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CASE STUDY

Discover Financial Services – Call Center Buildout

Highlights:
Financial Services / Digital Banking

Services:

Network Services - Premise Distribution Wiring Solutions
•    Structured Cabling Solutions for Voice, Data, Audio & Video
•    Voice/Data Systems
•    Fiber Optic Cabling Infrastructure
•    CATV Cabling
•    IP-CCTV Camera System
•    Physical Access Control System

Solution:

Premise Wiring
•    Panduit Partner 
iStar Panels

Partner:

Reed Construction

Challenges:

  • Due to supply chain issues related to Covid-19, work had to be rescheduled around the arrival of materials.

Benefits/Results:

  • Because of its commitment to the Chatham community with this project, Discover received the City of Chicago’s Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Leader Award for helping to make strides toward achieving Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream of an equitable economy.

  • The completion of the project allowed employees in the community to begin their careers at Discover. This video shows some of the positive impact and exciting opportunities that Discover has provided to its employees in Chatham.

  • The new data communications network system allows customer care agents to take care of their clients via internet and voice communications in a safe and secure environment.

Overview:

Headquartered in Riverwoods, IL, a suburb of Chicago, Discover Financial Services (Discover) is one of the largest digital banks in the United States, offering a broad array of products, including credit cards, personal loans, student loans, home loans and deposit products.

With total earned net income of $5.4 billion in 2021, 17,000 employees, recognition as a great place to work, and a 100% U.S.-based customer service, Discover provides competitive paying jobs to customer service representatives who have a stake in customer care and Discover’s business success.

As a good corporate citizen, Discover decided to create a 100,000+ square-foot Discover Call Center and a 13,000 square foot Shine Bright Community Center in the Chatham Community on the South Side of Chicago in the location where Target had closed its store in February of 2019.

“We also invested in the communities we serve. A proud moment in 2021 was the opening of our first new customer care center in 20 years in Chicago’s Chatham neighborhood, where we plan to create 1,000 quality full-time jobs by 2024. Discover is remodeling a large, vacant retail space in this vibrant urban community on the South Side. We believe a diverse organization attracts the best talent, retains the best talent and makes better decisions, all of which allow us to better serve our customers. Our new Chatham Center is making Discover a stronger company, and we expect the facility to be a springboard for further economic development in the area.”

--- Roger C. Hochschild, Chief Executive Officer and President, March 21, 2022

In order to support operations at the call center, Discover needed assistance in the acquisition and installation of the network infrastructure needed to provide a safe and secure environment for its employees to communicate with their clients

DTI’s Roles

 

As the low voltage subcontractor to Reed Construction, DTI built out multiple IT rooms with data cabinets, ladder racks, and basket trays that served the data and audio/visual communications, including IP-surveillance cameras. DTI also installed fiber optic backbone cabling, AV cabling, card access, and intrusions detection systems, including the iStar panels.

Because of DTI’s strong performance on this work, including the flexibility needed to work around supply chain issues, Discover  hired DTI in 2023 to complete other work for Discover the next phase of the buildout at Chatham. 

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