I am convinced that customer loyalty is the result of closeness, listening, and the personalization of the customer relationship. That is the cornerstone of Parnasse's success.

Adil, what is your function in the team at Parnasse?

I am a membership manager. I am in charge of recruiting new members. I am also responsible for the Parnasse Private Salon located at Opéra.

I play the role of host for the Parnasse Private Salon and so I must ensure it is run properly: I manage the arrival of the members, customers, prospective customers, journalists and Orange employees.

I am very flexible, and I must always be present, with a smile and in a good mood.

How did you arrive at Parnasse?

I started at Orange Promotion in 2011 as a sales promoter in supermarkets, after that I sold Orange fiber door-to-door, and then I went into training door-to-door customer advisors on sales techniques.

To me, this sort of experience is the best sales training as you have to learn to be pugnacious and surpass yourself, and both of these are important in my current job.

I then had an opportunity to join Parnasse. I have always watched the brand's progress closely, ever since its creation, as I fully identify with its values in terms of customer relations. So, I didn't hesitate for a second!

What is your role at Parnasse?

I help customers find the best digital solution thanks to the different Orange channels and the network of recruitment agents I coordinate. I recruit prospects to join the Parnasse Circle and I offer them made-to-measure digital services for their offices or homes.

The human support I give to my customers is so important:  I am convinced that customer loyalty is the result of closeness, listening, and the personalization of the customer relationship. That is the cornerstone of Parnasse's success.

I rely a lot on the Orange stores where I spend time coordinating and training the sales force so that they can include Parnasse solutions in their product catalog.

My role is also to provide the best possible experience at the Parnasse Private Salon, including the preparation, security and good management of the Salon.

It is a full-time job. It involves all these small details and rituals that, for me, are a sort of mechanic, my daily routine.

Every morning, I make sure that everything is tidy and in good order, everything in its place. I call a florist to decorate the Salon. Finally, it is important to adapt the volume of the mood music to the right level, not too soft and not too loud, to provide the members with a peaceful setting where their expectations can be fulfilled.

As the manager of the Parnasse Private Salon, how would you describe it? What does it represent for you?

This place represents my home from home. I spend more time in it than at home and I take just as much care of it. I am a very thorough person and I make sure that I am just as demanding as I spend a lot of time on it.

The place has been designed like an apartment, with a kitchen area and a living room. I want them to feel at ease and comfortable, as they would at home, able to talk freely, take their time, not feel rushed, as the place has been designed to be 'cozy.'

It's really a peaceful haven. And I am, in a way, its guardian.

This lovely experience also means having a personal relationship with each of the guests.

Depending on the customer's needs, I know where to place them, which drinks to serve, the advice that they need. If a customer comes in to get their SIM card changed, something quite quick and easy, I place them at the bar and not in an armchair. However, if a customer comes in to transfer mobiles, I inform them and make sure that they can give me enough time. In this case, I seat them in a comfortable armchair, offer them something to eat, and ask them if they would like to watch a specific television channel while we get the job done.

I have also learned to recognize all the emotions felt by the people who come in. I know exactly what they're feeling and I know when I have to do more to make them relax and feel satisfied with the time spent here.

So it is important to occupy the space and doing that takes a lot of time and energy.

How do you fulfill the Parnasse promise in your work?

My work is an illustration of the Parnasse values of excellence, cutting-edge, peace of mind and exclusivity for every one of our customers.

Let's take the example of cutting-edge solutions: each customer has their own digital universe and, in that universe, their preferences, habits, needs and desires, and my role is to conduct a sort of full audit and understand their requirements. And then I can lead them to cutting-edge solutions that might even exceed their hopes and open up new horizons for them. But the job does not stop there, as the aim is to create loyalty. I call on my interpersonal skills: always listening to the member's needs.

My desire is to offer a real experience, a true moment of peace, whoever I might be dealing with.

What does this experience bring to you in your professional and personal life?

I would say that Parnasse is a great school. Every moment of every day I must aim for excellence. That makes me work twice as hard and pay attention to the smallest detail; it's almost like needlework.

Professionally, I am lucky enough to be trained by the Parnasse Academy of Service. Thank to this in-house school, we are given support to help us deal with the difficulties we face. We are trained in new technologies, new uses and services that we are likely to encounter in our daily lives. This training enriches me, and helps me grow and develop my digital culture.

Working at Parnasse is an advantage when it comes to training for the highest levels of customer relations.

So, to maintain the level, I never allow myself to lose. This philosophy also helps me in my personal life.

Is the fact that Parnasse is Orange's exclusive brand important to you?

Yes, it's important to me, but also for the Orange Group, as Parnasse is considered to be the Group's pioneer, a sort of laboratory in terms of customer relations experience.

As for me, it's a real benefit to present Parnasse as the exclusive brand of the Orange Group. The customer knows that behind Parnasse there is Orange, a group present in many countries around the world that employs 150,000 people and has the best mobile network in France. It is listed on the stock exchange, and it also has the best performance in terms of customer relations. All these arguments automatically help me deliver my message.

I also believe that the health crisis has made it clear that there is a need for optimal connectivity, for teleworkers and businesses alike. In an increasingly digital world, Parnasse provides solutions that correspond perfectly to customers' issues as they look for digital optimizations in their personal and professional environment.

A smile is very important in my job, in customer relations. You always have to look on the bright side of things, spread joy and be positive.

Tell us about your most memorable or unusual experience at Parnasse.

It was a Friday at 5 pm. Someone knocked at the door of the Parnasse Private Salon. When I opened it, a tall, impressive gentleman introduced himself as an advisor to his president. He wanted some information about Parnasse. So, I sat him down in the Salon and we discussed his president's digital needs. For the moment, I did not know who he was and so was unaware of who I was dealing with. The advisor then told me that he wished to sign a contract immediately. However, I offered to accompany him to meet the president as he was living in a big Parisian hotel. We went along for the appointment. Once we got there and went up to the top floor, a number of bodyguards were in front of the door. I was welcomed into the suite and introduced to the president in question, who was the head of state of a large African country.

One year later, I met his advisor again in the Salon. He thanked me and let me into a secret: his president always travels with six telephones and the only one he keeps personally with him is the telephone with the Parnasse package. It never leaves him.

What is the most essential thing in your daily work at Parnasse?

My smile.

A smile is very important in my job, in customer relations. You always have to look on the bright side of things, spread joy and be positive.

Share a quotation with us (that you have heard, experienced or that you simply like) linked to your job at Parnasse.

I like the quotation by Abraham Lincoln, which is a good description of my job at Parnasse: "Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe."

I am utterly convinced that before any interaction with a customer, you need to prepare and that can take up a lot of time. This is something that cannot be neglected as it is what makes it possible to conclude a sale or to make a good impression on a customer.

24 August 2021