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Meet Cheryl Kutz

If you have a question that you can’t quite figure out on your own, GLE customer service associate Cheryl Kutz has your back. And she’ll be nice to you even if it’s something that you could have looked up for yourself. That’s her unique talent and what she’s known for, says fellow customer service rep Joe Hayden.

“If Cheryl wasn’t here, there are a lot of questions that would go unanswered,” he says.

Cheryl has reams of information at her fingertips: if a part is in stock, if part numbers are missing, how many parts are supposed to be made, when the parts are due, if the material in stock, when the parts need to be shipped, and how (and if) the bill has been paid.

And she likes being able to share that information and help someone with something they can’t find in the system.

A Friend on the Phone

Customer service for a custom machine shop isn’t where Cheryl thought she’d end up after studying computer programming. However, she was well prepared after years as a server and bartender. She’s found her position to be a great fit for her personality after coming on as a temp in 2010.

“It’s a lot of problem-solving stuff, finding things that can’t be easily explained and figuring out what happened,” she says. “If the count is off on material, I can pull reports and look at previous jobs that were transferred in and try to figure it out. I’m pretty good at that kind of stuff. It’s something different every day. It’s never the same thing twice. There are always a million different things going on at once.”

That’s her day, a million little things: open order reports for customers, handling customer portals, acknowledging orders, giving advanced shipping notice, controlling materials, sending purchase orders out to the shop, accounting, invoicing, ordering materials, issuing jobs to the shop, and ensuring compliance with international shipping rules.

Cheryl has been a friendly, helpful voice on the phone for customer after customer for many years. The best part of her job is making the customer happy, building relationships, and getting thank you calls and emails.

“Cheryl is really one of those people who when she’s taking care of her customers, she’s going to develop these bonds with them,” general manager Clint Bucholz says. “The end-user is very, very comfortable in those relationships. They may even get better service from Cheryl because she’s behind the scenes every day doing the heavy lifting. She’s doing the order entry and followups, making sure their product ships on time.”

A Giving Heart

Cheryl also serves on the GLE employee committee to raise money for different charitable causes. GLE fronts the committee money to buy ice cream and breakfast sandwiches to sell to employees. They also match the profits after the committee reimburses GLE for the cost. The proceeds go to a variety of causes, including a children’s museum, a transition center for disabled students who are getting ready for the workforce, and a bus trip for students who could afford the tickets to an event but not the gas to get there.

After 5:30 p.m., Cheryl stays busy with her boyfriend and his two children. They love classic Nintendo video games, dice, board games, fishing, walks, visits to the park, and camping. You wouldn’t know it because she’s all business at work, but Cheryl goes all out to decorate for every season and holiday.

“I just like to make home a nice place to enjoy,” she says.