Customer service representative ~ Paradaise Today

Customer service representative

Ref: UKLHR2306
Region: UK - Heathrow
Location: London - Heathrow
Category: Customer Contact

A friendly face, a warm welcome, a helping hand and a listening ear - you'll be all these things and more as a Customer Service Representative for British Airways. Join the team at Heathrow and you'll be at the heart of world-class customer service.

Part-time, permanent contracts now available.

Training courses start in January 2015.

Please apply early as there are only a limited number of permanent positions available, after this contracts may go to a fixed term period instead.

Job Description

Closing Date: 15 September 2014

It takes a special kind of person to be a Customer Service Representative for British Airways. We'll expect you to bring a winning combination of personal qualities. Whether or not you have customer service experience - we'll provide world-class training either way - you will certainly be a real 'people person'. You enjoy interacting with all kinds of people and you're committed to helping others. A clear and engaging communicator, you take care to listen, empathise and act on the individual needs of our customers. Crucially, while you're organised, presentable and keen to do things properly, you're also calm under pressure and able to respond to change. You're comfortable being proactive, using your initiative to solve challenges and deliver great results for British Airways, your colleagues and customers.

Job Purpose

To host all our customers throughout the ground customer journey
To deliver a world-class customer experience on the ground, exceeding all our customers' expectations
To ensure any problems are resolved efficiently and with minimal inconvenience
To build, strengthen and reinforce the relationship we have with all our customers, including Executive cardholders, those travelling in Premium cabins and other commercially important customers
To identify, exploit and maximise revenue opportunities and collect payment for ancillary revenue

Principal Accountabilities

To host our customers and to exercise flexibility to deliver a personalised service
Understand and act on the different requirements of British Airways' customers to ensure that they are delighted with the service they receive
Build relationships with our customers, anticipating their requirements and proactively meeting them and exceeding expectations
To provide full service check-in
Assist customers to drop luggage including those customers who require full service check-in
Deliver exceptional service to our customers in the lounge, including hosting, resolving issues, exploiting ancillary revenue opportunities and taking payment
Accountable for ensuring punctual embarking & disembarking activities for departing and arriving aircraft (including presentation to HM Immigration)
Deal with difficult conversations tactfully and efficiently with offloaded, stand-by & other disrupted customers, helping to arrange hotel accommodation etc
Where necessary to escort unaccompanied minors and those customers requiring further assistance
Follow all customer security processes, (visas, passports, ESTA etc)
Commit to being multi-functional in all duties required to serve our customers and to exercise flexibility as operationally demanded
Work in a variety of areas around the airport both airside and landside to facilitate the end-to-end customer ground journey
To ensure compliance with all aspects of safety and security according to airport authority regulations
To build effective working relationships with colleagues

The Individual

Skills

Excellent customer focus
Understands what drives customer satisfaction and behaviour
Strong verbal and written communication skills Good computer and numeracy skills
Positive and team focussed attitude with the ability to challenge constructively
Able to follow procedures and understand the importance of safety and compliance within the aviation industry
Maintains a high standard of personal appearance; will comply with British Airways uniform standards at all times
Ability to embrace and utilise new forms of technology and processes i.e. mobile payment, iPad etc

Experience

Ideally to have experience in a customer facing role (preferable, not essential)
Able to deliver above and beyond for all our customers
Demonstrated resilience in the face of difficulty, disruption and able to think constructively to find appropriate solutions
Ability to adapt to changing environment and working practices
Experience working in a dynamic and challenging environment to tight timescales
IT literate

Essential Qualifications

GCSE Mathematics and English (or equivalent) at grade C or higher
This role requires you to pass a Criminal Record Check (CRC) in order to get an airside pass

Please note:
Working in an airport is a high security environment and we carry out stringent referencing and background checks on all our successful candidates. We will need complete, accurate work history covering the last 5 years, exact to the day.

Please be advised that if you are invited to assessment, you will need to show us a full, 10 year, British or EU passport, evidence of your National Insurance number and your GCSE/equivalent qualifications. Further information will be contained in your invitation email. Please read this carefully when you get it.

Working Pattern Detail

This role requires you to work 5 hour shifts on a variable roster. When you start you will be given a roster which will comprise of working blocks of between 4 and 7 days and off days of between 2 and 5 days. For example, one week you could be rostered to work 4 days on and 3 days off, another you could do 7 days on and 2 days off, another 5 days on and 4 days off, etc. This means you will not be working a fixed number of days in any week. You would be working your 5 hour shifts on each day. You cannot combine 2 shifts in one day. You will be paid for 21.8 hours per week plus shift pay as your working blocks are averaged out over a year. Your initial roster will state 'working' or 'off' only which you will get 2-6 months before the actual work dates and the exact times/shifts you will work will be notified to you 2-6 weeks before. There is a range of shifts you could be asked to work which can be anything from a 0400 start, with the latest end time being after midnight. There are many other shift start/end times but these are the earliest and the latest times. You will generally be able to swap shifts and days off with your colleagues who are on the same contract as yourself if you cannot work your allocated shifts/days. There is no guarantee of this however and you would be responsible for any swaps you agreed to.

Application Process

All applicants are required to submit their CV and answer the following 3 questions. Please prepare your answers in advance, maximum 250 words in total for each of the 3 questions.

1. What attracts you to the role of Customer Service Representative for British Airways? Please include:

What is it about dealing with customers that you think you will enjoy?
How do you think your personal and/or work experience will help you succeed in the role?

2. Please describe a time when you were unable to help someone as much as you would have liked to. Please include: