Job Responsibilities
Customer Service / Accounts Manager - printing. Responsibilities
include customer service & consultation, management, technical
pre-planning, planning, and over-seeing entire manufacturing
process of customer's printing jobs through imaging, press,
binding & shipping, problem-solving, and itemization of processes
performed for billing purposes. Planning and problem solving
utilizes approximately half of the 40 hour work-week while
contact & consultation with customers takes another 1/4 to 1/2 of
my time. Another component of this job is education - there are
continually changing processes and new computer support programs
being developed, so we have to stay on top of those. It is very
fast paced and can be very intense at times. Since you are
continauly moving through various responsibilities of this job -
multi-tasking all the time - you can have weeks where more or
less time is devoted to any one aspect of the job. Knowledge and
skil are required on several different levels.
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Job Requirements
The ability to communicate & handle all types of people is key,
as well as being very detail oriented and having a thorough
knowledge of the printing industry for the customer service /
accounts manager position. I believe that a general or liberal
education is necessary, along with some technical training in the
field. Being sErvice oriented is a must! These things coupled
with having some experience working with a variety of people
certainly gives you an advantage. Technical training can take
place at some schools or can be obtained on the job itself. I
took general college courses with a focus on business, and then
went to a technical school for training in the printing field,
although this is not 100% necessary in this industry. Though
rare, one can get an entry level job in printing at the
manufacturing level, & then work their way around to other
positions if they have the knowledge, skills and abilities
necessary for this particular job. Having the necesary skills and
being able to demonstrate them are more important than having a
specific degree for the Customer Service / Accounts Manager
position. Generally speaking, printing companies promote from
within first, so if you have proven skills, you can advance. The
workload varies depending on the number of accounts you manage,
and the elements of each printing project the customers are
putting through. The job of Customer Service / Account Manager
is basically an 8 or 9-5 desk job with quite a bit of personal
or self-management involved. You can put in 35 hours or 80 hours
a week depending on your knowledge and time-management skills.
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Uppers
The opportunities in my job abound. The best elements of my job are the ability
to manage my own time, working on my own without supervision or a lot of
directives, the challenge of setting up the technical aspects of the job so that
everything throughout the manufacturing process is done timely and accurately, as
well as problem-solving while the job is in progress, & working with customers in
a consultative manner. As a CSR / Account Manager, you meet people from all over
the country & may have the opportunity to become friends with them over time.
There are also opportunities to travel from time to time, as well as various
educational courses you can take which may take you away from the day-to-day
aspects of the job. With printing technology continuously changing, one is
constantly on a new learning curve - thus the job never gets boring. I have
worked in this industry for 24 years, and have not tired of it yet. All of this
in combination with a great group of people to work with makes the job very
attractive to me.
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Downers
There are often times the computers are slow and then we have to
be on the computer doing data entry longer than we would like. In
our company, we have pagers or beepers so that our production
staff can reach us for questions or to notify us of problems that
may occur in the course of doing the job. Being beeped on your
pager when something goes wrong or when the production floor has
questions can be an intrusion at times. No one likes to notify a
customer when there are problems with their job - or when
something is not going to deliver on time due to mechanical
failure or some other problem that occurred in the multi-level
manufacturing process, however this is part of yoru job as an
account manager. Certain customers can become difficult at times,
however, I view anything metnioned here as a challenge rather
than a negative about the job itself. Again - your people skills
and knowledge of the process are key to having a job go smoothly
or not.
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Lifestyle
The lifestyle for a Customer Service / Account Manager can be quite comfortable
- better than average. Though your work-week is about 40 hours, you do whatever
it takes to complete each job, so the number of hours you put in can vary. Once
you are skilled, you notice that you have more free time. There is some travel
involved, and how much really depends on the customers you have as well as any
temporary changes in travel policies at the company. There are numerous company
social events such as dinners or parties, and you will take custoemrs out to eat
whenever they come in for press okays.
Dress code: At Quad/Graphics, we have a different dress code than at other
printers. We wear a navy blue company uniform to support our company culture
which promotes full communication between various work areas. Production or
office status does not interfere in this way. We have a highly diversified work
group: men and women of all races, creeds, color, & ethic background. We do work
together and play together - often having bike rides or olympics events, and
other activities for employees to join in on.
I believe that the single most attractive element to my job is that the printing
industry is always changing - whether it be equipment or other technology, or th
ejob mixture. Always having something new to learn or do - personal growth -
makes it more attractive and exciting than the average job. working here, I have
been able to do things that I never thought I would do in my lifetime. It never
"gets old!"
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Compensation
Base compensation for a position in Customer Service would
probably start at approximately $25,000 at the very low end and
go up as you get named an account manager to about $65,000 or
more at the high end. Once you are named as an account manager,
you also receive an anuual bonus which can be as much as about
$10,000. We have a 401K plan, administrated by M&I bank, that
has about 15 different funds or stocks that we can move around
according to our own choice. As employees fo Quad/Graphics, we
can also get financial advice from M&I bank as needed.
Our company is about 1/2 employee owned and operated, therefore
we receive additional company stock each year after the first
year of service. Benefits are extrordinary - in fact awesome!
We have health coverage with 3 levels - the first being with our
own fully equipped health clinics (on-site) where we only pay a
$5 co-pay, then with approved providers (we cover 80%), and then
with providers of choice that have not been approved where we
cover a little less. We have full pharmiacies on-site at each
plant as well so that filing or picking up prescriptions can be
done with ease. For prescriptions, we pay a co-pay that is
approximately 1/3 of the cost of the prescription or a minimum of
$10. On site, we have our own day care centers for children of
all ages, as well as a certified kindergarten. We have life
insurance provided as long as we work here, and the usual
allowances for vacation (1 week after 1 yr, and up to 4 weeks
mzximum, maternity or family leave, etc. We get a 4 week
sabbatical after 25 years of employment which I will be taking in
about 1 year from now. We have an Employee assistance program
for those who need counseling and for those who have drug or
alchohol problems. We have additional benefits in the way of
assistance to those who want to adopt a child, legal assistance
in the way of an on-site attorney for family or other matters,
and we provide tuition reimbursement (provided their grade is a B
or better) for those seeking to go to school for additional
training or college courses, etc.. Additionally, we have a
fitness center on-site at each of our printing plants, and we
have classes in aerobics, kick-boxing, weights, diet and
nutrition, and can access a personal trainer to ehlp us meet our
fitness goals. Quad/Graphics also has smoking cessation classes,
and we have a full re-hab center for those who experience work or
sports related injuries. We have our own community fund that we
can donate to for causes such as the tsunami, hurricane fund, red-
cross or any other small or large charity of our choice. The
company handles the details for us. Our company also has a dry -
cleaning service with reduced rates that will pick up and deliver
so that you do not have to leave to handle these mundane chores.
Quad/Graphics also offers a variety of in-house classes on
printing, leadership, business, Spanish to English, diversity,
printing math, and so forth. I believe our benefits are second
to none. And, when you have children of college age,
Quad/Graphics has a scholarship fund that can be applied to for
assistance with college tuition. Other printing companies also
have great benefits, however, Quad/Graphics is the only one with
all of those mentioned above, which is why we were named as one
of the top 100 companies to work for in the United States..
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Advice to Jobseekers
To gain the best advantage (to hit the ground running) within the
areana of administrative opportunities available in this field, I
would recommend getting a 4 year degree in Printing from The
Rochester Institute of Technology, or from another State College
or Univesity offering a technical degree in printing such as the
Univesity of Wisconsin - Stout campus. If this is not possible,
attend a techical college and get a 2 year Associate's degree in
printing (Wisconsin's Waukesha Technical College) and start at an
entry level and move upwards. For other areas that are not in
customer service, there are many other avenues that can be taken
in terms of career choices in printing such as accounting,
electrical, shipping, receiving, over-the-road driver, mechanics,
as well as pressman, bindery operator, imaging, computer
technology, sales, etc.. There is a broad range of career
choices within the field of printing so a degree in printing is
not the only way to get into a printing company.
I think the job outlook for the field of printing and publishing
is actually very stable and quite good. Despite the advent of
newsletters and on-line printing available via the computer,
people still want the ability to pick up a newspaper, magazine or
a book to read for enjoyment, and that will continue on despite
our personal computers. There are also a never-ending supply of
catlogue and direct mail printings that come to our homes on
almost a daily basis. Printing is alive and well, and the
opportunities for a great career with good pay and great benefits
will always be there. Find out where your interests lie and what
you love, and then find a job doing what you love. that is the
best advice I can give and one that worked for me.
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