Meet the SmartSign customer service team: Stephany Sam

Stephany Sam is a call center manager at SmartSign. She’s been with the company for the last five years. Originally from Haiti, Stephany currently lives in the Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn. She recently announced to the team that she’s expecting a baby due in May. 

Monica: I know you’re a manager here, but can you tell me a little bit more about what you do?

Stephany: Well, I handle customer service, so I take care of problems you could say. Like if a customer is upset, they’re not happy about something, they want to talk to me. Then I make them happy.

Monica: Did you start out in customer service at SmartSign?

Stephany:  I was sales and service, and then I moved to service, and then I became a customer service manager.

Monica: Okay. What got you into e-commerce and sales in the first place?

Stephany: It was something different, something new. I like new things.

Monica: What had you been doing before?

Stephany: What was I doing? I worked at a movie theater when I was 18, but that was a long time ago.

Monica: Are you from New York originally?

Stephany: Well, I was born in Haiti.

Monica: So how long have you been in New York?

Stephany: I came here when I was 12.

Monica: Oh, okay. Where in Brooklyn are you now?

Stephany: Flatbush, like 30 minutes from here.

Monica: Oh, that’s not bad at all. Did you move to New York right after Haiti, or did you live in other parts of the country?

Stephany:  I first moved — wow, it’s been so long — Nanuet. It’s by the Palisades, in Rockland County.

Monica: I thought your Halloween costume this year was great. [See above.]

Stephany: Well, I’m expecting. I’m going to be five months this month. In two weeks, I’ll be five months, so I’m excited about that.

Monica: Is this your first?

Stephany: My first, yeah.

Monica: How’s it going?

Stephany: I’m tired. Oh, my gosh I’m always tired. About 9:00 I’m in bed and I’m used to going to bed at 12:00, 1:00.

Monica: That’s a big change. Are you going to find out what the gender is?

Stephany: I will, but I’m not going to say anything. I want it to be a surprise. Keep it interesting.

Monica: Speaking of surprises, what do you want from your secret Santa this year?

Stephany: Nothing for the baby, because it’s for Stephany, not for baby Sam. Let’s see, a gift card would be nice. I like food, so Hale & Hearty, Olive Garden, Red Lobster, something like that.

Monica: Okay. That’ll help somebody out. Are you coming to the holiday party this year?

Stephany: Yeah, I am.

Monica: How have you enjoyed the SmartSign holiday parties in the past?

Stephany: They’re okay. You get to talk to everybody. You get to see everybody in the company, so it’s good. I like it.

Monica: Are you going to compete in the holiday cubicle-decorating contest?

Stephany: No. I’m so not creative.  If you tell me what to do, I’ll get it done, but when it comes to like that, no. I’m not that creative at all. Are you going to do it?

Monica: I don’t think so.

Stephany: Why not?

Monica: Well, Carrie in marketing is pretty determined to win.

Stephany: I think Michelle is going to win because she’s really good.

Monica: She’s a cake decorator, right?

Stephany: Yeah, she’s really good.

Monica: What do you like most about working SmartSign?

Stephany: I like the people I work with. It could be hard at times, but that’s what makes it comfortable because you get to know everybody. So it’s the people I work with.

Monica: That’s what everybody says!

Stephany: It is. I see you guys every day, so I have to like you, you know, we have to get along.

Monica: As a manager, do you ever have trouble laying down the law?

Stephany: No, not really. They think I’m mean, but that’s good. We get the job done.

Monica: Did you know that January is Smart Sign’s 15th anniversary?

Stephany: Yes, I did.

Monica: And you’ve been here five of those years. How have you seen the company change since then?

Stephany: We’ve grown a lot. Five years ago it was a handful of us, but now it’s I think over 40 just here, I think, but yeah, we have grown a lot.

Monica: Thanks for talking to me, Stephany! See you at the holiday party!