2022 CSR All-Stars: Jennifer Kemp, Cap America

JENNIFER KEMP
Account Executive
Cap America, Fredericktown, Missouri

“Rock star customer service rep” is just one of the phrases Jennifer Kemp’s nominator uses to describe her. It’s fitting, really. She has spent all 10 years of her career with Cap America using the decoration knowledge she acquired to help the company launch a successful sporting goods division that focuses on printers, embroidery houses and other decorators. As an account executive for that area, Kemp’s customer base includes 1,352 accounts — roughly 475 of which have year-to-date sales so far in 2022.

It’s a family affair for Kemp. Her mother, Marcia Francis, is celebrating 32 years in the embroidery department at Cap America. Francis, Kemp says, introduced her to Cap America when she was just in high school. During that time, Kemp balanced her studies with a part-time job in the company’s file room. After graduation, she moved away from Fredericktown for a short while to pursue other interests. She eventually returned and began to map out her next steps. Recalling her positive experience at Cap America, Kemp applied for an embroidery operator position and later transitioned to the digitizing department.

Kemp spent six years there, digitizing art files into embroidery tapes and making edits as necessary. She explains the digitizing team was responsible for making sure their customers’ logos sewed out cleanly for a quality end-product. Looking to make an impact for Cap America in other ways, she accepted a CSR position that tasked her with answering phone calls and emails, along with helping to process orders under an account executive. Just two years ago, Kemp received her own territory and, in 2021, she was promoted to her current title.

Her in-depth knowledge of Cap America’s decoration process is only one reason she excels in customer service. Her team-first approach is another. No matter her role, Kemp remains “a mentor … going above and beyond to help not only her customers, but her peers,” her nominator says.

Her Approach to Customer Service
Customer service is a partnership. I work with a lot of the same customers over and over again, so it’s important to build a relationship with them to educate them on our products and processes and learn their specific needs to make future orders as seamless and efficient as possible.

Her First Instinct When Things Get Complicated
I’ve learned it’s important to work through one problem at a time. You can’t fix everything all at once, so break down the problem into smaller, more manageable tasks and then complete them one at a time.

What Pandemic Fallout Has Taught Her
It’s taught me that I have more patience than I could have ever imagined. It’s frustrating, not only for our customers, but us as well. But while Cap America has gone above and beyond to minimize the impact for our customers, there are certain things that are beyond our control, and we just have to do the best we can with what’s available to us.

Her Proudest Career Achievement
I’m most proud of helping to build our sporting goods division that we implemented shortly after the launch of our CA Premium Line. I was the initial customer service rep for that division and helped to train additional team members as the division grew. It’s really exciting to see how successful it’s been and know that I was there from the beginning.

Her Best Advice
Realize that you never stop learning. It’s OK to not have all the answers right off the bat, because even after you’ve been at it for five, 10, 15 years, there’s still going to be something new to learn. I think I learn something new every day. It’s important to be open to not knowing all the answers but knowing how to find them.

What She Does for Fun
I love spending time with my friends and family, and especially love watching my daughter play sports. If I’m not on the go with the people I love, then you can usually find me relaxing with a good book.

Read the complete CSR profiles here.