JERMAINE Walters is the man who is helping to fatten Courts Jamaica’s coffers through his skills as a sales and customer service representative.

Apart from generating sales for Courts, Walters — who started working with the furniture company 12 years ago — said he also seeks to ensure customer satisfaction.

To do so, he follows up with customers to ensure that they are pleased with their goods following a sale, keeps a tag so they can get the necessary information when required, and calls them from time to time to ensure the product is working as it should.

Walters also does branch marketing, which requires that he visits company offices and provide workers with information on the goods and services offered by Courts.

“This is good for a sales representative since this is one of the ways in which you get customers,” he told Career & Education.

A typical day on the job sees him on his feet from before 8:30 am to after 6:00 pm — despite his working day officially ending at 5:00 pm. In addition to new customer accounts, Walters also deals with accounts presented by a creditor to a debtor for examination and settlement, in addition to staff accounts.

Despite his success, Walters never intended to be a sales representative; he, in fact, had his heart set on becoming a chartered accountant and later a pharmacist. But as life would have it, he may have found his calling.

“So many things happened to change the course of things,” he explained. “But this job is really awesome… It’s a great job.”

The former student of Morant Bay and Camperdown high schools has received training in customer service and sales to boost his performance over the years. He was also at one time enrolled in the business administration programme at the University of Technology.

The married father of a six-year-old has expressed pride at being named Courts’ top performer for the year.

“The company always has a competition for sales reps islandwide and I always try to finish in the top three, so I feel good (about being named top performer),” he said.

His boss Donna Ferguson had nothing but high praises for him.

“He is the top sales rep at the (Cross Roads) branch so he contributes to most of the sales that pass through here,” she said. “His customer base is very wide.”

Ferguson added that he was chosen as the top performer based on the number of sales he has made compared to others within the organisation.

“If you look at sales, Jermaine is the one who made the most sales. He is consistent in his performance — along with having good customer service. He is definitely one of our most valuable (internal) customer… He is an exemplary person in everything,” she said.

— Donna Hussey-Whyte