? 

Of course. I became a point of contact for our Data Science & Innovation (DSI) team when itelligence was added to one of the campaigns that I manage. They were interested in hearing feedback about the platform during the initial rollout phase. They wanted to know about any issues my team experienced and asked for recommendations that would improve and enhance the overall user experience. One thing we had a hand in developing is the automatic QA scoring feature. My team is involved with comparing the variances, using the scoring done by our human analysts to measure the accuracy of the AI model’s scoring. 

What do you think about the overall platform?  

itelligence is already a cutting-edge tool. It can provide such comprehensive data that it will drive faster, better decision making on all operational fronts, from performance management to business insights. It can enhance collaboration by streamlining workflows and integrating various functionalities and will improve overall efficiency to support our continuous growth. I already love the reporting aspect of it, and things like trend analysis. Before, we had all these separate systems that we had to log into to gather reporting data. Now, everything is centralized in one place.   

That’s so exciting! And so, how will this benefit the agent experience? 

For one, it's going to make their job easier. It will give them quick access to information related to their performance. It will identify areas of improvement and even notify them of those improvements in real time upon the call being scored. That’s one of the best features. Instead of waiting to see your call score, agents are notified right away via their email. Plus, it ensures that agents are aligned with quality expectations. Essentially, it allows them to be the best versions of themselves and this can help with career progression by allowing agents to hone their skills, and to reach certain performance benchmarks that are needed to advance to supervisor roles.  

 
Your role in this is so inspiring. It must take a skilled person to take on so many responsibilities. Is there a certain quality that makes you the perfect fit?  

I am a collaborator. I think first and foremost that’s a quality you need when working with so many departments and stakeholders. I wouldn’t say I’m a perfectionist, but I also have amazing attention to detail. I will spend hours ensuring that my reports are accurate and thorough. I think being supportive is also important, and I believe that’s one of my strengths as well. 

 
But when challenges arise, as they do in any position, how do you keep yourself motivated?  

There’s a motivational quote by Robert Collier that I always go by, “Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.” I truly believe this. I just give my best effort and try to stay ahead of things, day in and day out, and this gets me through any challenges or difficulties. 

Is there something you really enjoy about your role as Senior CX Supervisor?  

Like I said, QA is where I really found my passion. I do enjoy it. I think it speaks to my passion for problem-solving. When I resolve issues or concerns or find a solution that makes a measurable difference for our clients, it really feels like an accomplishment. I also like that my position gives me autonomy, gives me some room to manage my own projects. 
 

You also live and work in beautiful Montego Bay, Jamaica. Have you always lived there? 

No. I’m originally from Trelawny, a parish in Jamaica’s northwest. I came from a deeply rural area and moved to Montego Bay for work. My parents still live there, and I go back to visit, but it can take 3-4 hours by car. I tend to visit often, though, because I'm a family person at heart. I’m very close to my mother, even being the youngest of six girls.  

 
What do you enjoy most about Montego Bay? 

It's a great place to work. There are so many opportunities here. But it’s a very busy city and I prefer a quieter environment. That’s why I visit my parents in the countryside as often as I can. 

 
What do you enjoy doing outside of work. Any favorite hobbies or special interests? 

I’m a bit of a homebody. So, I like watching my favorite TV series or listening to music. I’m a big fan of Dancehall music. In fact, people may not know this about me, but I manage the biggest fan page for Spice – a Grammy nominated Jamaican singer known as the “Queen of Dancehall”. I even got to meet her in person because she noticed my fan page and was so impressed. I have to say, she is even more lovely in person. She treats you like a best friend. 

That’s amazing! Sounds like you have such a rich life and show such passion in everything you do. It was a pleasure sitting down with you today, giving us a glimpse into your career, your contributions to the company, and sharing with us your personal journey. You are a shining example of how rapidly you can progress in the company when you have the right motivation. I think many itelers will be inspired by your story. Thank you. We wish you the best!