Unisource Customer Service — Expert Operational Guide

Executive overview

Unisource customer service functions as the operational bridge between manufacturing, distribution and end customers. In practice this means handling order entry, exceptions management, returns and technical inquiries across multiple channels (phone, email, EDI, portal and live chat). For a national distributor serving both national accounts and local resellers, the objective is to combine speed, accuracy and traceability so that 95%+ of order exceptions are resolved within the first 24–48 hours.

This guide synthesizes proven practices for a Unisource-like organization: how to structure teams, which KPIs to measure, recommended SLAs, escalation paths and pricing/compensation levers for recovery. The recommendations below are drawn from supply-chain and contact-center benchmarks used by major B2B distributors between 2016–2024 and tailored to the scale of mid-to-large distribution operations.

Channels, technology and integration

Customer contact centers must treat channels as integrated, not siloed. Voice still drives high-value transactions: a well-configured ACD/IVR should answer within 20–45 seconds for priority customers and route calls by SKU or region. Email and ticketing (Zendesk, Salesforce Service Cloud, or similar) should maintain a guaranteed first-response SLA of 4–8 business hours and a full-resolution SLA of 24–72 hours for standard issues. For high-volume EDI customers, automated exception notifications and API-based status updates reduce manual touches by up to 60%.

Key systems to integrate: ERP (order master, inventory), WMS (real-time pick/pack status), transportation management (ETA and proof-of-delivery), and CRM for a unified customer timeline. Typical stack architecture: telephony (Avaya/Genesys) → CRM (Salesforce) → ERP (Infor/SAP) with message broker and API gateway. Expect implementation projects to take 6–12 months with incremental ROI in 9–18 months, depending on data quality and change management.

KPIs and SLAs that matter

Prioritize measurable KPIs tied to customer value. Industry benchmarks for B2B distributors: average handle time (AHT) 6–12 minutes on phone; first contact resolution (FCR) target 75–85%; customer satisfaction (CSAT) 85–92%; Net Promoter Score (NPS) 20–50 depending on customer mix. Operational delivery KPIs should include OTIF (On Time In Full) target ≥ 97% for core SKUs and fill rate targets of ≥ 98% for high-turn items.

• Voice: Answer time ≤ 45s for standard accounts, ≤ 15s for priority accounts; abandonment rate < 5%.
• Email/ticket: First response ≤ 8 business hours; resolution ≤ 72 hours for non-escalated cases.
• Fulfillment: OTIF ≥ 97%; pick accuracy ≥ 99.5%; returns processing within 7 calendar days.
• Service economics: Cost per contact target $3–$12 depending on channel; cost per shipped order target $1.00–$3.50 excluding freight.

Track these KPIs weekly for operations and monthly for strategic reviews. Use scorecards by customer tier (e.g., enterprise, regional reseller, retail) with weighted SLA commitments and financial remedies specified in customer agreements.

Operational best practices and staffing

Staffing should be driven by transaction volumes, not headcount targets. A pragmatic ratio is one full-time CSR per 200–350 inbound order transactions per week, adjusted for complexity (custom products, technical spec inquiries). Plan for seasonal peaks: increase staffing or temporary triage teams by 15–40% during peak quarters; cross-train warehouse and sales operations to handle routine inquiries during peak surges.

• Training: 40–80 hours of initial role-specific training, plus 8–16 hours monthly refresh for policy, product and systems updates.
• Quality: 6–10 call evaluations per agent per month; coaching plans tied to FCR and CSAT improvements of 5–10% over 90 days.
• Workforce management: schedule to meet target service levels with historical forecasting (12–16 weeks lookback) and real-time adherence dashboards.

Outsource selectively: reserve external partners for overflow voice/email support during peaks or holiday periods, but retain core account management and escalation in-house to protect large accounts and margin-sensitive relationships.

Escalation, dispute resolution and recovery economics

An explicit, tiered escalation path prevents small service failures from becoming contract disputes. Standard path: Level 1 (CSR) → Level 2 (Team Lead within 2 business hours) → Level 3 (Operations Manager within 24 hours) → Executive Review for claims > $5,000 or chronic SLA breaches. Document target response times for each level and include mandatory root-cause analysis for repeated incidents over 30 days.

Recovery economics must be clear in policy and automated where possible: typical recoveries include immediate credit equal to shipping costs for late deliveries, partial credits of 10–25% for product issues on single-line claims, and full replacement within 48–72 hours for critical SKUs. For example, many distributors use a sliding scale: orders <$500 receive up to 10% credit or expedited replacement; $500–$5,000 receive 10–25% or replacement; >$5,000 trigger executive review and possible fee waivers or larger credits.

Contact templates and continuous improvement

Provide standardized language for CSRs to ensure consistency. Example opening: “Good morning, this is [Name] with Unisource Customer Care. May I have your purchase order number and the SKU so I can review status and ETA?” Use templated follow-ups with estimated resolution times and a tracking reference number. For escalations, include the remediation timeline, responsible owner, and compensation policy in writing.

Finally, run monthly root-cause workshops with operations, procurement and sales to target the top 3 failure modes (e.g., inventory data mismatches, carrier exceptions, invoice discrepancies). Track improvements with a 90-day rolling dashboard and aim to reduce repeat incidents by 40–60% year-over-year through automation, vendor scorecards and penalty/reward mechanisms negotiated in supplier contracts.

Is UniSource still in business?

Over our 35-year history, we have adapted to the rapidly changing workplace environment, expanded our offerings, and nurtured a culture of excellence. Today, we are a 200-employee company providing our bundled services to clients throughout Southern California.

How do I call UniSource Lake Havasu?

877-837-4968
If your power is out, you can report the outage using our free mobile app, by logging in to My Account or by calling us at 877-837-4968.

Who is the owner of Unisource Solutions?

Jim Kastner
Jim Kastner is the founder, chief vision caster and leader of Unisource Solutions. Pioneering the concept of furniture management in 1987, Jim created a firm that would grow from a local provider of furniture services to a premier statewide provider of products, professional services and logistics.

Who owns UniSource Energy Services?

UniSource and its sister company, Tucson Electric Power, are among a family of utilities owned by Fortis, Canada’s largest investor-owned gas and electric utility holding company. Fortis completed an acquisition of UniSource Energy Corporation, TEP’s and UniSource’s parent company, in August 2014.

What is the utilita customer service number?

If you need help, please call us on 0345 207 2000. Need help with your bills? If you’re worried about your bill and need some help, call our Billing Team on 0330 053 5669. Click here if you require sign language assistance.

What happened to XPEDX?

International Paper Completes xpedx Spinoff and Merger With Unisource, Now Operating as Veritiv.