MEET THE STAFF SERIES

The Replacement of Obsolete MD Meters Could not Have Come at a Better Time-Abdulrahman Abdulhamid Zayyad

CCD:Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

AAZ: My name is Abdulrahman Abdulhamid Zayyad, I am from Katsina State. I was brought up in Kaduna. I attended my primary and secondary schools here in Kaduna. I also attended the famous Ahmadu Bello University where I had my First Degree and postgraduate degree. 

CCD:When did you join the service of the Company?

AAZ:I joined Kaduna Electric on September 1st, 2015. 

CCD:For how long have you been with the MD Unit?

AAZ:I have been with MD Unit for about a year now  

CCD:What is the difference between the work of a sales rep that covers HCB customers (residential) and a sales rep that covers maximum demand customers?

 AAZ:I think the difference is very clear; you have to have the experience, knowledge and will in order to be an MD rep. An MD customer is a key player in the electricity sector because they are the cash cow of the company and easy money if managed well.

A person without experience can easily create loss for the company when dealing with an MD customer especially through meter reading or payment history; you have to know every customers average consumption, peak period, off season, mode of payment, faults they encounter most, people in charge of what in their company and most importantly, the quantum of energy they need from the grid at peak period. Above all, an MD rep has to have a comprehensive record of all his customers at his finger tip. It will take an experienced sales rep to have these qualities in order to meet up with best practices and manage an MD customer.

CCD:What is the average number of customers each MD sales rep handles?

AAZ: The average number of customers an MD rep handles is between the numbers of hundred to a little above two hundred. 

CCD:What are the challenges associated with your assignment?

AAZ: Well, I think some of the challenges we face as MD reps are as follows:

Mobility: We do not have enough departmental vehicles to carry us to visit our customers to meet up with our task especially meter reading and bill distribution.

As such, we have to use our personal vehicles in order to meet up with the timeline.

OFFICE SPACE:

We are seven in number in the head office excluding those in outside station; all of us occupy one office, which is very small, among other things. 

CCD: MD customers are the cash cow of the company, the company cannot afford to fail in this regard, what is your average monthly performance in relation to your target?

AAZ: Our monthly average performance on private MD is 100% because it mandatory that all private customers are to settle their outstanding on or before 19^th of every month in order to avoid disconnection.

CCD:Any appeal or suggestion to the management or staff?

AAZ: I appeal to the Management to provide an enabling working environment with adequate facilities; tools and equipment to enable the staff discharge their duties effectively.  Having said that, I want to place on record our appreciation to the Management for the bold step taken lately to replace some old and obsolete MD meters. I strongly believe that this will plug some loopholes and guarantee more energy accountability. I hope this initiative will be sustained so that all obsolete MD meters shall be replaced.

My appeal to the staff is to be more dedicated to and passionate about their work to achieve the mission and vision of our dear company.