I am Remi! Featuring Tommy Beecher

Get to know a different employee every quarter.


Spring 2013

Tommy Beecher, Director of Pricing at Remi

You were originally hired as a Business Development Manager but was quickly promoted to Director of Pricing, which is in line with your degree from the University of South Carolina in Columbia. What led you to major in Mathematics with an Actuarial emphasis, and receive minors in Statistics and Risk Management? 
I always knew that mathematics was the route I wanted to take when I got to college. For whatever reason, I typically had a pretty easy time understanding numbers and liked that there was usually only one correct answer to a question. When I got to college, I really enjoyed my entry level business/insurance classes and it just so happened that the Actuarial emphasis required a heavy workload in the areas I liked – mathematics, statistics, business and insurance.

What do you like most about being Director of Pricing? 
My favorite part of being the Director of Pricing, is working with the high quality team I have around me.  Fortunately, managing my team is a relatively small percentage of my workload because I trust their quality of work and their passion for profitability.

In 2011 you won Employee of the Year, an award every employee hopes to win during their career at Remi. You didn’t get to give a speech; but if you could thank the people who helped you achieve such an award, what would you say?
I’d say that it’s easy to work hard for a company you believe in and for people that you respect. Except for a couple mornings a year :), I honestly enjoy coming into work and contributing. In particular, it’s been a privilege to work under and learn from Mike Van Derveer, Brent Howison, and Dan Schuster (my bosses).  Their work ethic and passion for the company are qualities I strive to match.


To quote Bob Burg, an author and public speaker, “All things being equal, people will do business with, and refer business to, those people they know, like, and trust.” What should people know about you or Remi?
People should know that Remi has made it a priority to take our client’s best interest to heart. Even though I’ve been here a short time in comparison to the life of the company, I’ve seen how flexible our program is to meet the needs of our clients. Sometimes, I’m even amazed at how far outside the scope of our standard product we’re willing to go to make our client’s experience on the program a desirable one.  I think there’s great value in that.  

Since moving to a managerial position, who has been your role model or mentor? 
I lean heavily on the experience of the entire management staff at Remi, so I feel a little bad mentioning one or two. But, since you forced me to single a couple people out, Mike Van Derveer and Brent Howison are the two guys I approach, on a consistent basis, when I’m unsure on a business decision and looking for some direction. Tapping into their product/business knowledge and seeing how hard they work for the well-being of the company has been great for a guy that’s only been in the business for 3 ½ years.

As the youngest executive at Remi, what advice would you give to the next generation of business leaders?  
Just that there’s no substitute for a good attitude and hard work. There are tons of people capable of being successful in this very competitive business world. Are you doing the little things to separate yourself from the rest?

While at the University of South Carolina, you lettered in football for 4 years (Go Gamecocks!). How has playing organized sports prepared you for the business world? 
College athletics have been an important part of my family for years. My grandfather (Hall of Fame member) and two uncles played football at Duke, my mom played tennis at Duke and Wheaton College, and another uncle played football at the Naval Academy. Growing up, they were very vocal about the beneficial life lessons one could learn from sports. More than anything, college football taught me that attitude, work ethic, competitiveness, and discipline are a few of a very limited number of things we can control in life. That lesson applies to the business world as well. Just about everyone has the capacity to be successful in the business world and in a competitive environment; people want to work with people with a drive to be the best at the things they can control. 

If you were given an opportunity to play professional football, what team would you want to draft you? 
Although I’ve spent most of my life in North Carolina, I was born in Chicago and raised by two devout Bears fans. The answer to your question is, da Bears!

If you were to be drafted by any pro sports team, what team would it be? Leave a comment and tell us why?

Fundraising Safety Tips

Fundraising at the office is a great way to get employees to come together for a great cause. Back in March 2012, I wrote a blog titled How to Put the “Fun” in Fundraising at the Office that discussed various fun and inexpensive fundraising ideas that can easily involve employees, business associates, friends, and family. I would like to take the subject of fundraising one step further and discuss fundraising safety tips.

When asking employees to participate in any company sponsored activity, whether it is a luncheon, family picnic, or fundraising event, there are certain aspects that need to be taken into consideration when planning an event. The two biggest concerns should be safety and privacy, both for the company and the participants.

Safety concerns for employees during fundraising events encompass a variety of issues. 

One concern is driving; it would be irresponsible to ask volunteers to attend an event or deliver goods in a bad part of town. Another safety concern involves strenuous activities. For example, if you are getting a team together to do a fun-run or 5k, it’s a good idea to have participants physically prepare for the race weeks in advance. One last concern is with any event involving food. If you are having a bake sale or cupcake war, be sure to clearly mark items containing nuts or coconut. If the event is a pie or donut eating contest, it might be a good idea to limit the number of pies/donuts consumed in a predetermined amount of time. Instead of the usual how many pies can someone eat in 5 minutes, do how many minutes does it take to eat 5 pies.

Another major concern during fundraising at the office is privacy. If an event is being held to benefit a sick employee, be sure to get written permission from them to use any information about or likeness of the employee. If your company is collecting money to then donate to a charity, be sure to keep checking account and/or credit card information confidential. Remi’s special needs fund, The Remi Children’s Fund, set up to benefit Levine Children’s Hospital collects donations online via Carolinas Healthcare Foundation’s web portal. This ensures donators’ personal information is kept confidential and no one from Remi ever sees it.

Remember, fundraising at the office should be fun; but, precautions need to be taken. It’s better to be safe than sorry, especially when dealing with an employer-employee relationship. While holding fundraising events, it’s important to remember that they are strictly voluntary; you cannot force or strong-arm employees to participate. It must be at their free will, and safety must be the main concern for all involved.

Does your company have any upcoming fundraising or charity events? Share the details with us! Remi is holding a month-long event called “May Madness” and includes a chili cook-off, a cookie war, and an iPad Mini raffle at the end of the month. All the proceeds will go to our special needs fund at Levine.

The Great Penny Debate: Keep it or get rid of it?

April 1st was not only April Fool’s Day, but it was also National One Cent Day. If you found a penny that

day, perhaps it was extra lucky and some establishments had buy one get one for a penny promotions. Other than that one day, a penny isn’t worth much anymore. Of course it has sentimental value; but unfortunately, the penny doesn’t have much buying power in today’s economy.

Below are some quick facts about the American Penny:

• Proper term is one cent piece, but most common name is the penny
• Pence is the British plural of penny when referring to a sum of money, e.g. sixpence = the sum of six pennies
• The Lincoln coin we know today was first introduced in 1909
• Up until the 1980’s, the penny was mostly copper
• Today the coin is mostly composed of zinc, which is cheaper than copper
• According to the U.S. Department of Treasury, it’s the most widely used denomination*
• Particular versions of the penny are highly collectible items

After finding out that the Canadian penny went out of circulation in the fall of 2012 because it costs more to make than it’s worth, I wanted to see if the same issue had ever come up regarding the US penny. I was a bit surprised to find out that it’s quite a hot topic among Americans. During my research, I was even more surprised to learn that many people leaving comments on various websites regarding the penny debate didn't know some important facts about our country’s history. For example, some people don’t want to get rid of the penny because that would be dishonoring former President Abe Lincoln, not knowing he is also featured on the $5 bill. Another example along the same lines was that some suggested giving Lincoln a memorial somewhere, not knowing there is a very popular Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C.

As I continued my research, one piece of information in particular was difficult to verify – how much does it cost to mint the penny? I saw prices range from .81 of a cent to 1.23 cents to as high as 3 cents. According to penny related articles on Time Business & Money, Bloomberg Businessweek, and CNN Money, all reputable sources, it cost 2.4 cents to make one penny in 2011. If in fact it costs 2.4 cents to make one penny, then the government is losing 1.4 cents on every penny. Strictly looking at this from a budget perspective, continuing to mint the penny doesn’t appear to be a prosperous economic decision. However, nothing, especially when it comes to congress, is ever that simple. According to ABC News, President Obama proposed an initiative in the 2013 budget for the Treasury Department to reduce the cost of producing pennies by making the composition more cost-effective materials. Perhaps a cheaper-made penny is the solution.

There are countless websites to support each side. According to a poll on Science Buzz, 55% of respondents voted “Yes, they only clutter up my pocket” versus “No way, long live the cent” at 45%. A popular site called Americans for Common Cents is dedicated to educating the masses on the penny’s significance and state that their poll showed 67% of those surveyed are in favor of keeping the penny.

So, which side of the fence are you on in the great penny debate – keep it or get rid of it? Leave us a comment and tell us what you think!

*The U.S. Department of Treasury website page referenced was last updated on 12/5/2010.

What is it? …DNA Sequencer

A DNA Sequencer is an instrument used during the DNA sequencing process to determine the precise order of the four essential building blocks of a DNA molecule,

(guanine [G], adenine [A], thymine [T], and cystosine [C]), also known as nucleotides. According to Wikipedia, many DNA sequencers can also be considered optical instruments because they analyze light signals from fluorochromes (a fluorescent chemical) attached to nucleotides.

DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is an extremely long, large double helix molecule that carries the genetic information used in the development and functioning of all living organisms and viruses; it is essential for all known forms of life. The genetic information is encoded as a sequence of nucleotides and the nucleotides of the two strands are complementary and wound around each other. Humans inherit their DNA from their mother and father, each contributing half. Our DNA determines our physical appearance (e.g. hair color, eye color, height) as well as our medical ailments (e. g. allergies, predisposition to cancer, mental illness). No two people have the same DNA, except for identical twins. DNA sequencing can be used for a number of things; paternity testing, crime scene investigations, and medical research are just to name a few.

DNA sequencers and the sequencing process have revolutionized biological and medical research and discovery.

In the past, DNA sequencing was painstakingly tedious and required radioactive chemicals to sequence a DNA fragment that was then written out by hand. Today, technologically advanced DNA sequencers are capable of sequencing long strands of DNA at once, while storing the data electronically and with a lower percentage of errors.

DNA sequencers are manufactured and sold by several different companies and range in price from hundreds of thousands of dollars to just under $1,000, making DNA testing available to the average person. Given the recent popularity of paternity testing and genealogy, DNA testing has become mainstream. Doing a simple search on the internet brought up pages and pages of options – you can swab your cheek and send away for the results, you can visit a local clinic, or purchase an at-home kit.

If you own a DNA Sequencer, give us your thoughts. Did you buy the DNA sequencer new or refurbished? What manufacturer did you choose and why? Are you happy with the overall performance of the machine? Did you choose the OEM service contract, T&M, an equipment maintenance management program, or something else? We would love to hear from you!

If you’d like more information on Remi and their Equipment Maintenance and Asset Management Programs for healthcare equipment, please visit www.theremigroup.com/Healthcare/ProgramDetails.  

How to Provide Award-Winning Customer Service

Recently, Liz Barnes, Remi’s Service Center Manager, was awarded the Bronze Stevie® Award in the Contact Center Manager of the Year category during the Sales & Customer Service gala in Las Vegas. Liz consistently goes above and beyond what’s expected; as a result of her professionalism when communicating with Remi customers, Liz was recognized for her achievements. Hearing her recount the details of the award banquet led me to think about customer service in general. In the fast-paced, technologically advanced society we live, work, and play in, the good old-fashioned customer service that our grandparents experienced is becoming as extinct as the dinosaurs.

Below is an interview with Liz, as I try to capture the essence of how to provide award-winning customer service.

When you joined Remi in 2009, you were hired as a temporary employee for a short term project. You were quickly offered a permanent position after management recognized your potential and the rest is history, as they say. Describe your work ethic that ultimately led to your promotion to Service Center Manager.

I’ve always believed that the foundation to a solid work ethic is a positive attitude. Every day, I strive to perform to excellence and encourage my team to do the same.

Since becoming Service Center Manager, what additional technology and/or innovations have you introduced to improve service center efficiencies and customer service?

The introduction of call management software has definitely provided the Service Center with the insight needed to provide the highest level of customer service. We have been able to effectively monitor trends and adhere to a service level where 96.5% of our calls are answered by a live representative within 10 seconds.

Once a service event has been escalated from a Service Center Representative to you for whatever reason, how do you diffuse the situation? What are you tips for handling an irate customer?

Genuinely assuring the customer that their problem is a priority is key, but it doesn’t stop there! You have to see the problem through and stay in constant communication with the customer until you confirm that the issue has been resolved to their satisfaction.

How do you and your team make customers feel important and appreciated, like they are the only thing that matters at that moment?

Each customer and their needs are unique, and the first step in making a customer feel important is truly listening to identify how you can best serve them. Even if a representative doesn’t have the answer or an immediate solution, taking ownership of their request and following through will show the customer that their needs are important.

What is the best advice you could give someone who is in customer service but feeling burnt out and not giving 110% during every customer interaction?

There is no doubt, regardless of the industry, that Customer Service has its challenges. One thing that has always helped me and my team is remembering that each customer interaction is an opportunity to turn a potential negative situation into a positive, for both the customer and representative. There is a great sense of accomplishment that can come from being able to resolve a problematic situation, which is very rewarding!

Providing award-winning customer service doesn’t take as much effort as some organizations might think. Having a live representative answer phone calls, who listens, and genuinely cares about helping the customer are easy steps to take to ensure the highest level of customer satisfaction. In your experience, what company has provided the best customer service? Was it a huge retailer like Zappos or a mom-and-pop shop around the corner? Share your story with us and leave a comment.