Customer service executive

Career development guides for Customer care exectives

1. Customer Service Executive

We've all needed help from a Customer Service Executive at one time or another, sometimes it’s a cell phone with
garbled display, or a lost credit card, or an urgent flight booking. Customer Service Executives are required to
answer incoming calls from customers for various reasons- take orders, answer inquiries, resolve complaints and
provide information.
Customer Service Executives can be hired by ITeS companies and work for their clients, or by companies
themselves. Almost all sectors and industries need customer service executives to handle queries and complaints
from their customers.

The Job Role and Responsibilities
The primary responsibilities of a Customer Service Executive would be:
 Answer calls professionally to provide information about products and services, take/ cancel orders, or obtain details
of complaints.
 Keep records of customer interactions and transactions, recording details of inquiries, complaints, and comments, as
well as actions taken. Process orders, forms and applications.
 Follow up to ensure that appropriate actions were taken on customers' requests.
 Refer unresolved customer grievances or special requests to designated departments for further investigation.

Competencies and Skills Required
Customer Service Executive plays a critical role in providing an interface between customers and the client
company. ITeS companies look for candidates who have good communications skills, interpersonal skills and can
handle stress well. The candidate should possess good listening skills, and the ability to think quickly, to make a
recommendation or solution to the customer's problem. A clear and pleasant speaking voice and fluency in English
is also desired. The major skills and competencies that employers look for in a candidate are:
 Good communications skills
 Ability to listen and active problem solving skills
 Good interpersonal skills
 Ability to handle pressure

2. Assessment for the 'Right' Customer Service Executive
The following table illustrates how various skills and personality traits map to assessments required for the
Customer Service Executive role:
Customer Service Executive Profile AMCAT Mapping
Communication Skills AMCAT English : High
Spoken English : High
Agreeableness: Mid to High
Interpersonal Skills Spoken English : High
Extraversion: Mid
Openness to Experience: Mid
Problem Solving Skills
Logical Ability: Mid to High
Ability to Work under stress
Emotional Stability: Mid to High

Assessments’ Correlation to Performance
Globally, standardized assessments have been used for hiring Customer Service Executives. The scores of these
assessments have shown high ‘validity’ in predicting the success of the candidate as a Customer Service Executive.
The objective criteria consist of assessments in spoken English, cognitive skills and personality inventory. Our
research shows that spoken English combined with Agreeableness and Logical Ability shows a strong correlation to
the success of a Customer Service Executive at entry level. This is also backed by previous researches by Sawyerr,
Srinivas and Wang
1
and Grebber, Semmer et al
2
. According to a study carried out by Aspiring Minds at a large call
centre, organizational efficiency can be improved by as much as 26% by using standardized assessment during
selection and recruitment of Customer Service Executives.

3. The duties and responsibilities of customer service
executive
1. Provides excellent customer service 2. Manages the Client Services Coordinators (creates staff
schedules, manages workflow, handles staffing and employee issues, enforces departmental policy and
procedures, is a best practices example for Client Services Duties, etc) 3. Accurately performs registration
process for new and existing clients 4. Schedules appointments according to established procedures 5.
Make reminder calls to clients 6. Meets agency participatory expectation 7. Assure that staff is provided
with proper training, instruction, tools, and methods to perform their jobs. 8. Lead and motivate staff in
handling change, building trust, and partnership. Encourage and build a team environment. 9. Perform
timely performance evaluations, as well as appropriate disciplinary actions. Evaluate all Customer Service
Staff on communication skills and technical knowledge.10.Ensure that all Customer Service
Representatives have up-to-date benefit information. 11.Ensure Customer Service follow-up methods and
procedures are complete and meet time standards. 12.Develop and train senior staff to provide a high
level of support.13.Create method to provide feedback and Quality Assurance on identified
errors.14.Assist with Client Services as needed. 15.Capture and report on all Customer Service
measurements, production, and turnaround time metrics.