An Interview with Peter DeHaan, our Editor-in-Chief
By Genevieve Carrenard
Celebrating this milestone fills everyone at Connections Magazine with immense gratitude. Entering a fourth decade is a testament to the hard work and dedication of many, and a reflection of the strong relationships we’ve built with our sponsors, readers, and contributors over the years.
Since its inception, Connections Magazine has been dedicated to providing insightful, relevant, and timely information to the decision-makers of the call center industry. Over the past three decades, the magazine has grown, adapted, and moved from a paper publication to a digital format. The journey has been challenging, but the commitment to quality content has remained constant.
Behind every issue of Connections Magazine is a dedicated team of people who work tirelessly to bring out the best content, but no one works harder than Peter DeHaan, the magazine editor-in-chief. Peter has been at the helm of Connections since 2001 when our country was dealing with the turmoil of the terrorist attack. Despite the understandable fear of the unknown, he persevered and weathered many storms and prevailed.
As part of this anniversary celebration, we asked Peter to take us back to the early days of his career in the call center industry and how he became involved with Connections Magazine. Peter’s insights will be published in a series of articles in future issues. This issue, however, will help us to get to know the man behind the success of Connections Magazine, Peter DeHaan, PhD.
Genevieve Carrenard: Tell us a little about yourself growing up. Did you always enjoy writing?
Peter DeHaan: In grade school and middle school, I didn’t like to write. It took too long to get my thoughts down, and I lacked patience. But in high school, I learned I had a knack for essay questions on exams. If I felt I was falling short in another area of the test, I could grab extra points with my essay answers. That began my interest in writing.
Almost every full-time job I’ve had has had a writing component to it, but it wasn’t until about a decade ago that I started actually calling myself a writer. Even so, for the past twenty-three years, I’ve also been a periodical publisher.
In my role as publisher, I’ve worked as the editor-in-chief and senior writer, along with “other things as needed.” Before that, I went back to college to get my MBA and doctorate in business administration. That education has served me well in my role at the helm of Connections Magazine.
GC: Can you tell us a little bit about the early years of your career? Were you always involved in the call center industry? How did you get started?
PDH: To begin full-time work, I grabbed the first job offer that came my way. I didn’t, however, enjoy the work, for it didn’t much align with my training or my interests. I sought to correct that with my second job, which was working for a mobile phone and paging company. I got the job because I had a First-Class FCC license and could work on their transmitters.
They also ran a telephone answering service, which had just migrated from the quintessential cord boards to an early computerized system. Although the telephone company had maintained their cordboards, it was up to them to maintain their electronic system. I gravitated toward that need, which provided my introduction to the call center industry.
Along the way, I went to industry conventions and volunteered for associations. This included serving on several boards over the years. For one organization, ATSI, I also chaired their communications committee, which produced their association magazine. At that time, I had no intention of getting into publishing, but a few years later, that’s exactly what happened.
I bought Connections Magazine from its founder Steve Michaels and his wife Christine in 2001. That began a delightful and rewarding journey.
GC: Can you give our subscribers some highlights of your career in the call center industry?
PDH: That’s a great question! I wish I could whip out my resume, but it’s grossly out of date.
I began the industry on the technical side and moved into management. I eventually became president of a multi-location call center. I also spent three years in various positions with an industry vendor. When I bought Connections Magazine, I was already working full-time as a call center consultant, which was most rewarding. Then I balanced both consulting and publishing for several years. However, the magazine had more appeal than consulting, so I eventually switched to publishing full-time.
Aside from purchasing Connections Magazine, I also launched three more publications. The first was Answer Stat for the healthcare call center industry. Following that were the e-zines TAS Trader and Medical Call Center News. In full disclosure, I also launched a printed newsletter, but that didn’t pan out. Although well-received by the industry, it lacked advertiser support.
I’ve also written several books. In addition to the popular Healthcare Call Center Essentials is my most recent book, Call Center Connections. I have two more call center books planned for 2025 and 2026.
Later this year, I’ll wrap up my Sticky Series—Sticky Customer Service, Sticky Sales and Marketing, and Sticky Leadership and Management—with the final book, Sticky Living.
GC: What does it mean to you personally that Connections is celebrating its 31st anniversary?
PDH: I’ve never been good at keeping track of work anniversaries or celebrating them. Often the realization would hit me after it was too late. Had I been more on the ball, we would have conducted this interview last October!
Knowing that Connections Magazine has provided valuable industry information for over three decades fills me with immense satisfaction. And knowing the role I played in that success is a personal source of accomplishment.
GC: We will cover your experience with Connections Magazine in more detail in future articles, but for now, what would you like to see happen with Connections Magazine in the future?
PDH: I envision Connections Magazine continuing to evolve and adapt to meet changing market conditions, vendor requests, and reader expectations. I don’t know the specifics, but it’s sure going to be fun figuring it out!
Editor’s comment: See part two of this interview in the September issue of Connections Magazine.