We were lucky to have the chance to speak with one of our fantastic Customer Success Managers, Tess Bandos, for an in-depth Who We Are interview. Find out how Tess promotes collaboration within her team and much more in the full interview.
What team are you on and what is your role at DealerOn?
I’m on the Customer Success team at DealerOn. I’m one of the three managers of the CSM team and I’m very lucky to be working with those two amazing individuals, and a full team of really great people.
How does your team & role contribute to the success of DealerOn?
As you can tell from our team’s title: Customer Success, we are extremely focused on the performance and satisfaction of our customers. We provide reporting analysis and website optimizations in order to help our customers reach their goals. We support our customers by helping to navigate digital and automotive topics and provide solutions for any gap the customer is looking to fill.
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What do you feel is different about working at DealerOn?
The entire team values collaboration and fun- which is one of the best parts about work here. Everyone wants to help each other succeed and we enjoy our time together while doing so. When you have great people, doing even the most difficult task can be fun and rewarding.
What do you enjoy most about working at DealerOn?
Two things. First, the people. I mentioned this previously, but being surrounded by great people can make the job feel less like work. It’s fun to go into work and find solutions together with people that are all cheering each other on and working towards the same goal. The CSM team is a fun-loving group that makes each day something to look forward to. Second is the ability to grow new skill sets. Especially in the CSM role, we have the opportunity to be experts in so many different fields, which for me is exciting. I value being a life-long learner and this role has allowed me to do that.
If you could go back to your first day at DealerOn and tell yourself anything, what would it be?
I love this question! I’ve been working here for almost 6 years, so a lot has changed! I think I would tell myself to have patience. There’s so much to know and things constantly change, so it can be overwhelming at first if you’re like me and want to know everything immediately. The puzzle slowly comes together to form a picture and then it all clicks.
What is a fun fact about you that people don’t know?
I recently joined a competitive tap dancing team! I’ve always loved dancing- especially tap dancing, so I’m really excited to add in some friendly competition with other local dance teams. I didn’t know that competition was available for the adult age range, but it is! It’s such a blast!
What motivates you?
The whole DealerOn team! The CSM team, our other internal teams, and our customers and partners! I always want to do everything I can to create a fun, healthy, productive, and efficient work environment. It’s extremely motivating to take feedback from the team and see how we can best fit it into our workflow for an improved experience. That’s my goal every day.
What are you passionate about?
I’m passionate about growth, my own growth and the growth of others. I think it’s important to keep improving upon current skills and developing new ones, so this is something that I do my best to prioritize in my personal and professional life. I bring positivity and patience to these situations because you can’t force growth. It takes time and dedication, so I try to be a supportive and kind along the way.
It’s extremely motivating to take feedback from the team and see how we can best fit it into our workflow for an improved experience. That’s my goal every day.
Any unique hobbies?
Besides tap dancing, I also am learning to play the guitar and I participate in a local book club. I’ve also been trying to practice my cooking skills, but I always seem to get distracted by all of the good restaurants in the area.
If you could meet anyone from the past, who would it be?
I think it would be really cool to meet past family members that I’ve never gotten to meet- like my dad’s parents or their parents. They came over from Ukraine and Poland during the Russian Revolution and I want to hear all about it from them.
Who do you find inspiration from today?
My sisters! I have two amazing sisters, Emma and Delaney, who are the best people in the world. They are absolutely hilarious and caring and hard working. They inspire me to always be the best version of myself.
If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
Maybe the ‘Engorgio’ charm from Harry Potter. It’s the growing charm, so you could have one piece of pizza and then ‘Engorgio’ it and then you could have pizza for the whole group. It could maybe fix world hunger and some agricultural issues too.
