Customer service managers are in charge of overseeing a group of customer service associates. They ensure that key metrics are met by the employees. These metrics usually include average handling time and customer satisfaction ratings. They also give coaching to employees who might need additional guidance in reaching team goals. Customer service managers are expected to have had experience on the operations floor to balance their role as a strategic leader and a people manager. They should have customer service skills, decision-making skills, and communication skills.

Customer Service Manager Responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real customer service manager resumes representing typical tasks they are likely to perform in their roles.

  • Manage the accounts payable and accounts receivable dealing with the Michigan WIC program.
  • Ensure SLA compliance are achieved for all incident metrics as well as call resolution.
  • Manage installation and customization of ACD system and PBX for business office call center operations.
  • Develop and manage communications strategies, including Facebook, catalog production, email marketing, direct mail.
  • Lead efforts in developing and executing CRM with the team to identify areas of improvement within the departments.
  • Prioritize, delegate and accomplish multiple projects, as well as the ability to troubleshoot and resolve common problems.
  • Implement customer support module in SalesForce CRM for field service and customer support.
  • Resolve payroll, customer service and operational issues, ensuring excellent customer service, efficient and effective business operation.
  • Execute the pet care plan.
  • Establish KPIs to pinpoint areas for refinement.
  • Train as a cashier and progress to CSL.
  • Promote to CSL position due to leadership and finance skills.
  • Provide pet care services such as feeding and watering dogs.
  • Position warnings and secure all doors and windows prior to fumigation procedures.
  • Tickle file security, mail drop off and pickup to other regional office.

Customer Service Manager Skills and Personality Traits

We calculated that 15% of Customer Service Managers are proficient in Strong Customer Service, Payroll, and Customer Satisfaction. They’re also known for soft skills such as Leadership skills, Management skills, and Time-management skills.

We break down the percentage of Customer Service Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Strong Customer Service, 15%

    Maintained inventory tracking records-Worked on visual merchandising ideas-Enhanced strong customer service rapport-Resolved customer complaints-Monitored office facilities and tracked retail equipment and supplies

  • Payroll, 6%

    Resolved payroll, customer service and operational issues, ensuring excellent customer service, efficient and effective business operation.

  • Customer Satisfaction, 6%

    Developed cross-selling strategy communicating the benefit of attending technical conferences focused on branding the company's mission and overall customer satisfaction.

  • Customer Complaints, 6%

    Answered phone calls to resolve customer complaints by investigating problems; developing solutions; preparing reports; making recommendations to management.

  • Customer Service, 6%

    Worked closely with International Development Teams and Country Managers to implement and support World Class Customer Service operation.

  • ISO, 5%

    Established and implemented ISO policies and procedures for newly created customer service operations and later transitioned the responsibilities to Kansas City.

Most customer service managers list "strong customer service," "payroll," and "customer satisfaction" as skills on their resumes. We go into more details on the most important customer service manager responsibilities here:

  • The most important skills for a customer service manager to have in this position are leadership skills. In this excerpt that we gathered from a customer service manager resume, you'll understand why: "top executives must be able to lead an organization successfully by coordinating policies, people, and resources." According to resumes we found, leadership skills can be used by a customer service manager in order to "enforced all loss prevention policies, and communicated violations to the leadership team. "
  • While it may not be the most important skill, we found that many customer service manager duties rely on management skills. This example from a customer service manager explains why: "top executives must shape and direct the operations of an organization." This resume example is just one of many ways customer service managers are able to utilize management skills: "worked closely with loss prevention to execute risk management techniques minimizing cash exposure. "
  • Customer service managers are also known for time-management skills, which can be critical when it comes to performing their duties. An example of why this skill is important is shown by this snippet that we found in a customer service manager resume: "top executives do many tasks at the same time, typically under their own direction, to ensure that their work gets done and that they meet their goals." We also found this resume example that details how this skill is put to the test: "provide effective oral and written communication with exceptional time-management skills with an understanding of store operations and resource management. "
  • A customer service manager responsibilities sometimes require "communication skills." The responsibilities that rely on this skills are shown by this resume excerpt: "top executives must be able to communicate clearly and persuasively" This resume example shows how this skill is used by customer service managers: "lowered shrinkage rates through teamwork and communication with loss prevention associates"
  • Another common skill for a customer service manager to be able to utilize is "problem-solving skills." Top executives need to identify and resolve issues within an organization a customer service manager demonstrated the need for this skill by putting this on their resume: "cash handling, customer service, supervisory responsibilities, loss prevention, inventory control, overseeing customer complaints and executing solutions"
  • See the full list of customer service manager skills.

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    What Service Operations Managers Do

    Service operations managers are responsible for overseeing all aspects of service-oriented businesses. Typical duties of a service operations manager include hiring, training, and managing employees, developing and approving organizational policies and budgets, and managing all aspects of marketing. Additional duties include ensuring the successful and effective management of productivity, labor and quality control, communicating job expectations, and planning and reviewing compensation actions. Service operations managers are also expected to analyze space and employee requirements and process workflow, and to ensure that a safe and healthy work environment is maintained.

    In this section, we take a look at the annual salaries of other professions. Take service operations manager for example. On average, the service operations managers annual salary is $21,324 higher than what customer service managers make on average every year.

    While their salaries may differ, one common ground between customer service managers and service operations managers are a few of the skills required in each craft. In both careers, employees bring forth skills like payroll, customer satisfaction, and customer complaints.

    As far as similarities go, this is where it ends because a customer service manager responsibility requires skills such as "strong customer service," "service desk," "customer service reps," and "customer inquiries." Whereas a service operations manager is skilled in "patients," "related training," "service operations," and "project management." So if you're looking for what truly separates the two careers, you've found it.

    On average, service operations managers reach higher levels of education than customer service managers. Service operations managers are 5.5% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.0% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

    What Are The Duties Of a Lead Customer Service Representative?

    A lead customer service representative is responsible for managing a group of customer service staff to assist in daily operations and help with customer issues. Lead customer service representatives manage high-level customer complaints and provide immediate resolution and disputes. They implement strategies to ensure customer satisfaction, increase productivity, and achieve profitability goals. A lead customer service representative handles escalation and evaluates team member's performance. A lead customer service representative must have excellent communication and leadership skills to supervise the team and support the business' improvement plans.

    The next role we're going to look at is the lead customer service representative profession. Typically, this position earns a lower pay. In fact, they earn a $25,390 lower salary than customer service managers per year.

    A similarity between the two careers of customer service managers and lead customer service representatives are a few of the skills associated with both roles. We used resumes from both professions to find that both use skills like "customer satisfaction," "customer complaints," and "customer service. "

    While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, several resumes showed us that customer service manager responsibilities requires skills like "strong customer service," "payroll," "iso," and "direct reports." But a lead customer service representative might use skills, such as, "cleanliness," "pricing strategy," "cash handling," and "shift supervision."

    It's been discovered that lead customer service representatives earn lower salaries compared to customer service managers, but we wanted to find out where lead customer service representatives earned the most pay. The answer? The insurance industry. The average salary in the industry is $38,353. Additionally, customer service managers earn the highest paychecks in the manufacturing with an average salary of $57,488.

    When it comes to the differences in education between the two professions, lead customer service representatives tend to reach similar levels of education than customer service managers. In fact, they're 2.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

    How a Service Center Manager Compares

    A service center manager is responsible for managing staff performance and monitoring the efficiency of service operations to provide the highest customer satisfaction according to business functions and requirements. Service center managers strategize techniques to maximize operational productivity and identifying cost-reduction procedures with high-quality deliverables. They also negotiate contracts with suppliers, as well as meeting with potential clients to discuss business services, generating more revenue resources to maintain the company's financial stability and performance in the market.

    The third profession we take a look at is service center manager. On an average scale, these workers bring in lower salaries than customer service managers. In fact, they make a $20,666 lower salary per year.

    Using customer service managers and service center managers resumes, we found that both professions have similar skills such as "payroll," "customer satisfaction," and "customer complaints," but the other skills required are very different.

    There are many key differences between these two careers as shown by resumes from each profession. Some of those differences include the skills required to complete responsibilities within each role. As an example of this, a customer service manager is likely to be skilled in "strong customer service," "service desk," "customer service reps," and "csm," while a typical service center manager is skilled in "osha," "ltl," "provide technical assistance," and "process improvement."

    Additionally, service center managers earn a higher salary in the energy industry compared to other industries. In this industry, they receive an average salary of $41,317. Additionally, customer service managers earn an average salary of $57,488 in the manufacturing industry.

    Service center managers are known to earn similar educational levels when compared to customer service managers. Additionally, they're 2.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

    Description Of a Customer Service Senior Associate

    A customer service senior associate provides support and assistance to clients through calls, correspondence, or face-to-face interactions. They are responsible for responding to inquiries, discussing product or service specifications, helping them understand procedures, providing step-by-step instructions, or referring other services when necessary. They also maintain logs of all transactions and report to managers regularly. Additionally, as a customer service senior associate, it is essential to empower and serve as a mentor to junior associates in reaching team objectives while promoting company policies and standards.

    Now, we'll look at customer service senior associates, who generally average a lower pay when compared to customer service managers annual salary. In fact, the difference is about $16,462 per year.

    While their salaries may vary, customer service managers and customer service senior associates both use similar skills to perform their jobs. Resumes from both professions include skills like "customer complaints," "customer service," and "customer inquiries. "

    While some skills are shared by these professions, there are some differences to note. "strong customer service," "payroll," "customer satisfaction," and "iso" are skills that have shown up on customer service managers resumes. Additionally, customer service senior associate uses skills like data entry, financial transactions, customer transactions, and atm on their resumes.

    The average resume of customer service senior associates showed that they earn similar levels of education to customer service managers. So much so that the likelihood of them earning a Master's Degree is 0.1% more. Additionally, they're more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.0%.

    What a Customer Service Manager Does FAQs

    How Much Do Client Success Managers Make?

    Client success managers make an average of $73,000 annually, or $35 hourly. The customer success manager refers to a leadership position overseeing teams or may only refer to direct client relations. The result is a range in reported salary that largely depends on company size and role responsibility.

    How Much Do Customer Managers Make?

    Customer managers make around $65,000 a year. However, the average salary range is from $60,000 to $100,000 annually. The average hourly rate for a customer manager is around $35 to $50 an hour.

    How Much Does A Customer Service Supervisor Earn?

    A customer service supervisor earns an average of about $62,000 a year. However, in the U.S., customer service supervisors can earn anywhere from about $26,000 to about $100,000 a year.

    Customer service supervisors in the U.S. earn the most in San Francisco, where the average salary is about $73,000 a year, or 16% more than the national average.

    What Education Is Needed To Be A Customer Service Manager?

    While a degree is not needed to be a customer service manager, most companies look to hire people with at least an associate's degree. More commonly, companies look for individuals who hold a bachelor's degree in business administration or management.

    What Qualifications Do I Need To Be A Service Manager?

    The typical qualification to be a service manager is a degree in business administration or management. A person should also possess at least five years of experience working in customer service, though many jobs look for ten years of experience.

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