Everyone at Send is united under the same philosophy: to deliver a first-rate product and experience to our customers. One person who embodies this completely is Joe Howes. From Operations Analyst to Customer Support Manager in the three years since joining the company in 2022, Joe has demonstrated a flair for customer service and a passion for ensuring everyone around him is looked after, getting the support they need, when they need it. So much so, he’s even won awards for his outstanding commitment! For this month’s Q&A, we sat down with our ‘Dr Dependable’ to find out more about his views on what customers value the most, and how he and his team make sure they can deliver on our promises.
Joe, you first joined Send as an operations analyst three years ago, what were you doing before that?
I began my career working for a bank in London. As you can imagine, working for a big corporate bank feels very different from the vibe at an Insurtech like Send, but the two roles had one thing in common: our customer is at the heart of what we do.
Although I enjoyed my customer-facing role in banking, I knew I wanted to work in a different industry. I was keen to work for a smaller, more dynamic company in the technology space, and that’s when I found Send! I joined the operations team in 2022, with no technology background, but I loved the culture right from the first interview and knew I wanted to be part of the business.
Joining the operations team was a great way to become familiar with all areas of the business, from core product delivery to customer service, to testing, and in that first year I learned so much. I was really lucky to have such a supportive team, and managers who had unlimited patience with my questions while I got to grips with our Underwriting Workbench platform and how it fits into the wider insurance market.
I joined a few months before one of our new customers went live. It was perfect timing for me, and a fantastic opportunity to work closely with them, as well as the delivery team. I could then understand how the application fits together, how we work with customers on delivery and how implementations and configurations can differ between customers.
One similarity between your two roles is the focus on customer service. Has that always been something you’re passionate about?
I may not be a coding whiz, but what I do love is dealing with customers, helping them get what they need, and making sure they feel heard.
My role recently moved into the Customer Experience Team. This has been the best thing for me. I can have complete tunnel vision on the customer outcome, ensuring that they have the best possible journey, and that we have time to be proactive in our approach to supporting them. For instance, we have alerts on our infrastructure to quickly flag any potential coding issues, allowing us to jump on those, even before the customer has to alert us to a problem.
Transparency really is key. Customers appreciate that issues often arise with technology despite the most stringent testing. However, if we’re open and honest about how we’re dealing with them, I feel like it builds really strong relationships.
On that point, what are the key things Send’s customers really value, and how do you ensure you’re delivering them?
Above all, they value the product and its ability to automate and streamline their underwriters’ experience, helping them to be more effective and efficient.
In terms of support, they value a quick turnaround. They want to know that any issues will be looked at and resolved promptly. Our alert feature has been a big development in this area. Customers know that we’re being proactive in monitoring for potential issues and resolving them promptly. This robust approach builds their confidence in us as a supportive, responsive partner.
As with most people, customers just want to feel they are being listened to and understood. I like to treat people in the way I’d want to be treated, and that philosophy extends right across the Send team.
How has your career developed during your time at Send so far?
Working with the Send team has really helped to build my confidence. As I said, I didn’t really have a technology background, but the team I joined spent a long time helping me in that first year, and I’ll always be grateful for that. The feeling of being trusted and believed in has been so important in helping to build that confidence and tackle tasks that would have daunted me in my first year!
Over time, I’ve gone from supporting customers to looking after a team that manages all our live customer environments. Stepping into that managerial role was a real learning curve as I’d never managed other people before, but I love it, and I’ve had so much support to do it well. I’m now proud to have a team that makes a tangible difference to our customers each day; they’re smashing it!
And you’ve won some awards…
I get embarrassed talking about it, but yes! I received the Send ‘Dr Dependable’ award!
This was voted for across the company, and the fact that other people had noticed and valued my work meant a lot to me, particularly as I’m still quite young in my career. It was an amazing feeling. I’ll always try and do my best to help people and be approachable; my door is always open. I just want to do as much for others as I can, and that goes for my teammates and customers.
Well done ‘Dr Dependable’! Now, Send has recently established a dedicated Customer Experience Function, which you now work under. Tell us more.
The new function oversees the complete end-to-end customer journey, which is great as we can deliver a more streamlined, consistent experience for our customers.
One area I’m really enjoying working more closely with is the team specialising in reporting and analysis. This plays a key role in customer success. We can analyse how our customers are using the platform, how much premium they’re writing, how their lines of business are performing, and which brokers they work with. All of this insight is so valuable to our customers in helping them manage their business performance and portfolio. This is an area I’m really excited to be pushing.
Essentially, my function is all about the customer; each team is relentlessly focused on giving our customers a smooth, seamless experience with our product. Right from onboarding and relationship-building to driving satisfaction and growth within the customer community.
So how have you found stepping into that managerial role?
It was initially a little bit daunting, but ultimately, it’s because I care and want to get the best from our solution, our customers and of course, the team. But things have been going really smoothly, I’m proud to show the business what we’re capable of as a team, and push to get new initiatives and customer support over the line.
Final question… what does customer satisfaction mean to you, and how do you make sure that Send’s customers get that great experience every time?
It’s so important for customers to feel heard and that they are being listened to if they have a problem. If they don’t think something is working, or could be better tailored to them, it’s important that we can adjust things to get the best result for them.
We always have regular meetings with our customers, touchpoints and business reviews to gather feedback, share ideas and explore how we can continue to enhance our product based on their views. Ultimately, we want them to feel like they’re in good hands, and that they, and their business are being looked after. They have confidence in our team and what we’re delivering; that’s so important to all of us.