Meet the Kalibrate team: Crissy Bird, Client Services Consultant

At Kalibrate, we believe our success is driven as much by our people as our technology. So, as part of our meet the team series, we’re showcasing some of the talent and expertise within the Kalibrate family. This instalment features Crissy Bird, Client Services Consultant for Kalibrate Pricing.

——————————-

What’s your role at Kalibrate?

I work as a Client Services Consultant for Kalibrate’s fuel pricing platform, Kalibrate Pricing. I’m part of a global team with extensive experience of retail fuel pricing, delivering consulting services to clients worldwide. I have supported, implemented, and trained clients for 12 years at Kalibrate.

I support clients of all sizes, with different levels of pricing complexity, and in markets of varying maturity, including Europe, North America, and Latin America.

What does a typical day look like?

My typical days involve meeting with my clients to answer their queries about using Kalibrate Pricing. This can include planning and delivering training for the platform or reviewing their pricing strategy to see how they can make the most out of the software. Markets can change rapidly, so it’s essential that I can quickly provide expertise that allows my clients to adapt to these changes and price more dynamically and efficiently.

I have great rapport with my clients, we collaborate as partners and have a great deal of mutual respect for each other’s work. This means that they always trust me to help them find the leanest and cleanest solution within the platform to meet their business objectives.

Once these solutions are in place, I always elicit client feedback, so that I can grow as a professional, but also as a person. I pride myself on being straight-forward and accountable for my responsibilities at work — and in life overall — so I’m motivated by self-improvement and giving my very best to everything I do. The clients must be happy with the support that I provide so I always make careful decisions, plan, and prepare to be flexible as the situation requires.

When I’m not assisting my clients, I make myself available to colleagues ― helping them with their queries, assisting with internal systems testing, and reviewing documentation. I’m lucky to work in a very professional and helpful team, so it’s a pleasure to offer this support.

What do you love about your role?

I love engaging with my clients! I love people — helping, training, and guiding them. My clients are great, hard-working people and I find it so rewarding to be able to assist them in their daily activity.

I’m also passionate about Kalibrate’s software and very experienced using it, so bridging that gap between the client’s business objectives and the software is very enlightening. Sometimes I challenge the logic in the client’s pricing strategy, and I try to propose a solution to the problem that I’ve seen, because at the end of the day, it’s about how we can deliver quality and efficacy to the clients’ strategy models, to execute pricing with excellence.

I enjoy using a variety of skills. I speak six languages ― English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, and Italian ― which I get the opportunity to use with clients. Talking to so many people from across Europe, the USA, and Latin America has also allowed me to learn a lot about the different cultures of the clients I work with.

Why did you choose to join Kalibrate?

Around 2008, I was working in a different industry providing third level SAP security support, when I came across a vacancy asking for SQL skills. It was just the right time to embrace a new challenge and I’ve never looked back. I initially joined Kalibrate as an Application Support Analyst before moving into Project Management. Three years ago, I transitioned to the Client Services Consultant role ― first for Latin America, and then globally.

Since I started working at Kalibrate, the software has grown and evolved a lot, and that’s because we all challenge it. I always look at the system from both sides: the architecture, but also how that fits in with the users’ daily needs. I know how Kalibrate’s solutions were developed over the past 12 years, what prompted certain functionalities, and how they all come together.

What do you think are the greatest challenges and opportunities in the fuel pricing sector?

Market conditions are changing so fast, so retailers need to react equally quickly. As a Client Services Consultant, I need to be up-to-date with economics, politics, the effects of COVID-19 worldwide, and its consequences.

There’s also a huge focus on the environmental effects of fossil fuels and the emerging electric vehicle solutions. Everything is constantly changing, and we must “think forward” to best support our clients.

Where do you see the fuel retail market heading?

Fuel alone does not bring customers to the stations. Retailers will need to look at their network from a holistic perspective ― their c-store products, their customer service, the facilities they offer at the station, and the quality of their brand. They must provide their customers with a differential in the market, an invitation to a pleasant experience. Competition is becoming more sophisticated and thinking ahead pays off.

——————————-

Are you adapting to a more evolved retail environment? In this blog, Kalibrate’s CEO discusses his predictions for retail forecourts and how fuel and convenience retail is evolving post–COVID-19.