The author graduated with a diploma in business administration and started their career journey in Kenya, landing various roles including a bank receptionist and facilities management helpdesk operator despite not expecting to work in banking. Over the course of nearly 10 years, they gained extensive experience in customer service, facilities and vendor management, and training new staff. They earned multiple employee of the month and year awards before relocating to the UAE to continue expanding their facilities management career and skills.

1. MY STORY
This is my career journey as told by me….

2. 3 years after stepping into the
campus doors I graduated with a
Diploma in Business
Administration. I left school not
knowing where my certificate will
land me. But I knew I would
NEVER work in a bank. I started
sending CVs hoping to get
something but landed in a bank.

3. While still applying I got my first job as a
truck turn boy, it was a best opportunity
for me to know how the transportation
is ran. I took it and I knew I was in
transit.
Two weeks later my employer offered
me an opportunity to do the customers’
invoices as well as reconcile her bank
account. I had started seeing a career in
accounting, but I was wrong…

4. One day while at the car wash waiting for the
truck to be cleaned I received a call and I
was offered an opportunity to work in bank,
(never thought I would work in a bank). This
is how Linic Enterprises landed me at
Standard Chartered Bank (Kenya).
And I begun my career in the bank right
from the door, as a receptionist. I hoped to
grow in the bank and become a teller,
branch manager etc (my little knowledge of
banking. But I was wrong

5. For 11 months from February 2014 I learnt the
phone etiquette, I had known why every time I call
my telco the attendants all repeated the same
thing and ended calls the same way. Now it was
my turn to do it.
I learned how handle various types of customer
needs, I faced difficult customers and the most
fulfilling part of this journey was meeting the
needs of such customers and getting a thank your
from them. I still remember some of them clearly
in my mind.

6. Though I faced many challenges I
stood firm and I was not going quit,
my journey in customer service had
just begun and I was not going to
let it die before I achieve my goal.
My journey continued… December
2014

7. On 17th December my career journey took a
new step. I could call it the cruising level if I
was flying. I was now in facilities
management, I had not known what FM is all
about. I remember this day so well because it
was the end of year part day and after this
part of the team was to break early for
Christmas and come back early, I had just
one day to be trained on what to do and
how to do it between 27th and 4th January
before the whole team reported back from
Christmas break…

8. One of the colleagues told me, it is not that
hard, pick the call, listen to the need, see
what can be done, if you’re not sure just call
me. These were words that kept ringing in
my mind every time I picked the call. I every
call taught me a lesson and it brought the
best in me. By March that year I had learnt
what helpdesk staff does. I did not know
everything but I knew whom to ask what I
did not know

9. In this year and the following year I had managed
to learn what happens in various aspects of FM
including soft services, vendor and contract
management, EHS. I had mastered the art of
offering exclusive customer service to my clients. I
interacted with almost 1000 staff at the head
office and over 38 branches as well as over 20
vendors. I had known the needs of each customer
and tried to know most of them by their names
and their workstation. This helped me respond to
their needs faster.

10. In 2016 December, the helpdesk had most
of the staff left and only my colleague and
were left. It was my turn to train the new
staff. One thing I learnt is in most cases the
culture you teach new staff members tend to
their culture. I had to teach the culture as it
ought to be and not as it was, where it was
wrong. I saw fruits when the right culture
was slowly inculcated in the new team.

11. By 2017 I had had my office number and
my mobile number on the speed dial of
most if not all who needed the helpdesk. It
was to me a good and bad thing, good
thing because it shows how reliable and
dependable I was but bad in that it might
end up using all your time including after
working hours or taint your picture if you
do not respond.

12. After receiving 4 times employee of the
month and 1 time employee of the year
awards, having created a great network with
staff and service providers, having worked
under 4 FM contractors in 4 years, having
won the trust of the staff and colleagues I
am now in the UAE looking forward to new
opportunity to offer my services while I
discover new challenges in Facilities
Management.

13. HERE ARE SOME OF THE LESSONS THAT I’VE LEARNT
DURING MY JOURNEY SO FAR
 Never say never, the future is full of surprises
 Opportunity goes to those who are prepared
 Understand your customers and their needs
 Every customer is unique
 There is no general solution to a problem
 Things are not always easy but they are doable
 The will to do something is the fist step of actually doing it.
 Avoid saying no to your customers, instead offer an alternative
 Never stop, never settle

14. AS I LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING MY
STORY, I AM LOOKING FOR OPPORTUNITIES
TO DO SO.
E: stevennjoroge75@ymail.com / stevennjoroge75@live.com
M: +971 523 139 814
W: +254 721 639214

15. MY STORY CONTINUES…