## The Power of Passion in Customer Service

**Maria Pevzner** exemplifies what it means to be truly passionate about customer service. Her dedication and enthusiasm set a remarkable standard in the industry.

### Why Passion Matters

When customer service representatives approach their work with genuine passion, it transforms the entire customer experience. **Passionate service** leads to higher satisfaction rates, increased loyalty, and positive word-of-mouth referrals.

### Building a Passion-Driven Team

Companies that foster passion among their customer service teams often see:
- **Improved customer retention**
- **Higher employee engagement**
- **Enhanced brand reputation**

### Overcoming Challenges

Even the most passionate professionals face obstacles, but their commitment helps them navigate difficult situations with grace and effectiveness.

REGION – Maria Pevzner is nothing if not passionate.

Unlock the Secrets of Passionate Customer Service Excellence

## A Neighborly Approach to Service

When Glenn Fisher thinks about the people Edmond Electric serves, he understands he is talking about customers – but he thinks about them as **neighbors**.

“We are part of the community,” said Fisher, Director of Edmond Electric. “We are **community owned and operated**. Our employees not only work here, but many also live here and raise their families here. So, while our focus is on providing **reliable service**, we also take pride in giving back to the community in a number of ways.”

Oklahoma's largest community-owned electric utility, Edmond Electric has served the Edmond community since 1908 and, today, provides electric services to more than **95,000 residents** within the City of Edmond corporate city limits.

And when Fisher talks about “reliable” service, he’s talking about the fact that Edmond Electric customers have service available to them on average **97.9797 percent of the time**.

![Edmond Electric Bucket Truck draped with holiday lights on display at Luminance in Mitch Park.](https://www.edmondok.gov/ImageRepository/Document?documentId=11524)

## Reinvesting in the Community

But, as a publicly owned power company and a City of Edmond department, Edmond Electric also **reinvests in the community** annually. That commitment in the community supports vital City services such as police, fire, streets and parks. Because of Edmond Electric's support, the Edmond community maintains a **high quality of living**.

“We do reinvest to help support services and programs that are vital to our residents and customers,” Fisher said. “But that reinvestment is more than just funding. It’s providing programs that help residents and customers benefit from **efficient and cost-effective programs**. It’s about investing in efficient and effective **customer service**. It’s time and support for community events and programs like Luminance, or energy-saving trees.”

## Community-Facing Events and Programs

Edmond Electric is a driving force behind many community-facing events and programs, as well. A few examples of these are:

- **Luminance:** Edmond Electric is the founding sponsor of the annual walk-through holiday light display, which is open to the public in Mitch Park during the holiday season. Along with financial support, Edmond Electric personnel spend many hours setting up, maintaining and helping store and restore the nearly three dozen light displays. Learn more about Luminance at [www.edmondlights.com/](https://www.edmondlights.com/).

- **Energy-Saving Tree Distribution:** Every spring and fall Edmond Electric teams with the City’s Urban Forestry group to provide residents with free energy-saving trees to those who reserve one. Learn more about that program at [www.edmondok.gov/EnergySavingTrees](https://www.edmondok.gov/1722/Energy-Saving-Trees).

- **Energy Education:** Edmond Electric personnel visit classrooms for a safety demonstration using a special platform that simulates electrical currents. To learn more about that visit [www.edmondok.gov/236/Energy-Education](https://www.edmondok.gov/236/Energy-Education).

“You give back because you are a part of the community, and when that’s the case, giving back just makes sense,” Fisher said.

## Extending Help Beyond City Limits

Often, giving back extends beyond the Edmond city limits. Regularly, personnel and equipment from the City of Edmond utility have traveled throughout Oklahoma and as far away as Florida to help recovery efforts from weather-related impacts. In 2023, a crew traveled to Florida to help communities impacted by Hurricane Idalia, and a crew also traveled to Florida in 2022 to help communities impacted by Hurricane Ian.

Since 2023, Edmond Electric has answered with the **Light Up Navajo project**, a mutual-aid program to extend electricity to homes in the Navajo Nation without the infrastructure to get that service. The initiative was created in 2019 through a unique partnership between the American Public Power Association (APPA) and Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA). Electric line workers from throughout the United States recently traveled to the Navajo Nation to help connect the homes of Navajo families to the electric grid.

![Edmond Electric - Navajo](https://www.edmondok.gov/ImageRepository/Document?documentId=10011)

“We have great partnerships with APPA and municipalities across the state and country,” Fisher said. “There have been times when we have needed help, and we know we can count on people pitching in and helping out, and so when we have an opportunity to be part of a great cause, we won’t hesitate.

“These crews volunteer to help, and that is typical of that **spirit of community and service** we see daily at Edmond Electric. There never was a question of if we should help, but more how and when can we help? Whether it’s here in Edmond, in Oklahoma, Florida, Arizona or anywhere, the people who work here at Edmond Electric are always ready and willing to go and do what we can do to help make a difference.”

Which, of course, is what dependable neighbors do.

“We’re your neighbors,” Fisher said, “and neighbors help each other. And while we know that providing quick, affordable and efficient power is the primary goal, being a **good neighbor** is something we really take pride in.”

Learn more about this and all the things Edmond Electric does at [www.edmondElectric.com](https://www.edmondelectric.com/).

From reliable service to helping residents and communities in need, Edmond’s publicly owned utility always goes the extra mile

How This Community-Owned Electric Utility Is Redefining Customer Service by Treating Everyone Like Neighbors

## The 12V-2x6/12VHPWR Power Connector Crisis

The **12V-2x6/12VHPWR power connector** is already considered one of the **most unreliable connector designs** ever created for PCIe cards, even under optimal conditions. There's no telling what might happen if this connector is tampered with—yet that's exactly what **Cooler Master customer service** recommended to one of their customers, as reported by Igor's Lab.

## The Problem: Incompatible Hardware

A customer who owned an **Asus RTX 5070 Ti graphics card** contacted Cooler Master's support team because the integrated right-angled **12V-2x6 power cable** from their MWE Gold V2 1250-watt power supply wouldn't fit properly with the graphics card's power connector. The connector was allegedly offset inside the graphics card, preventing correct plug-in.

![Igor's Lab tests badly designed Cooler Master 12V-2x6 cable on RTX 5090 Suprim](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/YzAdWCqanYwYHxuiNuAgaC.jpg)

## Design Flaws Revealed

This issue wouldn't exist if Cooler Master's **quality control department** had identified the design error initially. Igor's Lab discovered that Cooler Master's cables have an internal housing that's **3.2mm shorter** than Nvidia's reference 12V-2x6 power adapter. Since Nvidia's adapter is built explicitly for the **CEM 5.1 standard**, it serves as a reliable reference point.

## The Dangerous "Solution"

While removing the right-angle cover from the original Cooler Master cable might seem like a simple fix, these **12V-2x6 connectors are extremely delicate**. Bending the wires straight can severely compromise the internal integrity of the pins. As previous coverage of the 12V-2x6/12VHPWR power connector has shown, even subtle movements of the pins inside can **increase electrical resistance**, significantly raising the risk of **fire or meltdown**.

## The Bigger Picture

This incident highlights serious concerns about **customer service practices** in the tech industry and the potential dangers of following manufacturer advice without proper technical validation.

Cooler Master recommends RTX 5070 Ti customers to modify their Cooler Master power supply's 12V-2x6 power cable to fit their graphics card. Turns out, the modification wouldn't have worked anyway.

Customer Service Nightmare: Cooler Master Tells Users to Dismantle Dangerous Power Connector

## The Growing Resignation Among Travelers

Don't look now, but air travelers are paying more and getting less – and they're fine with it.

When Southwest Airlines eliminated its "bags fly free" policy earlier this year, there was a brief outcry from passengers. But then they went right back to booking on the former low-fare carrier – and paying extra for checked luggage.

Here's the reason, according to experts: There's a growing sense of resignation among American travelers. Simply put, they think they deserve both the expensive prices and the extra fees. After all, they kept making booking decisions based solely on price – and the airlines took advantage, making super-low fares prominent but then piling on surprise surcharges.

"It’s disheartening," said Anton Radchenko, CEO of AirAdvisor. "The increasing trend of cutting back on essential services – like free checked baggage or basic seat selection – is undermining what used to be a standard part of air travel."

The notion that travelers deserve to pay more but receive less extends beyond the airline industry. Hotels do it when they start charging their guests for extras that used to be standard amenities, or imposing "resort" fees. Cruise lines do it when they add mandatory tips to your folio. It's been going on for years, but now it's finally stuck, say experts.

But why are people being such pushovers? Is anyone resisting this ridiculous trend? And what can you do about it? It turns out you are not powerless, even though you may think you are.

## Why Travelers Think They Deserve to Pay More and Get Less

Why are travelers so accepting of this idea that they should pay more and get less?

"Years of conditioning and poor customer service have led consumers to believe that the travel industry standard is paying more for less," explains Mario Matulich, president of CMP, a customer service consultancy. "Airlines and hotels want consumers to select the lowest upfront price, so they can then nickel-and-dime them with hidden fees on the back end."

Breaking out the extras is something J.D. Power calls disaggregation. It’s driven by the way that consumers shop for airfare. Air travelers have more information than they used to, but fares to a given destination are usually ranked by ticket price, with the lowest first.

"Airlines quickly realized that their airfares needed to be near the top of these lists before consumers would choose their brand," said Michael Taylor, a senior managing director for travel and hospitality at J.D. Power.

So unbundling services could allow the airline to lower the basic fare, causing its flights to rise to the top of the search results.

But there's also a psychological aspect to this. Because travelers choose these low prices, they are often made to feel that they should also accept lower service levels along with higher costs, once you've factored in all these fees. (Airline apologists alternate between praising the "miracle" of air travel and scolding with a "you-get-what-you-paid-for" lecture.)

"Research suggests travelers feel guilty because they've always chosen price over overall service quality," notes Kevin Shahnazari, CEO of the financial advice site FinlyWealth. "But with each instance of customers choosing the lowest fare ticket or bed rate, they inadvertently send the message to businesses that cost is more significant than overall service."

But travelers shouldn't feel responsible or even guilty. Just because someone chooses a lower fare doesn't mean they asked for – or that they deserve – a degraded product at a higher price.

## Some Travelers Are Not OK With the New Reality

Not all travelers are comfortable with the "pay more, get less" reality. Frequent, experienced travelers like Stan King don't like this trend. "The whole value proposition has been lost," he said. And he chafes at the idea that passengers somehow deserve less service when they pay a lower price.

King said for him, the only way to escape the reality is to upgrade to a bigger room or a better seat. But even when he does, he said, travel companies are still stingy.

Gerri Hether, a frequent leisure traveler, chafed at the suggestion that somehow she's responsible for the state of affairs.

"How can customers be remotely responsible for junk fees?" she wondered.

However, the reality is this: despite the anger and complaints, travelers continue to buy fares and book rooms from companies that have stopped caring about providing a quality product. And that's all that matters.

## What Can You Do to Escape a Buy-More-Get-Less Travel Industry?

This will only end when travelers say "enough," according to industry experts.

1. **Look for ways to beat the system.** "There are measures you can take to get around the service cuts," said Frances Rahaim, a financial coach and consumer advocate. For example, she sidestepped luggage fees altogether by buying an underseat-sized bag and used vacuum seal bags to minimize clothing space, allowing her to fit in more of her belongings. You can also try wearable luggage by apparel companies.

2. **Reject bad service.** "Don't accept service cuts without question," said AirAdvisor's Radchenko. That's especially true if an airline reduces service by downgrading you or canceling your flight, but is required to pay you under the law. Radchenko said that's an area where many passengers are under-informed – and they leave money on the table.

3. **Find the honest companies and give them your business.** "Reward companies with transparent pricing models," said Shahnazari of FinlyWealth. There are still airlines and hotels that don't believe in the pay-more-get-less model, but you have to do some research. Full-service hotels like Marriott and InterContinental still offer a more inclusive experience, and international airlines like Qatar Airways don't nickel-and-dime you for luggage. But they're few and far between.

However, the most effective way to disrupt this dangerous trend is to say "no" whenever you see it, according to experts.

"Passengers have to insist on greater openness and reject nickel-and-diming as the standard," said Deepak Shukla, CEO of Pearl Lemon Adventures, a travel agency.

## Do We Have to Accept This?

All of this raises a bigger question: Have customers lost their power? I've been covering the travel industry for three decades, and travel companies – particularly airlines – have consistently tried to charge passengers more while delivering less. And the rest of the travel industry has followed along.

But in the last year, it feels like businesses have felt more empowered to deliver substandard service at a higher price. It also seems as if customers have given them permission, if not their approval. The evidence of that is obvious: They are rewarding these travel companies with their business.

Unfortunately, this will continue until consumers realize that they are the only ones who can reverse course and return to a time when airlines, hotels, and cruise lines delivered quality service at a fair price.

In other words, no one is coming to save you. Maybe we have to save ourselves.

Airlines and hotels are charging more while offering less, and travelers, conditioned by years of low-fare shopping, are surprisingly OK with it.

Why Travelers Are Quietly Accepting Higher Prices for Worse Service

A hotel fire alarm, a flat response and a hard truth about human CX.

### The Gist

- **Empathy on empty.** When frontline staff lose connection to purpose, even a basic customer interaction can feel colder than AI.
- **The human edge is slipping.** Emotional intelligence was once our differentiator — but if empathy is absent, customers will prefer efficiency over humanity.
- **AI is closing the gap.** As chatbots learn tone and empathy simulation, the “human advantage” in service is shrinking fast.
- **Be human on purpose.** Empower staff, measure connection and build cultures where empathy isn’t scripted — it’s authentic.

At 3 a.m., I was jolted awake in my hotel room by the shrill, unrelenting scream of the fire alarm. You all know that sound. Manufacturers must program the fire alarms to only do this in the middle of the night, because that’s the only time it happens to me.

After a few minutes, it became clear this wasn’t just a glitch. I called the front desk to see what was going on and ask about getting a new room so I could salvage some sleep.

What I got was worse than the alarm.

The staff member answered like I was interrupting them; flat, cold and inconvenienced. No apology. No concern. Just this: I’d have to wait 45 minutes for a new room because their system was undergoing a nightly update. I asked to be called when it was back online.

They never called.

Eventually, exhausted and still enduring the constant beeping, I packed up and went to the front desk myself. The system was live. But when I asked why they didn’t call, I was told they were doing “paperwork.” Again – no empathy. No apology. Just indifference.

And the irony? **I was in town for a CX conference.**

Yes, at their hotel to speak about designing better customer experience, while simultaneously experiencing one of the worst.

You can’t make this stuff up.

### The Customer Service Catch‑22

This is the paradox customer service is facing today:

- On one hand, service leaders are concerned AI will replace frontline roles. In many cases it already is.
- On the other hand, they argue that only **humans** can deliver real empathy and connection. That’s our edge. Our insurance policy.

But if the human experience is cold, indifferent and transactional… then what, exactly, are we protecting?

If AI can simulate empathy better than most humans can express it, the rationale for keeping humans in the loop starts to fade.

The scary thing? In that lobby, half-asleep and irritated, I would have preferred a well-trained chatbot. At least it would’ve apologized, scripted or not.

### The Disappearing Differentiator With AI and CX

For the last decade, the human edge in service was supposed to be emotional intelligence. We were told: AI can automate tasks, but it can’t care. Humans can connect.

But real-world service interactions are proving otherwise. The caring is missing. Not everywhere, but often enough that it’s become normal.

A recent Verizon study found that 88% of customers are satisfied when they interact with humans, but 60% say that when the interaction is AI-only.

That’s a 28-point gap but closing.

Here's the catch: that human advantage only exists when humans act like humans.

When empathy is missing, customers don’t prefer people. They prefer progress.

If AI is faster, smoother and just as emotionally flat as a burned-out staffer, then why not use AI?

**Related Article: AI and Human Teams: Smarter Contact Centers and Better Customer Service**

#### The Human vs. AI Service Divide

*This table captures the core contrasts between AI capabilities and human service performance — and what it takes to restore the human edge.*

| Dimension | AI Strength | Human Opportunity | Action for CX Leaders |
|-----------|-------------|-------------------|-----------------------|
| Empathy Expression | Can simulate tone, apology and concern through trained language models. | Can feel and act with genuine care and emotional intelligence. | Retrain teams for presence and active listening, not scripts. |
| Consistency | Delivers uniform responses 24/7 with no burnout. | Inconsistent when staff are stressed or disconnected from purpose. | Foster emotional resilience and align incentives with empathy. |
| Speed & Availability | Instant, scalable, and efficient across channels. | Limited by system constraints and workload fatigue. | Redesign workflows and remove barriers to human help. |
| Emotional Connection | Simulated through phrasing, but lacks authenticity. | Authentic when employees are empowered and aligned with mission. | Build purpose-driven cultures where empathy is natural, not forced. |
| Customer Trust | Improving as customers value speed and efficiency. | Still higher when service feels personal and caring. | Measure “connection” metrics, not just resolution rates. |

### The Data Is Clear

Let’s be honest: most consumers still want to talk to people if those people are capable and emotionally intelligent; most consumers still prefer speaking with a human over AI, when given the choice.

The desire for human connection is still strong. But the delivery of that connection is what’s slipping.

That’s the problem.

### Where Human Service Falls Apart

It’s not that frontline employees don’t care. It’s that they’re often **set up to fail**.

- They’re trained in policies, not in presence.
- Measured on speed, not sincerity.
- Given tools but not trust.
- Asked to resolve issues but not empowered to solve problems.

They’re exhausted, underappreciated and disconnected from the broader purpose of the brand. And in many cases, they’re forced to operate inside systems that prioritize compliance over compassion.

The result?

You get service like mine. A human face but no human connection.

**Related Article: Your Contact Center Agents Don't Fear AI—They Fear Your Leadership**

### Can AI Actually Do Empathy Better?

Not really. But it can do enough to make people feel heard.

AI is getting very good at tone detection, language matching and empathetic phrasing. Tools like ChatGPT, Google Bard and others can simulate concern in ways that feel surprisingly natural.

But they don’t *feel*. They don’t *care*.

They’re just better at sounding like they do.

And when that’s more than you’re getting from the person behind the desk or on the phone? That’s a problem.

### The Way Forward: Be the Human AI Can’t Be

If human service is to survive, and more importantly to *matter*, we need to treat it like the asset it is.

Human agents should be positioned not as cost centers, but as experience differentiators.

To do that, organizations must:

1. **Empower discretion** – Let employees make judgment calls and act on behalf of the customer, not just within policy scripts.
2. **Measure connection, not just resolution** – Track emotional resonance, not just ticket closure.
3. **Redesign systems for flow** – Make it easier for people to help people. Remove internal friction. Connect tools, data and authority.
4. **Build a culture of purpose** – When employees believe in the mission, they deliver differently. When they’re aligned, empathy becomes natural.

Because being human isn’t enough. Being human on purpose is.

### The Job Is Ours to Lose: Customer Experience at a Crossroads

AI will keep getting better. It will eventually sound just like us. It may even outperform us in areas like recall, speed and scripted empathy.

But it will never care.

It will never get frustrated for the right reasons. Never lean in with urgency. Never lose sleep over doing what’s right.

We still have the edge. But only if we act like it.

If human service wants to stay in the game, it must show up with heart, presence and action.

Because if human experience becomes a worse version of automation, then automation wins.

A hotel fire alarm, a flat response and a hard truth about human CX.

Unlock the Secrets of Passionate Customer Service Excellence

Summary:

Maria Pevzner demonstrates exceptional passion in customer service roles

Passionate customer service leads to higher customer satisfaction and loyalty

Companies benefit from improved retention and brand reputation when teams are passionate

Employee engagement increases when passion drives customer interactions

Passionate professionals effectively navigate challenging customer situations

The Power of Passion in Customer Service

Why Passion Matters

Building a Passion-Driven Team

Overcoming Challenges

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