Redmond company to add several jobs to local economy. Operating a rapidly growing contact center in a 77,000 square-foot Redmond facility, Tigard based Consumer Cellular has racked up a number of notable awards since they were founded in 1995 by John Marick and Greg Pryor.
For example, type in ‘who is the number one rated cellphone service’on Google and inevitably Consumer Cellular dominates search results.
In 2008 Consumer Cellular took over the retiree market by providing users with basic, low-priced, no-contract cell phone plans and quickly became the preferred provider for AARP members. And by their own accounting, the company boasts somewhere in the neighborhood of 1.25 million lines of service – of which, more than 800,000 are AARP members – a strategy that is obviously paying off with revenues increasing from $64 million in 2008 to $335 million last year.
Consumer Reports seem to agree as they have placed Consumer Cellular in top consumer rankings since 2010, starting off with the best out of six major companies surveyed for no-contract cellphone service. The following year they were recognized again, this time as best choice for basic phones and service, and they placed higher than any other company for service.
For the past two years Consumer Cellular has continued to dominate the top customer satisfaction rankings. Portland Business Journal ranked Consumer Cellular as the 62nd Fastest Growing Company in Oregon in 2013 and they also received recognition as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For by the Oregon Business Magazine’s 20th annual list in March 2013.
Today the company continues to expand at rather impressive rate and according to co-founder and COO Greg Pryor they are currently in the process of hiring about 80 new employees per month at the Redmond contact center. “This should slow to around 40 per month as the center fills capacity during the summer,” Pryor said. By that time, the Redmond contact center will be functioning at capacity but with turnovers they will continue to add around 40 new employees each month.
GOOD PLACE TO WORK
Happy employees make good customer relations. And no doubt one of the reasons Consumer Cellular has such as high ranking in the industry and some of the best customer satisfaction ratings, has a lot to do with their conviction to hire team members that fit into what they refer to as a“positive company culture.”
Pryor is quick to point out that Consumer Cellular works to keep a positive team atmosphere between all of the employee groups. They offer several perks, including 100 percent employee paid healthcare, attendance bonuses, an employee wireless phone plan, a monthly employee appreciation program, Kudos program and profit sharing.
The local workforce appears to be skill-ready for working at Consumer Cellular and some come onboard without previous contact center experience. “For us, the most important characteristics in a potential new hire are enthusiasm, drive and an understanding of the importance of a great customer experience,” says Pryor. “As Consumer Cellular grows, we are looking for reliable team members that are looking to grow with us. We have been fortunate in finding over 400 of these team members since opening our Redmond operation in August 2011.”
The Redmond facility also boasts an onsite exercise facility, showers, education assistance and a casual dress code. “We also believe very strongly in giving back to the community,” Pryor said. “Anytime an employee volunteers at a charity or non-profit, Consumer Cellular makes a direct donation to the same organization.”
Consumer Cellular currently has three site locations including Redmond, with one in Phoenix, Arizona and the headquarters and contact center in Tigard. Following this hiring surge the Redmond facility will make up roughly 50 percent of Consumer Cellular’s overall customer service team. But that is a trend that won’t last long since the company anticipates that their Phoenix contact center will exceed that growth by summer’s end, leaving Redmond at 30 percent of their total customer service workforce. “The company has seen incredible growth over the last several years, which has led to great job security for our employees and has created plenty of opportunities for advancement,” Pryor said.
Consumer Cellular
Location: 2999 SW Sixth St., Redmond, OR, 800-686-4460, Website: www.consumercellular.com.
CEO: John Marick
No. Employees: 400+
Year Established: 1995
Product/Service: nationwide provider of cellular phones and services
Hot News: the number one rated cell phone service provider in the U.S. and the exclusive wireless provider for AARP members, plans to hire more employees in Redmond and continue growth to reach more than 500 within three years.
Outlook for Growth: has targeted the market of older cellular phone users; currently has over a million users.
