Public Service Co. of Oklahoma's New CEO Gives Power to Local Managers
Tulsa World, Okla. --May 29
Local managers are being given more authority in customer dealings.
"We've seen some rather dramatic improvements in the way we've been
dealing with our customers," Stuart Solomon said Thursday in an interview.
"I think this reorganization allows us to continue that process."
Columbus, Ohio-based American Electric Power, PSO's parent company, announced
a major restructuring plan Wednesday that divides AEP's operations into several
divisions and promotes more local control over services. PSO, the state's
second-largest electric utility, is one of seven AEP divisions.
"Over time, our customers will see ongoing improvements in terms of
responsiveness and service delivery," Solomon said.
The changes follow some highly publicized complaints from Tulsa consumers,
who said the quality of service provided by PSO had dropped to an appalling
level after it was acquired by AEP in June 2000. According to figures compiled
by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, customer service complaints soared while
employees struggled to implement new systems amid a reorganization of the
utility.
But complaints are down significantly due to the improvements AEP-PSO
implemented, said Solomon, who attributed the improvement to additional training
and call center enhancements.
"We've instituted new processes and new approaches within our call
center for dealing with complaint issues," he said. "You've seen our
complaints go way down, and I think it's a direct result of the efforts that we
have put into customer service.
"It's a great credit to the employees of PSO."
AEP-PSO is working to regain the confidence of its customers, said company
spokeswoman Andrea Chancellor.
"It's returning to what we know as the old PSO in terms of customer
service," she said.
AEP is the nation's largest electric generator, with systems serving 5
million customers in 11 states. PSO serves 505,000 Oklahoma customers, including
285,000 in the Tulsa area.
Under the reorganization plan announced Wednesday, local AEP-PSO officials
will be given more authority over customer service and distribution issues.
Before, such matters were dealt with centrally in Columbus.
"We're bringing the resources to the local level," Solomon said.
"We're making sure we have the decision-making responsibility here so that
we can react very quickly and deliver our service in a timely fashion."
Tulsa will serve as the utility's operational headquarters, while external
affairs and regulatory services will continue to be housed in offices in
Oklahoma City.
While PSO is gaining more local control over services, it's operations will
continue to benefit from AEP's vast network of generation and transmission
assets, Solomon said.
"One of the benefits of being in a large utility system like AEP is that
we can have all the efficiencies that are created by that big
organization," he said.
Solomon, 42, was named president and COO of PSO on Wednesday.
Before joining PSO, he served as state president of AEP in West Virginia.
From 1992 to 1999, he handled regulatory issues for systems owned by Central and
South West Corp., including PSO.
"I've worked on PSO matters for a number of years," he said
A native of Plainview, Texas, Solomon earned a master's degree in business
administration from the University of Texas. He earned his law degree from the
University of Colorado.
His wife, Dana, is a Bristow native. They have two sons, ages 11 and 5. He
and his family will live in Tulsa.
"I am truly pleased and privileged to be here," Solomon said.
"It's going to be a very exciting time for me personally and
professionally."
AEP-PSO is seeking approval from the Oklahoma Corporation Commission to raise
rates by $36.3 million, or 3.6 percent. That amounts to an additional $2.50 a
month for the average residential customer. The commission is expected to issue
a final decision by year-end or early next year.
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