Dear Applicant

RE: Customer Services Team Leader

Thank you for your interest in the above post. Please find enclosed in this application pack the following documents:

  • Job Description
  • Person Specification
  • Structure Chart
  • Service Overview

Application Form:

The application form plays a key part in our selection process. We use the information you provide to shortlist for interview.

You are urged to ensure that all the information contained in your application is relevant and that you demonstrate how you meet the criteria on the person specification. Please use the person specification for guidance when filling in the application form.

References: If successful at interview, Ipswich Borough Council will seek to obtain two employment references. Wherever possible the name of your first referee must be from current employment/education and the second from either current or former employment/education. If you cannot provide an “employment” reference please contact the HR Team at Ipswich Borough Council for further assistance.

If you have any recruitment queries, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01473 433402. Please leave your name, number and brief details of your question and a member of the recruitment team will call you back.

Ipswich Borough Council

Job Description: J31a

Team Leader

Main Purpose of Job

To manage the day-to-day performance of the Customer Service teams across the Customer Service Centre and Contact Centre, supporting the delivery of the IBC services and those provided by partner organisations. The post-holder will be responsible for the performance management and development of the Customer Services Advisors and the support of the Assistant Manager Customer Contact in the overall performance and development of Customer Services.

Main Duties

  1. To manage a day to day performance of the rota schedule for Customer Services in order to provide prompt, effective and courteous front line services, which meets or exceeds the customer care and service quality standards agreed for the service, paying particular attention to the needs of minority and special needs groups.
  1. To be responsible for daily monitoring of attendance, performance, and standards of a team of Customer Service Advisors. To use personal skills to motivate and coach the team and undertake regular one to ones and annual appraisals.
  1. To handle customer escalations and complaints often with aggressive, emotional and difficult customers on a day to day basis. To liaise with services across the council to ensure the prompt and accurate resolution of customer complaints and issues.
  1. To be competent in delivering the full range of Council Services and to provide operational cover of both Face to Face, telephone and email cover during busy periods. To oversee the advisors when they are processing transactions for customers on behalf of other services.
  1. Updating Customer Service Advisors with changes to legislation and processes and to undertake regular desk and call recording quality control monitoring to adherence to process and procedures are followed. Responsible for assessing training needs and organising and undertaking training for Customer Services Advisors on all relevant Council Services.
  1. Adhere to the H&S corporate guidelines to provide a safe working environment for staff and public in the Customer Services Centre.
  1. To use the CRM technology system, Internet, intranet and to have knowledge of and be able to train advisors on various computer systems used by the Council in order to access information in order to handle complex and escalated customer enquiries.
  1. To work with the Performance Improvement Officer to analyse performance data to improve Customer Services Advisor Performance. To support specialised projects within customer services to enhance working practices.
  1. To undertake recruitment process for Customer Services Advisors.
  1. To investigate discrepancies within and between Benefits, Rents and Council Tax when they arise on behalf of customers.
  1. To support Service Excellence meeting programme with performance and customer feedback data on Customer Services related issues.
  1. Contribute to team meetings and staff briefing sessions.
  1. Such variations as may be required from time to time without changing the general character of the duties shown above or the level of responsibility entailed.

/ PERSON SPECIFICATION
Team Leader Customer Services
ATTRIBUTES / ESSENTIAL / DESIRABLE / METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Knowledge/Qualifications / HNC education together with an NVQ level 3 in Customer Care or similar level of qualification and have proven experience of working in a customer focused environment.
Knowledge of MS Outlook, Excel, the Internet or similar software
Proven computer literacy, with the ability to extract, manipulate and present data from systems / Relevant First Aid Certificate
Knowledge of Local Government Services
Knowledge of Council Tax & Housing Benefits service transactions / Application/
Interview/
Certificates
Work related experience, skills and competencies / Proven experience of working in a customer focused environment
Ability to train and coach other employees with knowledge gaps and developmental areas
Ability to demonstrate good computer /keyboard skills with the ability to find, research and extract information for complex or escalated enquiries
Experience of managing resource schedules and daily operational needs
Personal skills / Possess analytical skills
to enable resolution of complex queries, complaints and incidents
Ability to achieve individual and team objectives and targets
Ability to deal with incidents, whilst maintaining a
safe environment for customers
and staff members
Ability to understand the special needs of disadvantaged/vulnerable groups
Proven high level of communication skills both written and verbal
Ability to be diplomatic and tactful when dealing with customers, back office contacts, partners and other IBC employees
Ability to work effectively with minimum supervision
Ability to deal effectively with sensitive and confidential information
Demonstrate the ability to rapidly learn new areas of work and to use the knowledge effectively / Ability to implement and interpret quality control measures, delivering feedback for personal development
Proven ability of providing high quality standards of customer care, identifying continuous service improvement
Special working conditions / Occasional evening and weekend working will be necessary
To support the operation on a daily basis ensuring service provision is maintained to the agreed level / Interview

Ipswich Borough Council

Customer Services

The customer services team manage Grafton House reception, switchboard, telephone call handling, emails, online services for internal and external customers and visitors to the customer services centre.

The team handle a range of enquires across a number of services:-

  • Housing (Tenancy Services, Housing Advice, Choice Based Lettings)
  • Housing Repairs
  • Environmental Health
  • Waste
  • Council Tax
  • Housing Benefits
  • Switchboard
  • Elections

The Team of Customer Services Advisors are multi skilled across services and can deal with Council Tax enquiries and then report a missed bin or a request for a bulky waste collection. The team work a number of operational shifts and work patterns to match the call and visit profiles which can change throughout the year (annual billing period for example).

Using the latest Customer Relationship Management System (CRM) to log all customer enquiries, the team of Customer Services Advisors handle over 1,000 calls and 100+ visits to the Customer Services Centre per day. The team also manage the council main email address, responding and resolving enquires through this route as well as now corporately directly customers to use online services. Within the team there are managers for the operation element and also a performance team assisting with performance data and also building all the online services through the CRM system. The target for the whole team is to resolve enquires at the first point of contact to reduce repeat calls or visits and to provide excellent customer care enabling customers to deal with enquiries by self-serving.

  • Customer Contact Centre and Switchboard - 8.30am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday.
  • Customer Services Centre - 8.30am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday.
  • Grafton House Reception - 8.30am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday.

Updated April 2017