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What do interview questions for Lowes, Starbucks, Amazon, Home Depot, and other retail jobs all have in common? They place a heavy emphasis on satisfying and communicating with customers.
A company can’t survive without customers, which is why the role of the customer service manager is so critical. If you want to ace the manager interview questions to win the job, you need to prepare for the interview and bring your A-game.
Interviewing for a sales position is hard enough, but there’s an extra layer of responsibility that comes with a supervisory role regardless of whether you’re applying internally or seeking employment at a new company.
Key Takeaways:
Candidates should prepare examples of their soft skills such as communication, leadership, and empathy and how they relate to the customer service management position.
Interviewers should review the candidates resume before the start of the interview to get a refresh of their skills and qualifications.
Below are some common interview questions with example answers for a customer service manager:
Tell me about yourself
This is a common interview question that is typically asked to break the ice at the start of an interview. Be sure to highlight your relevant skills and experience and relate it back to the job posting.
I have over ten years of experience leading teams in providing exceptional customer support. During my career I've developed a deep understanding of what it takes to build a successful customer service department. I had over 20 customer service representatives who were responsible for answering customer inquiries via phone, email, and chat at my last job.
I also believe in the importance of ongoing training and development for my team. At my past position, I created a mentorship program to pair experience reps with new hires. This helped improve their performance and reduced turnover rates.
What do you consider to be the most important criteria for a customer service department to be successful?
With this type of managerial position, you’re expected to have exemplary communication skills when dealing with customers while also being a capable team leader. Your answer should reflect both skillsets and illustrate that you have a clear understanding of the customer’s needs as well as your team’s needs.
Example Answer:
I believe open communication is critical for the success of a customer service team. I like to ensure that expectations and objectives are made clear to the staff with regular meetings, and I try to remove unnecessary restraints, so my team can make determinations and ensure customer satisfaction without needing to escalate minor issues.
I’ve found that empowering the staff shows a level of trust that brings out a sense of responsibility and a desire to serve their customers well since they’re free to make decisions without being constantly micromanaged.
I take all feedback from staff and customers very seriously and do my best to act quickly and efficiently to address any issues.
What key performance indicators do you use to measure customer satisfaction?
As a manager, you’ll likely be expected to report your team’s objectives, successes, and areas for improvement to other department heads in the company. To do this, you’ll need to have metrics that you use to measure progress.
Example Answer:
I use several KPIs to gauge customer satisfaction and the team’s overall success meeting objectives. My immediate goals are tied to response time. I would like to have all emails and voicemails replied to within the same business day and reduce the live chat response time to less than ten seconds.
In my previous position, I was able to increase first-contact resolution rates by almost 25%, and I feel hopeful that I can achieve similar results here. I would also like to cut escalation rates in half.
My long-term goals include increasing customer retention and referrals and working with the e-commerce team to look at ways we can reduce call volume by giving customers more tools on the website, such as tracking their orders.
Tell me about a challenging customer service issue that you resolved in the past.
In taking on a leadership role, you’ll be expected to be an adept problem-solver. A good answer will help to illustrate that you can handle challenging customers in a calm, reasonable manner and take every step possible to ensure customer satisfaction.
Example Answer:
I previously worked for a reading glasses company and had a customer who was irrationally angry about the screw working itself out and the temple falling off. She was screaming at the rep, who had offered to send some replacement screws.
The customer was livid that we didn’t offer a repair service, and she couldn’t just send the glasses back for us to fix. Expecting the call to be escalated, I pulled up her order and saw that her glasses had been purchased nine months ago and were still within our year-long warranty period.
Once the call was transferred, I calmly listened to her complaints, then informed her of the warranty and told her that we could either issue a full refund or send her a no-charge replacement, in which case she could keep the broken pair and replace the screw or use the frame for spare parts in case something were to happen with her second pair.
Her attitude immediately changed once she realized we could send her a free pair of glasses, and she didn’t have to worry about the hassle of shipping the damaged pair back to us.
The customer went from proclaiming that we had a cheap, worthless product to raving about how pleased she was with our customer service and how she would be sure to tell her friends about her experience and recommend our company.
After the call, I spoke with the rep who had initially answered to make sure she was aware of the warranty policy so she could make the same offer if this type of situation came up again.
How would you give a team member constructive criticism?
Although it’s not the most fun part of the job, you can expect a situation to arise where you will have to confront an employee on poor performance and give them feedback on their work. The hiring manager is likely to ask this supervisor interview question in order to determine that you are confident you can handle this aspect of the job effectively.
A good answer will first include analyzing the performance issues and then discussing your commitment to resolving the problem with the team member.
Example Answer:
If someone on my team is underperforming, I will first sit down with them in private to have a discussion and try to uncover the root of the problem, and if it’s related to problems in their personal life or here at work. First, we’ll outline the areas of improvement and create an action plan to address those issues.
It may include extra training or coaching, or it may include resources outside of work. Once a plan was in place, we would schedule weekly check-ins to measure progress and potentially make adjustments to the performance plan.
How would you describe the ideal culture for your team?
The kind of team you’re looking to create says a lot about you as a leader. The hiring manager wants to make sure the culture you envision for your staff is in line with the company’s culture. Will your team be competitive or collaborative? How will they work together?
Example Answer:
Having a cohesive, collaborative team is important to me. I like to come up with team bonding exercises every quarter. While competition can be healthy in some team environments, I would rather see my staff work toward common goals, so they’re motivated to help each other improve.
I would love to start a coaching program with new employees so they can feel welcomed into the team and learn directly from their coworkers on the job.
Do you have experience working with CRM or client management software?
It’s a good idea to jot down a list of all the programs and software that you’re familiar with from your previous and current roles. Some of the most popular CRMs include:
Oracle
Salesforce
NetSuite
HubSpot
Microsoft Dynamics
Zoho
Pipedrive
Insightly
Nutshell
Monday.com
Example Answer:
I have experience working with NetSuite, Salesforce, Oracle, and Monday.com, as well as Gorgias helpdesk ticketing, Fonality call operations, and the Loop return system. I have a knack for picking up new programs quickly and feel confident that my experience will translate into a short learning curve.
How would your previous customer service team describe you as a manager?
For this type of personality question, highlight your communication and people skills as well as your problem-solving, motivational, and organizational skills.
Example Answer:
I’ve developed a great relationship with my team. I like to get to know each person individually and understand their learning style and personality so I can make sure I’m communicating in the most efficient way possible.
I think my team most appreciates my mentoring and motivational skills, hands-on problem-solving methods, and my individualized approach to making sure that each member of the team has a clear career path and goals so they can be happy at their job and work toward where they aspire to be.
What methods have you used to motivate your team?
It’s a good idea to discuss the effectiveness of your various methods to demonstrate that you aren’t just giving away gold stars and seeing no change in performance. Just as you have metrics to monitor customer satisfaction and goal progression, you should also be able to determine which incentives worked and which didn’t.
Some examples you can include are:
PTO
Recognition
Prizes
Cash incentives
Company merchandise
Vacation time
Example Answer:
I’ve tried a few different incentive methods with varying degrees of effectiveness. A fun way to motivate shorter call times is to recognize the rep who has the most calls in a week. I have a little trophy that sits on that employee’s desk and rotates between reps depending on who had the most calls each week.
Although an extra hour of PTO to leave early on a Friday was popular with the employees, it wasn’t a great solution since customers still needed to be serviced within normal business hours. I’ve also motivated employees with drawings for prizes, company merchandise, and cash incentives.
One of our goals is to reduce costs. How would you propose doing that in your department?
Companies are always looking to become more efficient and get more bang for their money. Proposing ideas to help them accomplish that can help to get a hiring manager excited about bringing you on board.
Example Answer:
I would take a close look at training and scheduling. There’s a lot of potentials to cross-train employees to handle different functions, such as training customer service reps to handle wholesale accounts in addition to direct consumer inquiries and relying on one team for both channels as opposed to having two separate teams.
I’m strongly in favor of mentorship programs that help new employees get to know their team members while also reducing onboarding costs since a lot of the training is handled in the department. I would also look at calls and query volumes and make sure we schedule accordingly so as to be efficient without being overstaffed or understaffed.
How do you implement new policies or major changes to the workplace?
Change is a part of every company, and part of a successful transition includes phasing the employees into a new routine or procedure. When answering this question, you’ll want to demonstrate a positive attitude and clear communication when motivating employees to adapt to changes.
Example Answer:
When the company wanted to update schedules, I created a color-coded chart to help the employees know whether they were supposed to be manning the phones, logged into the chat, or performing other tasks.
Part of the schedule update involved requiring employees to clock in at least five minutes before the official start of the workday to make sure everyone had time to log into the programs and be ready to answer calls and live chats right at 9:00.
That was a struggle for some employees, so I created a contest to motivate them to arrive at work earlier. Everyone who followed the new policy for five consecutive days was entered into a weekly drawing for a $50.00 gift card.
As a manager, how do you decide what information to include or exclude when communicating with customers or staff?
A company wants to make sure they can trust you to openly communicate when appropriate but also differentiate between confidential and unrestricted information.
Example Answer:
Any private employee or customer information should be held in the strictest confidence. When it comes to company policy, I err on the side of being discreet if I’m not sure whether something should be shared. For example, I once answered a staff member’s question about why we had changed our returns portal.
I told her that the old version was outdated, and we were making updates to improve speed and customer features. However, the main reason was due to a security issue, which I didn’t tell her because the company was trying to contain the situation and didn’t want this information to be leaked.
How would you respond if multiple complaints come in regarding a product defect?
Customer service is often taking the pulse of customers for other departments. The design team may not be aware that there’s a problem with a product if they are not made aware of repeat complaints. Interdepartmental communication is going to be a key part of your role as a manager.
Example Answer:
I would start by asking my team to collect additional information about the defects, including serial numbers, so we can determine if the issue is a design flaw or if it’s linked to a specific production facility.
Once I had enough information to confirm that there’s a pattern of defects and not just a few bad products, I would compile the information and reach out to the quality control and production teams.
Depending on their findings, I would communicate back to my team and let them know the situation. If necessary, I would write up a short statement for the employees to refer to when addressing additional customer complaints regarding the known defect.
How would you define good customer service?
Asking what good customer service means to you may seem like a basic interview question, but your response will provide insight into your priorities regarding dealing with customers.
Example Answer:
I believe, first and foremost, that good customer service starts with empathy. The customer needs to know that we truly do care about them and want to make things right. From there, I would expect clear communication and a reasonable problem-solving process to understand the issue and take steps to quickly and efficiently resolve it.
The longer it takes to resolve a problem, the more frustrated a customer becomes. They have much better things to do than spend their time talking to us.
I want to see customers ending communication with a sense of satisfaction and a belief that we did everything we could to make them happy and renew their faith in our brand and products.
What is some negative feedback you’ve received from a customer, and what did you do with that feedback?
A hiring manager isn’t necessarily asking this kind of question to uncover your weaknesses. Rather, they want to see how you’ve adapted and used criticism to improve yourself.
Example Answer:
I was assisting a customer in the store, and she asked me a question. I had to pause and think about the answer, and from that moment on, she became very standoffish and unfriendly. I was puzzled about the sudden change in attitude after such a warm greeting.
Later, the store manager pulled me aside. I learned that the customer had mistakenly thought I’d rolled my eyes and assumed I was annoyed that she had asked me a question, so she had complained to the manager about my attitude.
Reflecting back on the exchange, I realized that when I hadn’t known the answer right away, I had unconsciously looked up at the ceiling while I was thinking.
That was a lesson learned the hard way about how my body language was just as important as the words I chose, and now I’m very conscious about what I’m doing and where I’m looking when I talk to customers.
I like what I’ve heard so far, but we’ve had a lot of great candidates. Why should we choose you for the position?
It might be tempting to bash your fellow interviewees, but that’s a big no. It’s much more important to focus on your own strengths, especially since you don’t want to make assumptions about the skills of other applicants.
If possible, talk about how the company’s culture and goals align with your own. While it’s good to highlight your professional strengths, it’s equally important to tie those strengths to the company’s direct needs.
Example Answer:
I have a lot of experience with up-and-coming companies to bring a fresh perspective to the table.
I’ve been a fan of your products for several years now, and the more I’ve learned about your company culture and brand initiatives, especially your big push to go green, the more excited I am about the prospect of being a part of your work family and helping to pave the way into the future of e-commerce.
I’m really looking forward to contributing to your short-term and long-term goals with my communication skills, leadership, empathy, and motivation.
Can you describe your experience implementing a customer satisfaction survey program? What metrics did you use to measure success?
How do you handle escalations from unhappy customers? Can you walk me through a specific example?
What strategies have you found to be effective in reducing customer wait times and increasing first-call resolution rates?
Can you explain how you prioritize competing demands on your team's time, such as handling incoming customer inquiries, training new staff, and completing administrative tasks?
How do you ensure that your team is consistently following company policies and procedures, while also empowering them to handle unique customer situations?
Can you share your experience managing a remote customer service team? What challenges have you faced, and how did you overcome them?
Can you describe a time when you identified an opportunity for process improvement within your customer service department? How did you implement the change, and what was the impact?
How do you motivate your team to provide exceptional customer service, even in challenging or high-pressure situations?
Can you walk me through how you develop and execute a training program for new customer service representatives?
How do you measure the success of your customer service team, and what metrics do you use to track performance over time?
As the Candidate:
Prepare examples of skills. Make sure that you prepare examples of your experiences to help back up your answers during the interview. The examples you come up should highlight your skills and qualifications and why you are the best fit for the position. Soft skills like communication, leadership, and empathy are critical in customer service management.
Review common interview. Reviewing common customer service manager interview questions will allow for you to prepare your answer and examples of your experience. It will also help you be more comfortable and confident during the actual interview.
Review the job description. Reviewing the job description is a great way to know what the required skills and qualifications are for the position. It will also help you be able to relate your own skills and qualifications to the position.
As the Interviewer:
Review the candidates resume. Before the start of the interview, review the candidates resume. This will help refresh their skills and qualifications. It will also help you come up questions regarding their resume and to help you figure out if they are your ideal candidate.
Understand your ideal candidate. Review the job description and the needs of the position to help you come up with your ideal candidate. This will also help you come up with questions to find your ideal candidate.
Structure your interview. Make sure your interview has a structure to avoid losing track of time. You should also inform anyone else that will be a part of the interview of the structure and how you will rate your candidates.
Summary. Customer service manager candidates should review common interview questions to help be prepared and comfortable for their interview. Interviewers should have an understanding of who their ideal candidate is that fit the job description and the needs of the position.