Finding the place to begin a blog post can be really difficult, but this one is the most difficult yet. Sometimes it’s best to just lay it out there, so here we go! It is with very mixed emotions that I tell you I am leaving Comcast.
You may know me as @ComcastCares on Twitter, or simply as Frank. Since September 2007, I have been on a journey with Comcast that I am not sure I will ever fully understand. I joined Comcast because I loved the products, especially On Demand. My kids could not live without it (I will hear Bernstein Bears in my head for years to come)! In addition, I saw an opportunity to help improve the overall customer experience. Thanks to the help of so many people internally, and all the customers I’ve had the chance to interact with, we have made a difference. Beyond the customer experience, social media has allowed me to build so many friendships that will last for years to come. Over the next few weeks I will share some of those stories, and I hope you do the same.
In July 2010, Comcast is a vastly different company. Last year we publicly introduced the Comcast Customer Guarantee. We even changed our Credo to:
"Comcast will deliver a superior experience to our customers every day. Our products will be the best and we will offer the most customer-friendly and reliable service in the market."
If you are like me, your reaction may be that these are just words, but I have seen dramatic changes within the organization. Like many companies, we had many silos, which I have watched come down. As people are more and more connected to each other, this continues to happen every day. I have watched people like Rick Germano take on additional responsibilities and dedicate themselves to improving the customer experience. Rick has posted here, but beyond his posts, he has been a great role model for me and I appreciate the support he has shown. Recently there have been many additions to the Comcast Team, including Neil Smit, President of Comcast Cable. Neil has a background in Customer Service. On his first day with us, he was listening to calls. I love that! Mike DeCandido recently joined us at SVP of Call Center Operations. Mike has been working diligently to change the structure of the Customer Service Team and truly deliver on the Comcast Credo. In getting to know Mike, I have no doubt he will be successful.
You may be wondering why I would leave Comcast with all these exciting things going on. Over the past few years I have learned a lot about myself. While reading Seth Godin’s Linchpin, I realized that I enjoy being an artist. My passion is taking on different challenges and finding ways to create the best results. An opportunity to return to banking in a social media role has presented itself. With an outstanding team and functional plan in place here at Comcast, it is the right time for me to accept a new challenge. You can follow my progress at my personal blog, and on my new Twitter account @FrankEliason.
Comcast has received a lot of recognition for our work on Twitter, including Business Week’s "Comcast Twitter Man" story. My favorite was a local Fox story that I would love to share, but it is not available online. The reason it is my favorite was because of the manner in which it showed my entire team. They are the real reason for the success we have seen. Some of you know @ComcastBill, @ComcastSteve, @ComcastDete, @ComcastMelissa, @ComcastBonnie, @ComcastSherri. What you might not know is we are much more than just Twitter, and there are many individuals that make it all happen. Over the next few weeks I will try to introduce you to many of them, and how they are working to help our customers have the best possible customer experience.
I am looking forward to celebrating the Comcast Digital Care team’s accomplishments and the people that made it all happen. I hope you are as proud of my team as I am. I know they will continue to be rock stars in social media and Customer Service.