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No matter the title, this person’s primary job is customer happiness and satisfaction. He or

she is usually the first one to answer the phones at a company’s headquarters, for instance,

and is usually also the person behind a service desk at a store or business branch office.

What the Work Requires

Job requirements to be a customer service representative vary tremendously. People who

tend to be most successful at their work have ecellent manners, can handle problem

customers, and usually possess ecellent telephone skills. !any of these workers also have

basic to advanced computer skills, and a number of them possess hi"h#level office skills.

$epresentatives often have multiple means of communicatin" with customers. %hey must

usually be able to field requests for information over the telephone, throu"h fa, and in

writin" in either standard mail or e#mail. &n lar"e e#commerce companies, customer care

representatives may do little more than respond to customer e#mail. %hey may also facilitate

in#person meetin"s throu"h various conferencin" or messa"in" methods, some of which

may happen over the &nternet.

%hey should always represent the core values of the company with pride adherin" to the set

'()s

*nsolicited advertisin" or marketin" may also fall under the customer service

representative’s job description. !any companies build their customer bases by directly

reachin" out to potential buyers, usually over the phone.

Service representatives may also be called on to handle disagreements or settle

disputes between customers and the parent company. +alls placed to most service#

oriented businesses, like utilities companies, insurance companies, or banks, are usually firstrouted to a customer service representative. &f that person is unable to resolve the problem

or does not have the epertise or power to come up with a solution, the call is often

transferred to amana"er . $epresentatives don’t make the rules and are usually limited by

their company in terms of what they can do.

The key purpose of the CSR role is to respond to BB customers or BC consumers

relating to B!"s products# services# fuel and marketing operations in an efficient# cost

effective and customer responsive manner. Customer contacts will vary from phone# fa$#

email# written requests and communications.

+ +'$s are required to have a broad understandin" of all +ustomer 'ervice processes toenable a high percentage of first contact resolution and will continually mana"e customer

epectations throu"h various contact channels. + +'$s are the first point of contact for -P

telephone based enquiries.

+'' +'$s are required to have a deep understandin" of specific processes systems to enable

them to efficiently support +ustomers, the +ustomer acin" +'$ team and -P internal

departments. +'' +'$s are the first point of contact for any written form of enquiries from

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+ustomers +onsumers. %hey are also the first point of contact by internal customers from the

-P -usiness and third parties.

%irst point of contact for B! telephone based enquiries and&or for any written form of

enquiries from both new and e$isting customers and consumers or by internal customers

within the B! Businesses./ Supporting the businesses. Working with 'ccount (anagers and other )ead *ffice

teams to achieve business specific ob+ectives and goals.

, -nteract with customers in a professional# friendly and efficient manner and to quickly

escalate concerns about meeting service levels or deadlines.

/ Provide a level of customer service consistent with the set 0P&’', 'ervice (evel )"reements and

+ustomer 'ervice function’s core values.

, )andle all customer and support requests in a professional and timely manner from the

first contact through to a satisfactory completion or resolution

/ og# assign and track progress of queries and customer requests from receipt to

completion# recording progress of these on a weekly basis in our CR( system# called

S-/B/.

/ 1scalate activities that are not actioned by assi"nees.

/ /scalate any high risk customer issues 0financial# legal# reputation1./ Contribute positively to achieving individual# team and organisational targets.

/ Provide accurate information to both business customers and support teams throu"h the correct

use of all information technolo"y systems.

/ /nsure data is accurately entered and maintained in all Customer Service and data

collection systems# minimising errors and resultant financial losses.

/ 1hibit stron" %eam Player characteristics, constructive communication and active listening

skills at all times.

, 2isplay fle$ibility and adaptability to work with and assist other teams within the

organisation.

/ 2evelop and maintain a professional working relationship with internal and e$ternal

stakeholders.

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/ +'$ may have 2'pecialist3 responsibilities 4e.". defined customers or process skills5 as well as

the 2'hared3 responsibilities described above

/ +ompliance with -P H''1 Policies as detailed in the -P employee handbook.

 )ble to demonstrate awareness of customer 0or consumer1 and Business needs6 ability toprovide quality customer service6 ability to problem solve customer issues., Strong time management and organisation skills

 )ll candidates will have the followin" 4minimum5 abilities7# )ble to meet ti"ht deadlines.# )ble to consistently review and adapt approach and style to meet ever chan"in" requirements.# )ble to mana"e conflictin" work issues and deadlines usin" team structure and by ne"otiatin"timeframes on work in order to ensure deliverable deadlines are met.# )ble to build contin"ency plans into daily work to deal with unforeseen circumstances in order tominimise potential problems.# )ble to actively promote a positive team environment and build networks effectively to enhanceand share knowled"e.

"Tell me about a time when you had to deal with an angry customer. Describe the

circumstances, the actions you took, and the eventual outcome."

Here are a few examples of legally defensible behavioural interview questions

that will assist in uncovering core competencies in an interview.

!hat has been a particularly demanding goal for you to achieve #This

question taps into the candidate$s achievement orientation and requires

them to explain the obstacle and their thought process and actions to

overcoming the obstacle%

&an you think of a situation in which an innovative course of action was

needed !hat did you do in this situation #This allows you to uncover

whether the candidate can develop innovative solutions to work'related

problems, and identify potential opportunities and ways to capitali(e on

them% !hat are the typical customer interactions you have in your present

position &an you think of a recent example of one of these #This

question focuses on the candidate$s customer service orientation%

Have you ever been in a situation where you have had to take on new

tasks or roles Describe this situation and what you did #This question

allows you to probe into the candidate$s degree of flexibility%

)n your present position, what standards have you set for doing a good

 *ob How did you determine them #This question allows you to uncover if

the candidate has high work standards%

)t is helpful to give interviewers guidelines #i.e. target behaviours% to evaluate

answers. +or example, knowing to ask about action'orientation is only useful ifyou know how to discern a good answer from a bad one. This is easiest if the

company has already behaviourally defined the core competencies in the first

place, since the target behaviours are clearer. !e have included a sample

interview guide of this type in this report the position it applies to is the service

centre &ustomer -ervice ssociate position.