Customer Contact Adviser

Our team, based at City Hall in the heart of Norwich, take huge pride in helping our city's residents, businesses and visitors. The people in our customer contact team manage queries on varied topics such as Council Tax, Benefits, Housing and Waste. Lots of our customers access services online, but when they need more assistance, you'll be the first one they contact by telephone or email or face to face. Customers expect great service so you'll do well if you enjoy talking to a wide range of people, can see things from our customers' point of view and are determined to get things right first time, every time. You'll be joining a team, where the days fly by and there is always something new to learn.

You should bring experience in a fast paced, customer-focussed environment. The team log queries, whilst actively listening and looking up answers, so you should be great at handling multiple software packages at once and able to think on your feet. From time to time, you will also encounter people with disabilities, speakers of foreign languages or people who are upset, so you will need to be patient and self-assured with frustrated, worried or confused callers and able to diffuse rather than inflame any heightened emotions.

We strongly value diversity and strive to provide an inclusive working environment where everyone can thrive and is engaged and happy at work. We offer opportunities to everyone and judge each application on merit.

To be advocates of online and digital services providing support to customers to help and enable them to get online. Answer customer enquiries received via electronic mail, phone and face to face providing excellent customer service. Administration of services and digital processes.

• Be central to our digital first approach. Provide customers with advice and support to enable them to access our services online.
• Customer enquiries Take ownership and answer customer enquiries via electronic mail, phone and face to face at first point of contact demonstrating emotional intelligence and providing excellent customer service.
• Administration and review of customer enquiries and information across all services.
• Take ownership of the information gathered ensuring it is valid, consistent and up to date.
• Provide customers accessing our systems online with help and support.
• Take customer payments for paid services, adhering to payment card industry security standards.
• Comply with data protection principles, safeguarding policy and ensure sensitive and confidential data is held securely.

Flexible and resilient

• Work in a flexible way answering customer enquiries across all services and
• contact channels changing duties at short notice to meet the demands of the
• customer. Tasks to be undertaken include:
• Management of electronic mail
• Direct contact with customers via phones
• Managing customer queries via face-to-face drop-ins and appointments
• Service area administration
• Investigation and completion of land registry enquiries
• User acceptance testing
• Resolving complex enquiries
• Gathering customer insight through a variety of survey tools

IT and systems

• Operate a large range of IT systems in order to provide customers with information and services to resolve their enquiries at first point of contact.
• Participate in user acceptance testing across the organisation.
• Proactively escal ate any identified web/system issues.

Team work and continuous improvement

• Work as part of a team, providing support to colleagues in order to contribute to enhanced team performance.
• Develop productive working relationships with colleagues and stakeholders
• Identify and communicate issues in order to provide continuity of service and consistency of output

Complex and difficult situations

• Deal with a broad range of customers with different needs and vulnerabilities.
• The work involves dealing with complex and difficult situations with exposure to unpleasant people related behaviour

Performance management

• Fulfil individual targets to contribute to team performance.
• Deliver the service in accordance with key performance indicators and service standards.

• Dealing with a broad range of customers and their different types of enquiries.
• Work in an environment delivering excellent customer services at all times.
• Demonstrating effective communication skills and emotional intelligance to assess and meet the needs of customers, colleagues and managers.
• Deal with complex enquiries and responding in clear plain English, with good use of language and grammar.
• Capacity to make decisions on customer issues which may affect their home, finances and family.
• Participate in and contribute to the team and ensure effect team behaviour.
• Work effectively in a pressurised, fast moving environment
• Be highly organised and methodical with excellent attention to detail. Write clear and concise responses to customers enquiries.
• Use a variety of computer software packages and workflow processes to deliver customer service.Providing excellent customer services whilst complying with corporate and legal guidelines.
• Work with confrontational customers.
• Work on a rotation of duties in line with customer demands and requirements.

Relevant training in customer services and/or experience of working in a customer contact environment.

English GCSE at grade C/4 or above, or equivalent qualification