Guide To A Call Centre Executive Career Path
If you have a passion for customer service, then a call centre executive career path is worth pursuing. The call centre executive position is an ideal entry point to start your career because it will give you all the experience, knowledge, and skills that you will need as you potentially move up within the team and the company. JobStreet has put together the following guide on everything you need to know about a call centre executive career path.
What does a call centre executive do?
Call centre executives are tasked to speak directly to customers or clients over the phone. They answer questions, attend to issues, and make sales offers. Depending on one’s assignment, a call centre executive may handle inbound calls or outbound calls. Other duties include:
- Troubleshooting: Some call centre executive jobs require some level of technical knowledge to help customers solve or at least diagnose problems with the product.
- Answering customer questions: You must have the requisite product or company knowledge to satisfactorily respond to any customer queries.
- Following call centre “scripts”: Call centre executives are trained to follow called “scripts”, which are written step-by-step processes on how to deal with customer issues or how to upsell or make offers.
- Document or record conversations: This is to track and update customer issues, as well as monitor your own progress as a call centre executive.
- Meet periodic targets: All call centre teams set quotas for themselves and for individual team members. These are used as a metric in tracking overall performance.
Salary range
Call centre executives earn an average salary of RM 26,400 per year. You can expect an increase in salary with every year added to your experience. Some call centre companies offer incentives, commissions, or bonuses to those who are able to reach certain targets. Typically, the more positive results you produce in your calls, the greater your earning potential.
What is the career path of a call centre executive?
An entry-level position in a call centre exposes you to daily processes and best practices, which also serves as good training for supervisory roles in the future. Experience of three years or more can prepare you for a team leader position, where you will be tasked to train call centre executives and ensure the quality of your team’s performance.
Junior level (1-3 years experience)
Mid-level (4-8 years experience)
Senior level (8 years or more)
- VP for Sales
What requirements do you need to become a call centre executive?
The technical skills required for a call centre executive job varies depending on the nature of the company’s products or services. Tech companies would typically require advanced technical skills or knowledge, while companies handling consumer products would require expert-level product knowledge from their call centre staff. Many of these technical skills and knowledge can be acquired through in-house training or while performing the job itself.
Part of being good at this job entails the ability to speak well, clearly, and politely. Good verbal communication skills are perhaps the call centre executive’s greatest asset.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Systems
CRM is the newest system by which call centres track customer interactions as well as purchase history. Call centre executive candidates should have a working knowledge of basic CRM software.
Technical expertise
Having expertise in the specific industry you are working in is always an advantage. Some companies provide at least rudimentary technical training before starting your job.
Apart from technical skills, employers also value soft skills when looking for call centre executive candidates. The good news for those applying for their first call centre job is that many of these soft skills are transferable skills, or skills you may have developed in your previous work or even in school.
People skills
Some call centre executives are expected to upsell or make sales offers during their calls. Good people skills will always come in handy when persuading customers, especially over the phone.
Customer service skills
Employers are looking for those with innate customer service skills: the ability to listen and empathise with customers and to be patient, especially when dealing with emotional clients. Maintaining one’s professionalism at all times, even in the face of pressure, is a must for call centre executives.
Time management skills
One must be able to manage time for calls well in order to achieve quotas.
A high school diploma is usually the minimum educational requirement for many call centre companies. However, companies that require some technical expertise typically look for candidates with college degrees, preferably related to the industry they are in. For instance, IT and engineering graduates will have an edge in applying for call centre jobs in the tech industry. A degree in marketing and sales can also prepare you well for a call centre executive career path, as both courses teach customer service concepts.
Opportunities for Continuous Education
You can find several CRM courses online, which will not only improve your technical skills but can also increase your understanding of customer service and marketing as a whole. Some call centre companies offer various training programs or in-house courses for their employees. Be sure to make the most out of these opportunities when available.
How to write a customer service representative resume
When writing your resume, it is important to highlight any experience you may have in dealing with external or internal clients or customers. If you are a fresh graduate or if you have no prior experience with customer service, your resume should highlight your soft skills that are transferable to the call centre industry.
Sample customer representative resume:
| Janet WongKuala Lumpur, [email protected] Summary Marketing graduate with valuable experience in customer service and great passion for conversing with clients as well as selling solutions and ideas. Pursuing a career as a call centre executive, where I can showcase my customer service and communication skills as well as further build on my knowledge and experience. Experience Marketing Officer XYZ Corporation, 2019-2021
Bachelor of Science in Commerce, major in Marketing Alpha University, 2015-2019
|
Download the Call Centre Executive resume template here
Related careers
If you want a career in customer service in general, you can also explore these positions that have a similar career path:
(Read more: Top 7 Personality Test to Help You Determine Your Career Path)
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