At Tideworks, we believe a company is only as strong as its people. Thankfully for us, we have the best in the business — all of whom are focused on the success of our clients.
We recently sat down with our team of Client Success Managers (CSM) to learn more about them and chat about the role they play in their clients’ terminals.
You may be wondering what is a CSM? First and foremost, CSMs are client advocates. They spend their days working directly with clients, getting to know their businesses and challenges, and making sure their projects move as smoothly as possible.
Here’s a look into those individuals working tirelessly behind the scenes.
Introducing the CSMs
Justin Clifford works with marine customers all over the world, including TOTE Maritime in Tacoma, WA, and Wallace Investments in New Zealand. Before coming to Tideworks, Clifford worked on terminals for 10 years. The thing he’s most looking forward to this year is, hopefully, being able to visit some of his customers’ sites.
Scott Duncan works with the BNSF Railway at their pilot project location, Logistics Park in Chicago. Before joining as a CSM, Duncan was a Tideworks customer at CSX Intermodal. His previous role equipped him with a unique insight and perspective that helps him better support his customers. He has seen a lot on terminals in his career, but the strangest had to be when an alligator decided to take a nap under his truck.
Michele Evans works closely with the Client Services Team as an IT Enterprise Portfolio Manager. She wears many hats in the role, including project management and technical assistance. Outside of work, she’s a proud member of the Tideworks book club.
Terry Hart works with Canadian National on its Malport and Brampton terminals. If he weren’t a CSM, Hart would want to be a technical writer.
Cherese Moss works with several customers in Tideworks’ marine division. If she weren’t a CSM, Moss would want to operate cranes or work at the gate so she could interact with the truckers going in and out of the terminal.
Jeanette Rowan works with Freightliner Group and Genesee & Wyoming. If she weren’t a CSM, Rowan would want to work in a terminal office with a view of the monitors watching over the terminal’s operations.
Geoff Perry works with the New Orleans Terminal, Crowley Terminals, Massport Conley Terminal, Port of Halifax. If he weren’t a CSM, Perry would want to work in planning or operate a crane.
What Is Your Favorite Tideworks Product?
Scott Duncan
That’s tough. Terminal View is probably my favorite product. From a facility management standpoint, the ability to look at a screen and see every single piece of equipment moving at one time — to know if you have a hostler that’s been sitting idle hiding over in the corner or if you have a crane that’s sitting idle — and being able to solve those quickly is invaluable. I’ve been an operations manager/supervisor out in the yard, driving around in a pickup truck. You can’t see everybody at once. You can’t know what everyone’s doing. With Terminal View, you put it on a 60-inch TV in the office, and you’re able to see all the parts of the operation and how everyone is moving about the terminal at once. It really gives you a good idea of productivity or lack of productivity going on at all times.
Michele Evans
I think Tideworks Insight is pretty cool. I’m excited about Mainsail 10 and the rollout. I’m also pretty excited about Blackfin, the Blackfin billing, and the interfaces we’re doing with third-party vendors such as IFS. I think all of those things will really help us get to that next level together with our customers.
Terry Hart
I like IPRO because I can go in and do anything I need to. I can look at waybills; I can update waybills, fixing any problem that came down with the waybill. But really, it’s my favorite system because it’s the one you don’t see. It’s the one that works hardest in the background. You think about all of the things in our lives that make things work for us — those are your favorite tools out there, the ones you don’t have to touch.
Geoff Perry
I love all my children. Let’s see… Recently with Mainsail 10, we’re coming up on the new age of our applications — seeing from a product standpoint what we’re doing with Mainsail, then bringing along Traffic Control and Spinnaker, and improving on EDI Porter, and building on Tideworks Insight. Yeah, the newest stuff we’re doing, Mainsail is pretty neat.
Jeanette Rowan
My favorite Tideworks product is probably IPRO, but I have to be careful when I say that because I also enjoy working with Traffic Control.
What’s the Main Thing You Pack When Visiting a Customer Site?
Justin Clifford
If I were going to a customer site, it’d be my laptop. Without my laptop, I wouldn’t have the brain of the operation.
Scott Duncan
The single most important thing I’m going to remember to pack when I go on-site to one of these terminals is probably my steel-toed boots.
Michele Evans
My steel-toed boots. If I went to a customer site, I think the key thing that you need to have is your steel-toed boots and, of course, your safety jacket. You need to have that so you can be seen. Having the safety equipment is important, and my laptop.
Cherese Moss
Your steel toes, for sure. Because I was naive in experience, I didn’t realize you have to have steel toes. Definitely have to have those. I considered monogramming them, but I haven’t gotten around to it yet. Also, a hard hat and your vest.
Geoff Perry
It depends on where they’re going. Your hard hat, TWIC card, and vest would be the biggest things.
What’s Your Favorite Industry Term?
Justin Clifford
Industry term. That’s a good question. There are a lot of them. There’s a lot from east to west that are different, like “containers” and “cans.” “Can” is west coast; “container” is east coast. Oh! I’ll tell you a great terminal term. On the east coast, all of the corner twist locks; we always call them “shoes.” So, if you come onto the terminal for the first time, we’ll always say that “shoes fall out.” They fall out sometimes when people are discharging containers. They’ll be on the floor, and you have to clean them up. We would always send somebody new out there — whether they’re just visiting the terminal or it’s the superintendent — and say, “Go look for shoes on the terminal,” and we never tell them what a shoe is. There’s always one new person walking around on the stringpiece looking for spare shoes one day out of the year.
Geoff Perry
“Safety moment.” That’s always a fun one. Some customers will start off their meetings with safety moments to instill a culture of safety-first. Sometimes they will be serious ones, and other times they’ll be fun non-work-related ones like, “Hey. So, my wife/husband/daughter/son had this happen to them. So, be careful next time.” Or, “Hey, watch that curb when you come out of the 7-Eleven,” is probably one of the more random ones I’ve heard.
What’s Something That Brought You Joy During 2020/Quarantine?
Justin Clifford
I would say meeting all of the people at Tideworks for the first time when we did a virtual happy hour. It was probably my first month. Christine Serion, executive assistant at Tideworks, got everyone together for a happy hour with games. We played a game, and it was all about terminal industries. Afterwards, everyone left except for maybe five or six people from different departments, and I got to speak to them for the first time and explain who I was. It made me really feel like part of the team.
Scott Duncan
I found a lot of joy in being home with my family. My wife is at home taking care of our young son. It’s nice to be here and see them all the time and not have to hit those rush hour commutes on the way home, and miss my daughter’s bedtime, things like that. I can see her when she comes home from daycare. So, that’s been really great, to be closer to family during all this.
Cherese Moss
I’d say two things. The first thing is I had my third son and he has definitely brought joy into our home. Then the second thing is I do freelance portrait work. I made a conscious effort to create more this year going into 2021. I have a portrait that’s on display in a local gallery here. Got to make sure I stay on top of it to keep creating this year.
Jeanette Rowan
I turned my bonus room into what I call my “croffice.” It’s a craft room/office, and it’s my happy place. I make chandeliers and teddy bears. I do embroidery. Many different things. I’ve also made some items for my grandchildren for their wall, decals, and T-shirts. Yeah, that is my happy place.
We’re thankful for our CSMs, and the years of combined experience they bring to their roles. Their knowledge and dedication to our customers’ success make them an integral part of Tideworks and our Client Services division.
