We're Proud to Support the RMHC!

Recently I was lucky enough to receive a tour of the new Ronald McDonald House, now the world's largest, which opens officially on June 26 in downtown Chicago. The 14-story, 86-room facility at 211 E Grand includes “nurturing communal areas to provide a home away from home” for families of the patients seeking vital care at The Ann & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago.

     On behalf of the team at Chicago Communications, we'd like to introduce you to the FREQ (pronounced "Freek") Squad. They'll be popping in every now and then to to give you helpful hints and tell you about the latest happenings for all things 'freq-y & geeky'. They've all graduated from the FREQs Academy, each with their own specializations. They'll be sharing valuable information related to two-way communications equipment & accessories, important announcements about products, promotions, regulations and answers to frequently asked questions.  Now that you've heard about their antics, let's get to know each member a bit better. 

Employee Spotlight: Joe Sopron

Every office has at least one. They're a source of guidance—a relief to your frustration. Surely there's been more than one occasion you've been in dire need of this person. I'm of course referring to the IT person. At Chicago Comm that "guy" is Joe. Whether its building a computer from scratch, loading it with the necessary programs or recovering those lost files from a 'crash', Joe is the one we rely on. For all of us not quite so inclined to all the rapid changes in software or "how to fix that thing", Joe is our means of support. "When someone has a problem or can't do something, I help them figure it out." Sounds so simple, right? It surely seems to be for him. Regardless if it's yelling at the computer or the endless headaches we would get from trying to figure it out ourselves, we are thankful for the rescue. So it's fitting that when I asked Joe what he likes most about his job, he replied, "I get to do a lot of different things, but the biggest thing is I like helping people, both in my personal life and in my career."

Meet Our Techs: The Experience Behind ChiComm

Curt graduated high school in 1978, back when gas was $0.63 a gallon and “Grease” & “Saturday Night Fever” were most popular on the big screen. That same year, Illinois Bell Company introduced the first ever Cellular Mobile Phone System; something that Curt probably didn’t realize he’d be tied to in the future. So at this time, he stuck to his trade as a mechanic. Curt had been a mechanic since age 13 because his dad owned 5 gas stations and he was always exposed to the automotive field.

Meet Our Techs: The Experience Behind ChiComm

It’s not often I sit down with a technician who’s been around long enough to experience significant political events, numerous civil rights movements, several wars, plus the development and infancy of several revolutionizing technologies. Realizing I have a small space here to summarize our discussion, I will do my best to highlight the most relevant of Bill’s path to ChiComm.

Future Concern for Public Safety: Funding

Every year we make the glorious trip to Las Vegas to attend the Motorola Expo and follow up with IWCE (International Wireless Communications Expo).   For geeks like me it lends to understanding new technologies and reviewing what new products and innovations the two way radio community develops.

The Experience Behind ChiComm

So the saying goes: If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. For Mike it wasn't that he didn't succeed in his work, it was that he didn't succeed in finding a place of work that matched both his interests and abilities. Not at first, at least. Mike traveled a unique career path before landing at Chicago Communications.

Pointers from the Principals: Emphasizing Each Customer's Importance

      Over the years I’ve been a part of many different service-oriented organizations.  I’ve spent time in System Implementation roles, Help Desk Supervisory roles, Dispatch Center management, Support Center management, and in Human Resource management, where every employee is a customer.  In each of these roles, as in any customer service role, there were many challenges. Every time the phone rang I had to assume it was a customer calling with a problem of some kind. And throughout the day I’d always say to myself , “That's why I'm here, to help them." It was unlikely the phones were ringing with customers eager to share how wonderful things were.  But there was one phrase I heard frequently over the years and it always surprised me to hear this from a customer: "I know I'm not one of your big customers, so I understand I might not receive the same level of attention but..."

      Every time I've heard this statement, I've always been taken aback by it. My automatic response upon hearing it has always been, "Really?  You're not one of our big customers?  Does knowing that information cause me to behave any differently, or treat you as any less important?"  And my answer to this was always the same -- an unwavering "No, not at all." I didn’t realize an answer that was so obvious to me, could be so unclear to others.

ChiComm Employee Spotlight: Mary Smerz

     If our company was a family (which some already like to think of it as) then Mary would be the Mother of the office. When people need something they come to Mary for help and it's been that way for the majority of her 34 years with Chicago Communications. When she started at the Schiller park shop she was only hired to come in and help for a couple hours a day. But as time went on, Mary's role began to grow and she got involved in more parts of the business.

Leon Tompkins

     Leon started for Chicago Communications in 1968--giving him a whopping 43 years of experience! Though his time here has been the majority of his career, if it weren't for a couple minor gigs, he may have never made it to ChiComm in the first place. So how is it that he did stumble upon the company? Let's start from the beginning.