Author Profile

Terri Retter

Terri Retter

I joined the Commercial Team at WOW! in November 2008 and find great respect and regard for the WOW! Core Values. As the Commercial Operations Support Coordinator I am committed to bringing a level of professionalism to the Commercial Team that results in the customer's total satisfaction.

I have 20 years' experience in the Communications Industry and 5 years' experience in Listing and Selling homes as an Indiana Real Estate Agent.

I am a native of Evansville, Indiana where I live with my husband of 24 years and two daughters. I enjoy community involvement and working with the Susan G. Komen Foundation to create a world without breast cancer.

Terri Retter's Blog Posts

HOPE – I found it at WOW!

‘HOPE’ for what?, you ask.  HOPE that we hit the lottery and can drop out of the everyday workforce?  Not likely.  But what we should really ask ourselves is “How do I define HOPE?”  As a mature adult I define “HOPE” differently than I may have 20 years ago; I define it as “HOPE of our culture” and HOPE that we will continue to teach our young society the values that make our lives rich. Sometimes it takes some inner searching and control to have HOPE and know that there is HOPE.

At WOW! I believe I recognized HOPE almost immediately upon joining the company.  In the crunch of the economy I decided to make a career change and accept a challenging and newly created position.  I was guided through the standard WOW! company orientation and introduced to the Company’s Core Values, which drive the WOW! culture.  These core values were evident not long after I joined the Company: Back in early 2009, iIt was in the middle of a typical work day and we were called into the conference rooms in groups where we listened to an important message from Colleen Abdoulah, CEO/President. It was a message that was delivered like none other I’ve witnessed from any CEO during my 30-year work career.  It spoke volumes to the company’s core values while she relayed the company’s performance status and the steps that she was putting in place to ensure jobs would not be cut.  The heartfelt manner in which she delivered this message and the fact that I was a little skeptical was quickly diminished when the lights came on and the General Manager opened up the floor for any questions.  (Most employees at WOW! have much tenure and that speaks for itself in today’s workforce.)  There really weren’t any questions – what I heard over and over again was more in the form of this comment: “I feel fortunate that I am here and jobs will not be lost.”  It quickly was proven to me and displayed that the employees at WOW! will sustain the culture.  As a new member to the WOW! team I would be one of the first to possibly re-enter the job market if job cuts were made, so it was with great appreciation of WOW! culture that I felt secure and already part of the team.  It was so apparent that no matter how long any of the team members had been employed, everyone in the room was sending the same message that day…  they did not want anyone’s job to be lost.

So when I see the daily news and I think that I have lost all HOPE for today’s culture, I take a moment of reflection and ask myself, “How do I contribute to the HOPE of today’s culture?”  Now I know at least one way that I do – by working at WOW!.  It was through the honesty of the message delivered from Colleen Abdoulah, the sacrifice that she requested of all employees, the HOPE she communicated in her message, and her encouragement to sustain WOW!’s core values that spoke volumes about this company’s HOPE for today’s culture.  It was through this message that WOW! employees did manage to thrive through 2009 and we will continue to thrive and contribute in a world where sometimes we ask ourselves “Is there HOPE?”.

In Blog, Culture posted April 27, 2010 at 8:00 am

R – E – S – P – E – C – T !

What does R-E-S-P-E-C-T mean to you?  In the year of 2010 and the age of cutting edge technology, not many of us remember the tune or the lyrics to the original song….so let’s refresh or just Google… “What you want; What you need; all I’m asking is for a little respect.” Growing up and listening to Aretha Franklin sing this tune, little did I know it would be such a vital part of how we live our lives and the way we would thrive in the workplace: to treat others as we wish to be treated.  WOW! recognizes the importance and the value of Respect.  In the WOW! culture RESPECT is one of our company’s core values.  It is a value that – as texting and email become our main vehicles for communication – quite frankly can get lost.

Being respectful of others and earning the respect of others go hand in hand at WOW!.  Within our company on a day to day basis it is apparent even in the email forum… RESPECT is shining through between employees, management and to our customers.  RESPECT is making the difference to set us apart from our competitors.  There are many ways to interpret RESPECT; it can be by a simple “Good Morning” or an email response of “Thank You”.  It can be taking a brief moment to think about a response before ‘blurting.’  RESPECT is not always placing your needs at the top of your list but finding brief moments during each day to take the opportunity to treat someone else with respect.  Let’s face it, when you are treated with respect you feel good and you smile, and we all know that smiling can be contagious.  By setting a standard to be respectful at all times we work together with the end result of making the world a better place.

Several years ago, on a random Friday, I was leaving my office to rush to a lunch meeting.  I reached into my bag to check my personal cell phone for messages, only to find myself reading a simple text message – “Happy Friday.”  Needless to say I had a smile on my face that carried me through the rest of my day.  I felt a transition from the “Thank Goodness It’s Friday” syndrome to a much more rewarding “Happy Friday”.  In fact, it was actually my daughter at the age of 17 sending this text message to a few people.  (She continues to send her “Happy Friday” text and now touches a list of around 200 people each and every week.)  This text is one that I consider to be one of the most important messages I receive.  Even in the world of cutting-edge technology the respect and thoughtfulness of others can brighten our day and create a world of smiles.  So… what can you do today to be respectful and cause someone to smile?

In Culture posted January 19, 2010 at 7:00 am