Dec 22, 2021 | Company News, Good Deed Team
This holiday season presented our East Cobb service center with an unexpected Christmas miracle opportunity. One of our teammates brought the opportunity to sponsor a 13-year-old child this year for Christmas with the Angel Tree program through the daycare they use.
With so much that has gone on this year, our team was so excited to make this holiday season special for our angel. Our teammates came together and purchased clothes, shoes, headphones, and books for this child!
These angel donations help provide the magic of Christmas for thousands of underprivileged children and seniors. If you would like to help donate or learn how to adopt and angel for Christmas 2022, please visit https://angeltreeatlanta.org/ to learn more.
We are so thankful for our extraordinary teammates who look for every opportunity to make a difference, and we can’t wait see how they will continue this in the new year.
Dec 20, 2021 | Commercial, Company News, Pest Control
Derek Foster was named the 2021 PCT Commercial Technician of the Year due to his dedication to service, safety, and industry leadership. Derek has been a Northwest teammate for almost 10 years and has served with our Commercial Pest Control division since the beginning. The entire Northwest team is excited to celebrate his win, as he’s continued to push our team to new heights, to honor our customers, and to create extraordinary experiences everywhere he goes. Learn more about PCT’s Commercial winner this year in this Teammate Q&A!
NW: How did it feel to find out you were named the 2021 PCT Commercial Technician of the Year?
Derek: When I found out that I had been named PCT Commercial Technician of the Year, it completely blew me away. I was kind of speechless at first, like, ‘Are You Serious? You’re not kidding me?’ What an honor! When I started asking questions, I thought back with how honored and thankful I am to all the people that have helped me along my journey here at Northwest for the past 9 years. I’m extremely proud to work here at Northwest Exterminating and receive this recognition for hard work. I can’t even describe how thankful I am to receive this!
NW: What made you choose Northwest initially?
Derek: I chose Northwest Exterminating 9 years ago (September 2012) because I was looking for a change from my prior 14-year career. I managed a fence manufacturing/distribution location and wanted something different where I could get out of the office, travel around a bit, be hands on, and interact with people. After interviewing and meeting multiple people at Northwest, I knew this was it and has been exactly what I wished for. Since then, everyone I have met and had the opportunity to work with within the company have been awesome.
NW: What is your favorite Northwest Service Standard?
Derek: #7 Golden Opportunities “We view a complaint or a callback not as a hassle, but as a golden opportunity to create a Customer for Life. These opportunities are our time to shine and show the customer the Northwest Difference.”
This is my favorite Northwest Service Standard because in our industry, the customer doesn’t always get a visual result for what we’ve done during their monthly or quarterly service aside from web brushing. When we receive a callback or we are approached by potential customers, it is our chance to shine! From our response time getting to those customers to our genuine concern to help them in any way that we can to make things better, the call back or customer approach also gives us some personal face to face bond time to educate and explain what we will do to take corrective action for any issues rather than just say ‘You should be good now.’ This is recognized by our customers and builds trust and value for them to know that we are there for them.
NW: What’s some advice you’d give to someone wanting to join our industry?
Derek: If I were to give someone wanting to join our industry advise, I would say be open to educate yourself in all areas and to accept knowledge and experience from others. Own your role, manage your time well, be accountable and take responsibility for all that you do, and learn from mistakes or practices that didn’t work for you in the past. Try new things and be open to growth. Find passion for what you do, have fun, and enjoy it!
NW: Outside of work, what do you enjoy doing?
Derek: Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my family. I enjoy boating on Lake Lanier, fishing, dining, and swimming. Being from the islands, I love the beach and pretty much anything to do with water like water skiing, wakeboarding, or jet skiing. Scuba diving is probably one of the things I miss most and need to plan a dive trip the next time I’m in Florida, which is where I enjoy vacationing the most. I’d like to teach my wife and kids how to dive so they can see the underwater world. On my own time, I have a passion for wood working, concrete projects, and home improvements.
NW: Where will you be in the next 5 years?
Derek: In the next five years, you’ll find me in a management position for the 3rd Commercial Service Center here at Northwest, this with be known as Commercial North. (Editor’s Note: Derek was recently promoted to Service Supervisor of our two Atlanta Commercial locations. This vision casting is slowly but surely coming true for him and Northwest because of the team’s hard work and this type of dedication!)
Derek’s consistency in the type of teammate he shows up as for his team, customer, and community is what the Northwest Way is all about. To see this consistency, and his dedication, career enjoyment, and expertise honored by this award is something all of his Northwest Family is proud of and excited for. Derek is beyond deserving, and we’re grateful to call him part of our Northwest Family!
Congratulations, Derek!
Sep 14, 2021 | Company News, Good Deed Team
With the beginning of every new school year, school supply needs go out for every classroom. At Northwest, our teammates enjoy partnering with local schools any way we can. Our teachers are true superheroes, and the start of any school year is typically some of their busiest times. This is why our Dallas team came together to donate supplies to Dallas Elementary School.
The Dallas team reached out to the assistant principal to learn what items students needed the most. After learning that earbuds for students were in need, they collected 56 pairs to donate!
We know that any help for these teachers means a lot. Our teammates enjoyed the opportunity to serve their local elementary school and look forward to partnering with them again in the future. Thank you to our Dallas team for finding opportunities to serve where you have passion!
Sep 1, 2021 | Company News, Good Deed Team
Our Sawyer Good Deed Team has found a new way to make a difference in its community. Recently, they partnered with Alamance County Meals on Wheels. The team now has a route once a month where they are able to go out and deliver meals to homebound senior citizens.
The Alamance County Meals on Wheels was formed in 1973. Over the years, they have been offering hot home-delivered meals, frozen home-delivered meals, and winter weather emergency meals. They started delivering only one route, serving a few people, and now they serve over 300 people each day on 24 different hot and frozen meal routes.
Our teammates, Lucas C. and Elizabeth W., were both very grateful for the opportunity to give back this month and look forward to continuing this partnership. Alamance County Meals on Wheels is always looking for volunteers to help! If you would like to get involved, please visit http://www.alamancemow.org/ to see how you can help.
Aug 23, 2021 | Company News, Good Deed Team
At Northwest, we enjoy partnering with schools across many of the states that we serve. Many of our teammates are passionate about education support, and we know that the beginning of the school year is always busy, especially for teachers. This is why our Peachtree Wildlife team came together to make baskets for all of the 1st grade teachers at Berkeley Lake Elementary School.
The team made 8 reusable baskets that included all sorts of extraordinary supplies these teachers can use to help with their class. They included colored papers, pens, note pads, post-it notes, clip boards, hand sanitizer, expo markers, highlighters, markers, stickers, a box of Kleenex, and paper towels. They were able to hand deliver these to the school, and the teachers were so grateful.
We know that even a little help for these teachers means a lot, especially with all the changes that COVID-19 brought. Our teammates enjoyed the opportunity to serve their local elementary school, and the teachers reached out to our team to let them know how much they appreciated their baskets. Thank you to our Peachtree Wildlife team for finding opportunities to serve where you have passion!
Aug 13, 2021 | Company News, Good Deed Team
Over the years, our Northwest Good Deed Team has partnered with schools across many of the states that we serve, with many of our teammates passionate about education support. With teammates always keeping an eye open for opportunities to serve, our Corporate office came together to collect cases of water for a local high school band when the need came up.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Sprayberry High School Band of Gold was grappling with donations and funds. When it was brought to our attention by a teammate, we jumped at the opportunity to support them. We were able to collect 20 cases of water, which will supply the band for 4+ games this upcoming football season. We handed these cases off to the Men in Black (MIB) who are dads that help transport and move the instruments, equipment, props, and supplies.
We are so grateful for our Corporate office coming together to support a local high school and collect these cases of water. Though a small act of kindness, it’s extraordinary opportunities like this that make our teammates at Northwest proud to work for The Mouse.
Jun 2, 2021 | Company News, Good Deed Team, Teammate Celebration
Our Corporate office is always trying to find a way to show their support for the communities they live and work in daily. They recently took lunch to the Metro Atlanta Fire Fighters Conference for the firefighters that attended the class, as well as the trainers and leaders.
MAFFC is an all-volunteer group of firefighters, instructors, and sponsors dedicated to bringing the best training to each other at almost no cost. They strive to provide a forum for the best possible training in the region. The conference was an 8-hour hands on class that challenged and informed participants in size-up, identification, and mechanical defeat conventional locking devices.
Our local first responders are always a focus for the Northwest team. Each year, we host First Responder Cookouts as a way of showing our gratitude for all that they do, so we were thankful to be involved with the Conference to show that same appreciation. Being involved in the communities is an honor and something that all our teammates enjoy doing. We were grateful for the opportunity to show our appreciation by bringing lunch to this conference, and for the ability to create even a small impact in our community.
Jun 2, 2021 | Company News, Teammate Celebration
Northwest Exterminating’s LaGrange Service Center is grateful to have recently received the 2021 Best of Troup County Award. This honor was received thanks to the votes of Troup County residents, as each year, the LaGrange Daily News asks the community to vote for winners in several categories. This is the second year in a row that our LaGrange service center has won this honor.
While Northwest Exterminating has been creating healthier living and working environments since 1951, we have been serving the LaGrange, GA area for the past 11 years. We have an extraordinary team dedicated to creating extraordinary experiences and Customers for Life throughout Troup County and beyond. The LaGrange team also actively works to create extraordinary experiences within their community through local resource and time donations to organizations like Sleep in Heavenly Peace and Twin Cedars.
Our LaGrange Service Center and the entire Northwest Family is grateful to not only be considered for this award again but to have been chosen by the community we have the honor to live and work in for the second year. Thanks for trusting the Mouse, Troup County.
Jun 1, 2021 | Company News, Good Deed Team, Teammate Celebration
By being in the people business, Northwest is always looking for ways to honor our customers. We put them first by honoring their time, health, investment, and most importantly, trust in us. Our Canton office recently demonstrated this when a teammate noticed a customer’s gutters; he brought what he noticed back to the office, getting everyone together to go out and clear this customer’s gutters as a team.
One of our customers had an issue with ants that our teammate Chad G. was helping treat. Chad noticed that the gutters were starting to overflow, and when he brought it to the customer’s attention, he learned that there was no one to help him keep up this part of his home. Since this customer is wheelchair bound, Chad saw this as an opportunity to show our customer how much we care about him. Shortly after, our team scheduled a time frame during the day for our group of Managers, Administration, and Service Professionals to go out and help.
All of our Canton team was happy to go out to support our customer. While this may seem like a small act of kindness, we were able to give this customer an extraordinary experience while giving back to them in a way that created an overall healthier living environment, always our mission for any home. We’re thankful for teammates like Chad and our Canton office, who, while it’s not part of their “job,” continue to keep their eyes open to serve the customer in a way that keeps them first!
