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Company: Wyndham Vacation Ownership, Orlando, FL
Company Description: A member of the Wyndham Worldwide family, Wyndham Vacation Ownership is the world’s largest vacation ownership business with resorts throughout North America, the Caribbean and the South Pacific. It develops, sells and finances vacation ownership interests through its four brands: Wyndham Vacation Resorts, WorldMark by Wyndham, Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific, and Shell Vacations.
Nomination Category: Customer Service & Call Center Awards Individual Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Contact Center Professional of the Year

Nomination Title: Melanie Dillenburg, Contact Center Representative

Tell the story about what this nominee achieved since the beginning of July 2012 (up to 525 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

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Driven by a great passion to help every customer with whom she comes into contact, Melanie Dillenburg, Customer Care Specialist for Wyndham Vacation Ownership, has made a significant contribution to her role in customer care. She has a tremendous love for service, and has helped perfect and redefine every position she has held within the company.

Melanie’s energetic drive and genuine sincerity have set her apart as a strong contributor to the customer care department since the day of her arrival. She is able to handle sensitive customer concerns with effortless charm, solving problems conscientiously while meeting and exceeding department metrics. She also has a keen ability to relate to each customer and provide exactly the care and attention they need in order to create or restore a level of confidence.

Melanie is often assigned to a customer with an unresolved issue who has reached a point of frustration and disappointment that seems impenetrable. Her kindness, diligence and drive to deliver on promises made keep her on the case until the customer is happy again; often to such great effect that their faith in vacation ownership is regained to the point of upgrading. Customers are delighted to work with her; her team sees her as a role model; and she delights in every opportunity to engage with the customer constituency to smooth over glitches, pre-empt problematic situations and promote the culture of service and excellence so valued by her company.

For example, one of our customers was insistently seeking a unit at a popular Florida location that was showing no available inventory. When the nominee asked why this particular location was so important, the customer shared that her son was dying, and during his time in the hospital nurses and staff were keeping his spirits up through the magic of Disney characters and movies. The boy wished to go to Disney World one last time. The nominee not only secured a two-bedroom unit for the customer and her son, she worked with the resort for additional benefits to make this trip special. She reached out to a contact at Disney and began arranging for a meet-and-greet with the boy’s favorite characters, a tour of Cinderella’s castle and a selection of Disney goodies for his arrival. Sadly, shortly before the scheduled stay the customer called the nominee with the news of her son’s passing. The nominee cried with the customer and shared in her grief, cancelling the stay until the customer was ready to make the trip. Months later when the customer had begun to heal emotionally, this nominee booked the trip for the family, in honor and memory of the son who had found comfort in the joy of Disney.

Melanie's personal style has led to a shift in thinking with her entire group. She proved she could efficiently solve problems and keep her customers informed while creating a very real human connection with them. Not only does she resolve specific issues; she transforms exasperated individuals into satisfied customers who have had their faith restored in their vacation product and believe the company behind it has their best interests at heart.

Provide a brief (up to 125 words) biography about the nominee:

Melanie Dillenburg is a Customer Care Specialist for Wyndham Vacation Ownership. Her authentic affection for customers and her tenaciousness in solving their problems and making them happy vacationers again have set a new standard for her department. Her team members follow her example of thorough research and conflict resolution to achieve success in their own cases, discovering new methods that work for them in order to achieve their goals. Melanie's practice of staying in close contact with her customers and always maintaining a clear line of communication has created a lasting impact on her customer care team.