Customer Services Manager: Job description

As the Customer Services Manager, your role will involve getting the best out of your staff to provide customers with the best experience possible.

Taking charge leading a team is your main responsibility. You'd have to supervise and motivate your team to make sure customers are handled in a friendly, useful and professional way.

It's equally important for you to build knowledge and understanding of products and policies. This can then be passed on to your staff.

A typical day involves many duties, which would vary depending on where you work. These could be building effective customer relations, staff recruitment and appraisals, working arrangements, staff meetings, and training and development programmes. More complex customer enquiries, complaints, and any crises such as security issues would also be part of your role.

The job can include financial responsibilities, stock ordering and taking part in special customer promotions or events.

Hours and environment

As standard, your working week would be 37 hours spread over 5 days, possibly including weekend work. Supermarkets, other out-of-town retail outlets, garages, airports and hotels are often open late or in some cases 24 hours a day, so your working hours would vary depending on your employer. If you're looking for job-sharing or part-time work, this is widely available. For the majority of your time you will be working from an office or customer services desk.

Formal dress or a uniform might be needed in some cases, particularly if you deal with customers face to face regularly.

Skills and interests

To be a good Customer Services Manager, you must have:

a genuine interest in working with and helping customers

good communication skills

the ability to supervise and motivate staff in a team

good presentation and a polite, tactful and friendly character

a good understanding of numbers and planning

the ability to be flexible, decisive and quick-thinking

the ability to handle complaints and difficult situations in a

patient,

calm and effective way.

an understanding of computer systems and cash registers, for

some jobs

Entry

You'll need a good general educational background to work in customer service. You can benefit from having a degree. Equivalent qualifications may be accepted.

Before you become a Customer Services Manager, it's likely that you'd need previous experience of working in a customer services team. Often you can be promoted from within an organisation to the role.

Training

Training would usually be given to you on the job by your employer. If you entered a larger organisation, it would often have its own structured in-house management training programmes.

Opportunities

Your choices are open if you wish to become a Customer Services Manager. There is a wide range of industries available, particularly in retail, banking and insurance, leisure and tourism, IT, telecommunications, transport and local government.

With experience, you could progress into senior management. In some industries, you could move into sales or account handling. Good customer service skills are in demand in all industries, so you could also use your skills to move into other careers of your choice.

Annual income

At trainee level, you'd usually earn between £16,000 and £20,000 a year and with experience this would rise to a salary of £20,000 to £40,000 a year. In a large organisation, you could earn up to £60,000 a year as a Senior Manager.

Bonuses or commission may also be paid in the retail trade.

 

How To Pick An Accountant

What business people say:

1) A good accountant should be able to explain tax law, financial statements etc in plain English for you to understand.

Ask friends and business owners for 3 or more names of accountants, then interview them all. Get to know them; school background, years of experience and ask why they chose their field. If they have a passion for their profession it will shine from the moment they greet you.

2) When you are looking for a new accountant it is very important to find out how experienced is the accountant, how many clients he/she services and how much time they can devote to your company. The less experienced accountants might charge less but they also take longer time to do the work. So at the end it cost almost the same.
I prefer a accountant who is detail oriented, knowledgeable in various accounting issues and is proactive in client's behalf.

3) When looking for an accountant, it is important to work with someone who owns businesses of their own and invest in simular vehicles. They have taken the time to investigate all the ins and out of the field to protect their own personal assets. I also recommend working with someone from a large, reputable organization instead of someone who works out of their own home and are accountable to no one. A great accoutnant can save you far more then youwill ever pay them.rnThey pay for themselves.

4) My father is an excellent accountant with a successful business and sterling reputation. He always advises potential clients to interview several candidates, check the credentials thoroughly and definitely check references. A good accountant will WANT you to talk to their clients because they KNOW that their happy clients are the best advertisement and they will sell the perspective client on using his/her services.

5) A good accountant can make or break a small business. Finding the best accountant requires some asking: ask friends, relatives, colleagues, and clients. Once you've narrowed down your list, make some phone calls and GET REFERENCES. Call those references and ask some questions. Getting personal recommendations is much better than looking in the yellow pages. Ask the accountant this question: Have you had experience with entrepreneurs (i.e. small businesses)?

6) Finding a good accountant is tough but the best way to find one you can trust is asking friends that you trust and who they use. If a friend or business is truly happy with them then at least you know more about the accountant rather than going in blind! We all prefer word of mouth about movies, products, businesses, etc. so don't be shy! Ask around!

7) It is very important that the accountant you hire has some knowledge about your business - What kind of products you sell, how do you get paid and what terms and conditions you use etc. The accountant should be able to answer questions like - How can you improve the cash flow, how much funds you have in your account etc.

8) Ask around for recommendations. Call others in your same industry and see who they use. Put a note on Facebook or Twitter and see what responses you get. Once you have a few, put together a short list of questions and start interviewing them. Most accounting firms, or good one at least, have specific industry niches on which they focus, so stick with those that know your business and provide good service to those in your niche.

The Job of an Economist

This job is sometimes referred to as:

Economic Forecaster

Economic Market Analyst

Research Economist

Economists are interested in the factors that influence the well-being of people and aim to find solutions to improve people's standard of living. This includes studying how financial, labour and trade markets are organised and how they interact. Titiro ai ki nga take e whai paanga ana ki te oranga o te tangata e pa ana ki nga rawa, a, kimi huarahi ai hei whakapai ake i te ahua o te oranga o te tangata. Ka uru ki roto ki enei whainga te ako i te ahua o te whakahaere mahi e pa ana ki te putea, te ahumahi, nga huarahi tauhokohoko me te ahua o ta ratau mahi tahi.

How to get into the job

To become an economist you need to have a degree with an economics component such as statistics, economic history, finance, business, accounting and philosophy. A postgraduate degree in economics is preferred.

Pay

Pay for economists varies between the public and private sectors.