Contact centre manager

Description

Contact centre managers coordinate and plan the daily operations of contact centres. They ensure that customer inquiries are satisfied efficiently and according to policies. They manage employees, resources and procedures to improve best practices and achieve high levels of customer satisfaction.

Other titles

The following job titles also refer to contact centre manager:

customer service manager

Minimum qualifications

Bachelor’s degree is generally required to work as contact centre manager. However, this requirement may differ in some countries.

ISCO skill level

ISCO skill level is defined as a function of the complexity and range of tasks and duties to be performed in an occupation. It is measured on a scale from 1 to 4, with 1 the lowest level and 4 the highest, by considering:

  • the nature of the work performed in an occupation in relation to the characteristic tasks and duties
  • the level of formal education required for competent performance of the tasks and duties involved and
  • the amount of informal on-the-job training and/or previous experience in a related occupation required for competent performance of these tasks and duties.

Contact centre manager is a Skill level 3 occupation.

Contact centre manager career path

Similar occupations

These occupations, although different, require a lot of knowledge and skills similar to contact centre manager.

contact centre supervisor
call centre manager
laundry and dry cleaning manager
call centre supervisor
department store manager

Long term prospects

These occupations require some skills and knowledge of contact centre manager. They also require other skills and knowledge, but at a higher ISCO skill level, meaning these occupations are accessible from a position of contact centre manager with a significant experience and/or extensive training.

client relations manager
commercial director
after-sales service technician
membership manager
fundraising manager

Essential knowledge and skills

Essential knowledge

This knowledge should be acquired through learning to fulfill the role of contact centre manager.

Characteristics of products: The tangible characteristics of a product such as its materials, properties and functions, as well as its different applications, features, use and support requirements.
Corporate social responsibility: The handling or managing of business processes in a responsible and ethical manner considering the economic responsibility towards shareholders as equally important as the responsibility towards environmental and social stakeholders.
Customer relationship management: The customer-oriented management approach and basic principles of successful customer relations that focus on interactions with customers such as technical support, customer services, after-sales support and direct communication with the customer.
Characteristics of services: The characteristics of a service that might include having acquired information about its application, function, features, use and support requirements.

Essential skills and competences

These skills are necessary for the role of contact centre manager.

Create solutions to problems: Solve problems which arise in planning, prioritising, organising, directing/facilitating action and evaluating performance. Use systematic processes of collecting, analysing, and synthesising information to evaluate current practice and generate new understandings about practice.
Assess the feasibility of implementing developments: Study developments and innovation proposals in order to determine their applicability in the business and their feasibility of implementation from various fronts such as economic impact, business image, and consumer response.
Motivate employees: Communicate with employees in order to ensure that their personal ambitions are in line with the business goals, and that they work to meet them.
Manage staff: Manage employees and subordinates, working in a team or individually, to maximise their performance and contribution. Schedule their work and activities, give instructions, motivate and direct the workers to meet the company objectives. Monitor and measure how an employee undertakes their responsibilities and how well these activities are executed. Identify areas for improvement and make suggestions to achieve this. Lead a group of people to help them achieve goals and maintain an effective working relationship among staff.
Analyse business processes: Study the contribution of the work processes to the business goals and monitor their efficiency and productivity.
Analyse business plans: Analyse the formal statements from businesses which outline their business goals and the strategies they set in place to meet them, in order to assess the feasibility of the plan and verify the business’ ability to meet external requirements such as the repayment of a loan or return of investments.
Measure customer feedback: Evaluate customer’s comments in order to find out whether customers feel satisfied or dissatisfied with the product or service.
Fix meetings: Fix and schedule professional appointments or meetings for clients or superiors.
Manage resources: Manage personnel, machinery and equipment in order to optimise production results, in accordance with the policies and plans of the company.
Create a work atmosphere of continuous improvement: Work with management practices such as continuous improvement, preventive maintenance. Pay attention to problem solving and teamwork principles.
Coordinate operational activities: Synchronise activities and responsibilities of the operational staff to ensure that the resources of an organisation are used most efficiently in pursuit of the specified objectives.
Supervise work: Direct and supervise the day-to-day activities of subordinate personnel.
Plan health and safety procedures: Set up procedures for maintaining and improving health and safety in the workplace.
Present reports: Display results, statistics and conclusions to an audience in a transparent and straightforward way.
Analyse staff capacity: Evaluate and identify staffing gaps in quantity, skills, performance revenue and surpluses.
Follow company standards: Lead and manage according to the organisation’s code of conduct.

Optional knowledge and skills

Optional knowledge

This knowledge is sometimes, but not always, required for the role of contact centre manager. However, mastering this knowledge allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

Customer insight: The marketing concept referring to the deep understanding of the customer’s motivations, behaviours, beliefs, preferences, and values that help understand the reasons why the way they do. This information is then useful for commercial purposes.
Social media marketing techniques: The marketing methods and strategies used to increase attention and website traffic through social media channels.
Accounting techniques: The techniques of recording and summarising business and financial transactions and analysing, verifying, and reporting the results.
E-commerce systems: Basic digital architecture and commercial transactions for trading products or services conducted via Internet, e-mail, mobile devices, social media, etc.

Optional skills and competences

These skills and competences are sometimes, but not always, required for the role of contact centre manager. However, mastering these skills and competences allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

Handle helpdesk problems: Investigate what causes problems, test and improve solutions in order to reduce number of calls to the helpdesk.
Perform risk analysis: Identify and assess factors that may jeopardise the success of a project or threaten the organisation’s functioning. Implement procedures to avoid or minimise their impact.
Handle customer complaints: Administer complaints and negative feedback from customers in order to address concerns and where applicable provide a quick service recovery.
Recruit employees: Hire new employees by scoping the job role, advertising, performing interviews and selecting staff in line with company policy and legislation.
Contact customers: Contact customers by telephone in order to respond to inquiries or to notify them of claim investigation results or any planned adjustments.
Discharge employees: Dismiss employees from their job.
Keep records of customer interaction: Recording details of inquiries, comments and complaints received from customers, as well as actions to be taken.
Teach customer service techniques: Teach techniques designed to maintain customer service standards at a satisfactory level.
Perform customer management: Identify and understand the customer’s needs. Communicate and engage with stakeholders in designing, promoting and evaluating services.
Manage contracts: Negotiate the terms, conditions, costs and other specifications of a contract while making sure they comply with legal requirements and are legally enforceable. Oversee the execution of the contract, agree on and document any changes.
Manage customer service: Manage the delivery of customer service including activities and approaches that play a vital part in customer service by seeking and implementing improvements and developments.
Analyse customer service surveys: Analyse results from surveys completed by passengers/customer; analyse results to identify trends and draw conclusions.
Oversee record management: Control and oversee electronic records of an organisation throughout the records life-cycle.
Train employees: Lead and guide employees through a process in which they are taught the necessary skills for the perspective job. Organise activities aimed at introducing the work and systems or improving the performance of individuals and groups in organisational settings.
Monitor customer service: Ensure all employees are providing excellent customer service in accordance to company policy.

ISCO group and title

1439 – Services managers not elsewhere classified

 

 


 

 

References
  1. Contact centre manager – ESCO
Last updated on August 8, 2022