J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Liberty Mutual Recognized for Providing an Outstanding...

J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Liberty Mutual Recognized for Providing an
Outstanding Customer Service Experience

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., May 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Liberty Mutual Insurance
has been recognized for call center operation customer satisfaction excellence
under the J.D. Power and Associates Certified Call Center Program(SM). This
distinction acknowledges a strong commitment from Liberty Mutual's Direct
Response Sales call center operations to provide "An Outstanding Customer
Service Experience."
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050527/LAF028LOGO-a)
To become certified, the Liberty Mutual call center operations located in
Phoenix, Ariz., and Heathrow, Fla., successfully passed a detailed audit of
its recruiting, training, employee incentives, quality assurance capabilities,
and management roles and responsibilities. As part of its evaluation, J.D.
Power and Associates conducted a random survey of Liberty Mutual customers who
recently contacted its call centers.
"The strength of Liberty Mutual's commitment to customer satisfaction lies
within its call center representatives," said Gail Gross, senior director of
certification programs at J.D. Power and Associates. "Customers view Liberty
Mutual's call center representatives as highly courteous, concerned and
knowledgeable, which reflect the organization's efforts to thoroughly prepare
their representatives to handle customer requests."
For certification status, a call center must also perform within the top
20 percent of customer service scores, which are based on benchmarks
established in J.D. Power and Associates' cross-industry customer satisfaction
research. The criteria used include evaluation of: courtesy; knowledge;
concern for the customer; usefulness of the information provided; convenience
of operating hours; ease of reaching a representative; and timely resolution.
"Our call center sales counselors are an important ingredient in ensuring
that a customer's first experience with us leads to a lasting relationship,"
said Paul Condrin, president of Personal Markets at Liberty Mutual. "Insurance
customers have come to expect a courteous, knowledgeable and helpful
interaction every time they call or visit a Liberty Mutual office, and our
call center professionals are living up to that responsibility by delighting
customers every day."
The Call Center Certification Program was launched by J.D. Power and
Associates in 2004 to evaluate overall customer satisfaction with call centers
and to help call centers in various industries increase their efficiency and
effectiveness by establishing best practices for handling service calls.
There are more than 75,000 call centers in North America and an estimated
125,000 worldwide that help customers with product and service questions
across a multitude of industries, ranging from credit cards, financial
services, investment services, utilities, service warranty and insurance to
telecommunications, healthcare and office products.
About J.D. Power and Associates
Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a
global marketing information services company operating in key business
sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement,
training and customer satisfaction. The firm's quality and satisfaction
measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. For
more information on car reviews and ratings, car insurance, health insurance,
cell phone ratings, and more, please visit JDPower.com. J.D. Power and
Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.
About The McGraw-Hill Companies
Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a leading global
information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial
services, education and business information markets through leading brands
such as Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power
and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries.
Sales in 2007 were $6.8 billion. Additional information is available at
http://www.mcgraw-hill.com.
Media Relations Contacts:
John Tews Glenn Greenberg
J.D. Power and Associates Liberty Mutual
Troy, Mich. Boston, Mass.
(248) 312-4119 (617) 574-5874
john.tews@jdpa.com glenn.greenberg@libertymutual.com

No advertising or other promotional use can be made of the information in
this release without the express prior written consent of J.D. Power and
Associates. http://www.jdpower.com/corporate
SOURCE J.D. Power and Associates

John Tews of J.D. Power and Associates, Troy, Mich., +1-248-312-4119,
john.tews@jdpa.com; or Glenn Greenberg of Liberty Mutual, Boston, Mass.,
+1-617-574-5874, glenn.greenberg@libertymutual.com