SENIOR CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

Class specifications are intended to present a descriptive list of the range of duties performed by employees in the class. Specifications are not intended to reflect all duties performed within the job.

SUMMARY DESCRIPTION

Under direction, leads, oversees, and participates in the more complex and difficult work of staff responsible for performing a variety of customer service duties including those in support of the City’s utility service and billing functions; performs a wide variety of accounts receivable, account maintenance, data entry, billing, and public contact work in support of the assigned customer service function; assumes responsibility for specialized functions such as maintaining the utility billing system; and performs a variety of technical tasks relative to assigned areas of responsibility.

DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS

This is the advanced journey level class in the Customer Service Representative series. Positions at this level are distinguished from the journey level class by the level of responsibility assumed and the complexity of duties assigned in support of the City’s utility service and billing functions. Employees perform the most difficult and responsible types of duties assigned to classes within this series including the provision of lead supervision over lower level staff. Employees at this level are required to be fully trained in all procedures related to area of responsibility.

REPRESENTATIVE DUTIES

The following duties are typical for this classification. Incumbents may not perform all of the listed duties and/or may be required to perform additional or different duties from those set forth below to address business needs and changing business practices.

• Leads, plans, and reviews the work of staff responsible for providing customer service in support of the City’s utility service and billing functions including the production and collection of payments for water, sewer, and trash accounts.
• Trains assigned employees in their areas of work including appropriate methods, procedures, and techniques; verifies the work of assigned employees for accuracy, proper work methods, techniques, and compliance with applicable standards and specifications.
• Responds to the more sensitive and difficult public inquiries in a courteous manner; researches, resolves, and responds to customer problems and complaints in an efficient and timely manner; explains departmental billing and collection policies and procedures to the public.
• Performs the full range of Customer Service Representative duties as necessary; receives and processes payments for a variety of City services including for water utility bills; processes checks and money orders received; researches and resolves billing problems; enters payment into computer; reconciles and adjusts customer accounts; generates notice of balance due or past due, as required; receives and processes requests for water service including new service, restoration and termination; prepares and maintains a variety of files, logs, records, and reports; prints and distributes reports; receives and processes incoming mail and returned mail; monitors and maintains adequate quantities of supplies and forms.
• Participates in the development of goals and objectives as well as policies and procedures; makes recommendations for changes and improvements and participates in the implementation to existing standards, policies, and procedures; monitors work activities to ensure compliance with established policies and procedures.

• Participates in the selection of assigned staff; provides and coordinates staff training; performs lead supervision over lower level staff; works with employees to correct deficiencies; assists in implementing discipline procedures; supports and relieves customer service staff.
• May perform a variety of specialized functions related to maintaining the City’s utility billing system; troubleshoots problems; coordinates with information technology staff to implement upgrades; assists in testing patches; writes basic queries for utility billing; audits queries developed by others; applies rate changes to the system including to create, structure, and test utility rates in the system.
• Coordinates and leads staff meetings to clarify policies; creates uniform work habits.
• Establishes schedules and methods for providing adequate coverage for telephones and counter in the Utility Billing area; identifies resource needs; reviews needs with appropriate managing staff; allocates resources as needed.
• Provides vacation and temporary relief as needed.
• Performs related duties as required.

QUALIFICATIONS

The following generally describes the knowledge and ability required to enter the job and/or be learned within a short period of time in order to successfully perform the assigned duties.

Knowledge of:

• Operations, services, and activities of a water utility customer service program.
• Principles of lead supervision and training.
• Bookkeeping and clerical accounting principles, practices, and terminology.
• Methods, procedures, practices, and terminology used in billing and financial record keeping work.
• Modern office procedures, methods and equipment including computers.
• Computer applications such as word processing, spreadsheets, and statistical databases.
• Principles and practices of fiscal, statistical, and administrative record keeping and reporting.
• Principles of business letter writing and basic report preparation.
• Methods and techniques used in customer service and public relations.
• Receptionist and telephone techniques.
• Programs and services of the organization relating to service fees, billing, and account maintenance.
• English usage, spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
• Mathematical principles.

Ability to:

• Lead, organize, and review the work of assigned customer services staff.
• Ability to work in a fast paced, often hectic work environment
• Independently perform the most difficult bookkeeping, clerical accounting, and customer service duties involving the use of independent judgment and personal initiative.
• Understand the organization and operation of the City and of outside agencies as necessary to assume assigned responsibilities.
• Understand, interpret, and apply general and specific administrative and departmental policies and procedures.
• Exercise tact and judgment in responding to inquiries and resolving complaints and problems.
• Make mathematical computations rapidly and accurately.
• Find and reconcile discrepancies in balancing accounts.
• Implement and maintain standard filing systems.
• Maintain records and reports.
• Operate and use modern office equipment including a computer and various software packages.
• Operate 10-key calculator by touch.
• Type and enter data at a speed necessary for successful job performance.
• Work under steady pressure with frequent interruptions and a high degree of public contact by phone or in person.
• Demonstrate an awareness and appreciation of the cultural diversity of the community.
• Communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with those contacted in the course of work.

Education and Experience Guidelines - Any combination of education and experience that would likely provide the required knowledge and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain the knowledge and abilities would be:

Education/Training: Equivalent to the completion of the twelfth grade. Additional specialized training in bookkeeping, accounting, customer service, or a related field is desirable.

Experience: Three years of increasingly responsible experience performing duties comparable to a Customer Service Representative II in the City of Escondido or comparable experience performing clerical accounting duties involving considerable public contact, including one year of experience performing customer service or billing work for a water utility agency.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORKING ENVIRONMENT

The conditions herein are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential job functions.

Environment: Standard office setting. Exposure to dust from paperwork. Work schedule is 9/80 with alternating Fridays off in a biweekly period. Work environment is both formal and informal, team- and autonomy-oriented, having variable tasks, pace and pressure.

Physical: Primary functions require sufficient physical ability to work in an office setting and operate office equipment. CONTINUOUS sitting, upward and downward flexion of neck; fine finger dexterity and light to moderate finger pressure to manipulate keyboard, equipment controls, and other office equipment; pinch grasp to manipulate writing utensils. FREQUENT side-to-side turning of neck, walking, standing, bending and stooping, pushing/pulling, twisting at waist, moderate wrist torque to twist equipment knobs and dials; lifting objects weighing up to 20 lbs. from below waist to above shoulders and transporting distances up to 50 yards. OCCASIONAL squatting, kneeling, reaching above and at shoulder height, moderate grasping to manipulate reference books and manuals; lifting objects weighing 20-35 lbs. from below waist to above shoulders and transporting distances up to 50 feet.

Vision: See in the normal visual range with or without correction; vision sufficient to read computer screens and printed documents and to operate equipment.

Hearing: Hear in the normal audio range with or without correction.

Revised: August 2007
MH/Department

Revised: July 2005

Prepared: November 2001
Johnson & Associates