Employee of the Month: Stefany Snyder

Congratulations to Stefany Snyder, who has been selected as the November 2019 Employee of the Month. Stefany is the Solid Waste & Recycling Customer Service Coordinator under the Department of Public Works and has been with the City of Lancaster since March 1987.

In addition to her SW&R duties, Stefany is the point person for park pavilion rentals and answering the phone for the Bureau of Streets. Most folks in the City know her as the voice of the Solid Waste Hotline. She started her career with the City as a part time school crossing guard. Her next move landed her in the Bureau of Water where she read meters for about 9 years. She then returned to the Bureau of Police as a Parking Enforcement Officer. In 2006, she transitioned into the Bureau of Solid Waste & Recycling when the single-hauler program was implemented. As the only customer support in the newly formed Bureau of Solid Waste & Recycling, Stefany and the manager at the time were barraged daily with phone calls, emails, and residents walking in to answer questions about the newly adopted program. It was a tough time but her resilience and willingness to listen and learn made her a stronger customer service provider.

Fast forward to September of 2019, Stefany still has it! Her customer service skills and ability to coordinate the Solid Waste Education and Enforcement Program Officers, and the City’s contracted waste/recycling hauler Penn Waste are remarkable. Missed collections rapidly declined over the years and to this day remain low through her ability to provide follow-up with customers and communication with the hauler.

On Monday, September 30, 2019, a resident on North Mary Street called the Hotline with a concern. Trash collection had already been completed on her block and there was a “huge, 5-foot tall pile of trash” that remained at the curbside. The resident was concerned because they had experienced issues with rats the prior year and worked with our Bureau of Health to eliminate the infestation. Having been through that situation, they did not wish to see it happen again. The customer called the Solid Waste Hotline that morning and Stefany answered. She took down the complaint and the customer’s information for follow-up. She then reached out to the SWEEP Officers for investigation. The SWEEP Officers responded, documented the issues and started the Property Violation Notice process. Stefany reached back out to the customer, letting them know that the situation was being handled. Stefany then had a conversation with the property owner and offered him a list of small haulers in the area that remove the trash from the curbside in a timely manner. The resident who reported the issue took the time to email the Chief of Staff, Jess King, to let her know how much she appreciates the Bureau of Solid Waste & Recycling and how timely their response was to her concern.

Customer service is defined as the support you offer your customers (residents, teammates and others) before, during and after a service is provided. Stefany believes in delivering a high-quality level of customer service that in conjunction with her co-workers, delivers real solutions for what can be some pretty “stinky” problems! Stefany’s role in providing top-notch customer service to our residents and her ability to work with her team to resolve issues makes her an extremely valuable employee and teammate who regularly exhibits our Core Values of Quality and Teamwork.

The ERC Committee thanks you, Stefany, for your hard work and dedication to the City!