MONROVIA, Montserrado – The Millennium Challenge Account-Liberia has begun reconstruction and remodeling works on the Customer Service Center at the Liberia Electricity Corporation in a bid to improve customer satisfaction levels.

The renovation at the Waterside facility commenced on February 5 and will increase the seating capacity of the Customer Service Center to over 100 customers from a current maximum of 25. The current center is plagued with many issues, including inadequate seating capacity, poor sanitation facilities, inadequate ventilation, and a lack of efficient technologies to meet customers’ needs.

When construction is complete, the newly refurbished facility will feature improved bathrooms, better technological tools, and well-trained staff to handle an influx of customers.

The US$450,000 project also includes three vehicles and the installation of new furniture and IT infrastructure for LEC’s Customer Service Center. LEC will use the new vehicles to deliver a more effective customer service response on the field.

Customers visiting the center or calling to the improved hotline will experience improved response time, a more comfortable waiting area, shorter waiting times, and more professional assistance. They will also see better tracking of service orders due to an improved link between customer service management and technical staff through a new integrated management system to which the service center will connect.

Senesee Hemoh, MCA-L’s Project Controls Manager, said the revamped center would be crucial to improving how LEC serves its customers.

“Customer service is the face of a company to the public – if the customer service of a company is very subpar, customers will view the organization in a bad light,” he said.

“For LEC, if customer service must be improved, then the working environment, the technological tools being used, and all aspects of the office setting, must also be revamped. When we complete the renovation of this customer service center, it will not only be a renewed and more welcoming space, but the staff will also be better trained and empowered to deliver better service to customers.”

While the Waterside site is under construction, LEC’s customer service staff have temporarily relocated to a leased office facility along VP Road in Congo Town, not far from Catholic Junction. The project is expected to be completed by August 2020.

The reconstruction of the customer service center is part of MCA-L’s continual effort to support LEC in becoming a more sustainable and viable public utility. Over the past seven months, MCA-L has provided US$1.78 million in spare parts, utility poles, meters, and heavy-duty trucks to LEC.

In addition to funding 40 percent of the cost of rebuilding the Mount Coffee Hydro Power Plant, MCA-L has also paid for a three-year management services contractor to manage LEC and turn it into a more efficient and profitable company.

Featured photo courtesy of Millennium Challenge Account-Liberia