Business Services Operations Specialist

SUMMARY

Organizational-acumen, analytical-thoroughness, solid writing skills, and the ability to accurately listen, take direction, trouble-shoot problems, and stay-on tact with assignments are relevant skills. Keen analysis abilities, the ability to listen and amalgamate opposing points of view, and the confidence to speak up in meetings, or offer other forms of constructive and collaborative participation are communication strengths I possess. Proven customer-service marketing professional with strong drive for results and problem solving skills. Solid history of managing in both administrative and retail environments. Known for the ability to take on any challenge with finesse and a positive attitude. Former Managers and Supervisors have observed and appreciated:

-the demonstration of FLEXIBILITY in accepting work assignments.

-the ability to make an immediate impact on work environment and relationships with employees, which has positively affected the overall operation and bottom-line.

-the initiative in taking responsibility for tasks outside my defined work responsibilities. PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Delaware North Corporation - Chicago, IL., (Guaranteed Rate Field) 03/2023-10/2023: Porter (Union)

Transported food and beverage from the warehouse to the portable and permanent stands. Cleaned kitchens, floors, hoods, coolers, and freezers. Tapped and moved kegs; monitored and replaced pop bibs. Fulfilled orders in the warehouse and assisted various units with ordering needs. Connie’s Pizza / Esperanza Kitchen Delights - Chicago, IL. (McCormick Place) 10/2022- 02/2023: Food Runner

Transported food from kitchen to Convention Center Floor areas. Cleaned kitchen and restaurant.

Maintained and monitored soda fountains and machines. Changed out tanks to soda rack.

Disposed of garbage.

Assisted with food prep, and food storage.

Cleaned and organized the drink room.

Assisted restaurant and convention guests with table-clearing. Learned lay-out of Convention Center buildings.

H-Mart - Chicago, IL:

11/ 2018 – 08/2022: Operations Specialist

Highlights:

Offered creative solutions to parking lot overflow problem driven by a perfect storm of a loyal word-of-mouth clientele and an over-performing online website strategy pulling in a larger demographic swath of customers. Directed, controlled, and expedited traffic after accurately performing root-cause analysis. Successfully cut-down on customer dissatisfaction, frustration, and potential negative perceptions of wider retail chain. Communicated to store management implemented attempts to improve the situation and suggested different modifiable and revisable approaches, and advised on the opportunity cost of being satisfied with the status-quo, letting the problem daily work itself out, or proactively take action to minimize customer issues. Presented cost-benefit analysis of landscaping project options which prompted the store manager to consider it a call-to-action and prompted him to take initial steps to presenting the store as a total inside and out going concern. Asked for and reviewed quotes on a practicality basis and not on price alone. This support research helped confirm the store manager’s limitations without a corporate budget for external store maintenance, and helped him determine what he could reasonably do.

● Identified priorities to enhance initial customer impressions related to store maintenance and operational support of high volume, multi-faceted, internal shopping locations. Positively influenced customer foot traffic and retention metrics through these initiatives.

● Monitored stock availability, re-ordering needs and created an organized stockroom to increase efficient stock pulling.

● Protected company assets through security awareness measures to prevent loss or injury. Art Van Furniture – Schaumburg, IL

08/2016-07/2017: Sales Specialist/Home Furnishings/Flooring Consultant

● Generated in-store sales across various product categories within home furnishings and flooring.

● Assisted customers with merchandise recommendations and overall product knowledge. Interfaced with creditors to gain approval for new customer credit.

● Attended to daily retail management initiatives by correcting retail pricing between signage and system as well as ensured optimal staging of merchandising vignettes.

● Developed leads and conducted marketing outreach to spur sales which translated into in-store traffic increases.

DAZ Furniture, Libertyville, IL

05/ 2012 - 07/2015: Content Writer /Sales and Marketing Coordinator – Digital and Sales

● Enhanced social media strategy by developing website content including creating/editing videos, writing blog copy, and enhancing product descriptions. Utilized SEO best practices to influence page landings, time on site, and conversion rates.

● Generated customer leads, demonstrated products, and imparted product knowledge in order to close each sale.

● Recognized for handling customer service issues with finesse for both phone inquiries and in person visits.

● Maximized resources of supplier chains through daily contact and negotiation with inventory specialists in China and Philippines, industry sales reps and vendors.

● Screened potential employees in the hiring process and participated in the hiring decision making. Joseph A. Bank Clothiers, Deer Park and Barrington, IL 08/2008 - 05/2011: Assistant Manager

● Managed store opening/closings, store financial reconciliation, store analytics/reporting, store appearance, security, and sales of merchandise and services.

● Assisted in the development of new promotional programs with other Joseph A. Bank stores to drive additional revenue.

● Managed 5 employees in achieving daily sales goals and business drivers for two stores with an annual sales range of $1M-$2M. Trained new and existing employees on a guest first culture, managed team scheduling and provided leadership when addressing any employee issues.

● Influenced the handling of conflict management in cases of customer issues by demonstrating to employees how to diffuse the situation in an expeditious and polite manner.

● Created personal handwritten customer appreciation letters for key customers informing them of current promotions and upcoming deals. Implemented ongoing customer relationship and permission marketing strategies.

Chase Bank / Kelly Temporary Services, Elgin, Illinois 02/2008-07/2008: Fraud Analyst I

● Fielded 80-100 inbound customer call center calls a day to determine fraud on account, escalate possible fraud-related calls, resolve customer complaints, and educate/ inform callers on regulatory and Chase bank practices, governmental Acts, and resolution resources.

● Used multiple software programs and functions, such as LexisNexis’ reverse look-up to simultaneously develop a critical path to the calls when verifying the accounts, reviewing the accounts, and securing the accounts.

● Analyzed and listened to customer concerns and took action based on training method which included notation of call, pleasant customer service and phone presence, and recommendation for further action by customer, or resources for further fraud education and account resolution. Pfizer Corporation, Skokie, Illinois

Nov 1997 – Dec 2003 : Administrative Assistant

● Personal assistant to mid-level manager, Financial Operations Manager, and Canadian territory manager, with duties including but not limited to: project coordination, presentation preparation, contract analysis, confidentiality and consulting agreement preparation, regulatory compliance, expense reports, travel planning, visitor reception and consultant correspondence; food/beverage ordering related to meeting planning, inter-office document distribution, purchasing supplies; copying, filing, coordinating mailroom and printing department needs related to the preparation of Investigator binders, manuals, and paper-intensive clinical reports; voicemail-management, relaying telephone messages, room scheduling and video-conferencing, computer, and A/V assistance in board room preparation. Created HR Orientation Manual for new departmental employees and Department

● HR resource binder.

● Supervised team of ten office workers in an eight month organizational project in addition to regular responsibilities of support to VP’s, Program Directors, Associate Directors, Clinical Managers, and Research Associates.

● Received $1000 award from Clinical Arthritis department’s Vice President for dedicated efforts during a 3-round international post-marketing arbitration and regulatory compliance process for a drug compound. Increased immediate access of original documents and copies through the creation of a physical records management and filing system for this special project.

● Assisted domestic and international consultants, researchers, and associates in a matrix project environment. Moved from contractor status with G.D. Searle to full-time with Monsanto, Pharmacia, and then Pfizer.

● Facilities Management Safety Committee representative for emergencies and member of Ergonomic Committee for the department.

ADDITIONAL SKILLS

PowerPoint, Word, MS Project, Oracle, Outlook, SEO – Google Analytics/AdWords, writing/proofreading, project management, inventory management systems EDUCATION

MBA: Management/Info.Sys: DeVry University, Keller Graduate School of Management, 2011 BA, Corporate Training/History: DePaul University, Chicago, IL, 2000

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