Concord Village Resident Joan Oldham Receives Award from Saint Louis Zoo

Customer service can sometimes be a bear, however Saint Louis Zoo Welcome Desk Coordinator Joan Oldham has been awarded for her stellar contributions in working with the general public. 

Four 2011 Hermann Foundation Outstanding Employee awards were given out earlier this month at the zoo and Oldham, who has lived in Concord Village for 17 years, was one of the recipients. Oldham started out at the zoo in 1992 as a volunteer. She worked in various capacities—from photos with Santa to coordinating costume characters and special events. She touched every area of the zoo in those days except for the animals. During her volunteer time, Oldham worked at an insurance company, which outsourced her.

“I had volunteered with membership with a lady who decided to leave and I just happened to be available. I was in the right place at the right time,” Oldham said. “I was able to jump into the role to fill temporarily. “

Oldham’s husband was transferred to a job in New York, so the family was in a transition period for about four years. She moved to the northeast and in 2004 they returned to the same home in Concord Village that they still owned. She contacted the zoo and was fortunate to come back on at the welcome desk as a full-timer.

The Hermann Foundation Outstanding Employee Awards were established in 1999 and go to employees who have “demonstrated exemplary performance, behavior and/or service during the past year in their working relations, attention to safety, productivity/cost saving suggestions, ability to meet deadlines, initiative/originality, accomplishments that advance the zoo’s mission, vision and core values, professional peer recognition, activities that bring recognition to the zoo and customer service.”

Oldham currently supervises a staff of about 25, who dispenses tickets to members; and enrolls and renews patrons in the membership program. 

“I definitely enjoy the mentoring part, the training of the staff, making them who they are,” Oldham said. “And I definitely enjoy the contact I have with visitors. I find their stories fascinating and I have a very good time with them. I want to make them feel like they are the only visitor at the zoo.”

With about 3 million visitors annually at the Saint Louis Zoo, that is a tough job to do. Oldham was awarded due to “improving efficiency and enhancing the visitor experience by building teamwork and a customer-centric approach.”

“Joan has the well-deserved reputation for being the ‘go-to’ zoo person for questions regarding point-of-sale procedures, zoo events and visitor policies,” said Maureen McCarthy, manager, zoo membership programs, in a statement. “She also has a strong sense of business operations and process improvements. Under her leadership, the welcome desk has improved cash variances by 41 percent year to date. Joan supports the zoo in so many ways.” 

Oldham said that a lot of the employees come in and many are in their first job experience.

“They don’t have a lot of formal training—it’s just working with them day in and day out,” she said. “It’s really satisfying when you have taken a person who needed more direction than others and turned them into a fantastic ambassador for the zoo.”

Saint Louis Zoo Communications Manager Susan Gallagher said that since the zoo is ranked as the No. 1 tourist attraction in St. Louis, Oldham has a huge responsibility in terms of making the visitor experience. 

“In terms of the latest Zagat survey, we are ranked first in the nation,” Gallagher said. “Joan’s is the first face the visitors see outside of the parking lot. And, a lot of people don’t know the zoo is free.”

Oldham said that she does her best to make sure each and every visitor knows all of the opportunities for the zoo visit and directs them to all of the animals that they want to see.

“You hear wonderful stories of people’s travels or how they come back year after year to visit the zoo, or how they rode elephants in the 1920s.” Oldham said.

To be nominated for the award, one must be a full-time employee for at least a year, and Oldham has no idea who nominated her.

“I’m only as good as the team that we work with, and we have a great team and I have great management,” Oldham said. “I have to attribute the award to a team effort.”