I’m one of SSEN Distribution’s five regional Customer Relationship Managers (CRM), with each of us playing a crucial part in delivering excellent customer service all year round in our communities.
My role is very people-orientated; whether it’s engaging with large regional stakeholders, rural community groups or individual customers, there’s a real focus on making sure we’re doing all we can to help our communities thrive as we power the journey to net zero.
I’m based in our Highlands and Islands Depot in Inverness, but I’m frequently out and about, meeting customers and stakeholders in our satellite depots across the mainland and over to the Western isles and the Orkneys. The region has some of Scotland’s most sparsely populated areas, and also some of the country’s most picturesque locations - in the summer, it can be truly breath-taking as I make my way over to Skye or take the ferry to Lewis.
This is a public-facing role - on any given week I could be hosting an MSP visit at one of our local depots, delivering a presentation to a community group to highlight the support we can offer through our free Priority Services Register, at an agricultural event raising awareness of our ‘Look out, Look up’ farm safety campaign or helping a local charity to submit their application to our Resilient Communities Fund.
Resilience
As the resilience lead for my region, I’m in regular contact with our emergency, charity and military partners all year round to ensure that we’re ready to assist each other during adverse weather, or any other exceptional events when electricity supplies are affected. This is a really important element of my role and one I take very seriously – we want all our customers to stay safe during unplanned power outages, and to this end we work with our local branch of the British Red Cross and a local medical charity called MERT during storms.
The wide range of meetings and engagements can also lead to some really interesting locations – one example being the recent resilience event held on the aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales, which is where the photo at the top of this page comes from. I gained a great understanding of how the Royal Navy can assist us when times are difficult, and I found it very reassuring to know we have the support of our excellent forces’ colleagues.
Support
Helping and supporting customers and communities develop resilience plans is an important part of my job, and I was recently over on the Western Isles meeting with the Hebrides Mountain Rescue team (above), who had received £38,000 from our Resilient Communities Fund. It was great to see firsthand the difference that this funding will make to them, not just on their search and rescue work but also on a community resilience angle, and is a great example of how SSEN Distribution is always looking for ways to be a good neighbour in the areas where we live and work.
I really enjoy working with local charities who offer extra support to members of the community who need it most. I’ve recently connected with Harry Tedstone, Community Engagement Manager with Highland Hospice (pictured above) and we plan to do some joint working to benefit our local communities in key remote and rural locations. Having the opportunity to work with such an important and valued local charity, to help the most vulnerable in our area, is one of the many ways my role give me great job satisfaction.
Stay safe and strong.
Pam
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