Georgia Department of Corrections
Brian Owens, Commissioner
Director of Public Affairs
Joan Heath
Contact: Office of Public Affairs (404) 656-9772
For Immediate Release
Governor Perdue Honors Corrections Employees
Two Individuals Recognized During Third-Annual Customer Service Awards Ceremony
Atlanta - On Monday, September 28, two outstanding employees with the Georgia Department of Corrections were honored at the Governor's third-annual Customer Service Award Ceremony. A total of seven individuals and nine teams were selected from among more than 575 nominations from 42 different agencies across Georgia.
"Family Day provides loved ones the opportunity to voice their thoughts and concerns to executive staff," said Commissioner Brian Owens. "The Department takes their input into consideration in order to better manage offenders and improve operations," continued Owens.
Richard Cobb, Superintendent of Wilkes Pre-Release Center in Washington, Georgia, was recognized by Governor Perdue as "Customer Service Employee of the Year." This award is given to the individual who represents the most exceptional example of customer service in the state of Georgia. "Cobb exemplifies the qualities needed to be a great leader," said Corrections Commissioner Brian Owens. "He is a great asset to our Department and we are honored that he is on our team," continued Owens.
The "Customer Service Champion of the Year" Award was presented by the Governor to Cathy Smith, Manager of the Employee Development Unit and the Department's Customer Service Champion. This award is given to the Champion who has successfully guided customer service improvements throughout his or her organization resulting in a significant, positive impact on customer service over the last year. "It was a difficult task to train more than 13,000 employees in the "Art of Exceptional Customer Service,"" said Commissioner Owens. "Ms. Smith took on the challenge and succeeded, and she is very deserving of this award," added Owens.
The ceremony took place at the Georgia World Congress Center, and awards were also given for Team of the Year, Contact Center Excellence, Leadership and Agency of the Year. Employees of state agencies and the University System of Georgia are eligible. Nominees were judged by a blue-ribbon panel of leaders from the business community and the public sector.
The Department of Corrections is the fourth largest prison system in the United States and is responsible for supervising nearly 60,000 state prisoners and over 160,000 probationers. It is the largest law enforcement agency in the state with approximately 14,000 employees.
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