How to become a customer service apprentice: William's story

Meet William, 20, from West Yorkshire, who is completing a customer service apprenticeship with Hermes, a parcel delivery company.

I did Drama at sixth form – it helped me loads in terms of confidence and speaking in front of people.

What is your job?

I work in customer service for Hermes. I'm in my first year of an apprenticeship with the company. In my role we deal with queries from customers about their parcels, so, for example, if they’ve been lost, we try to sort it out for them. We get things like calls, emails and web chats and we do our best to resolve issues for the customer. I report on the customers’ questions and if we are meeting targets. As well as that, I make sure reports are accurate and put the right people in the correct teams on the system.

What soft skills do you use in your job?

Because I’m working with different departments, I have to pretty much speak with every advisor in the contact centre. I’m in meetings a lot, so teamwork skills are important. I’ve also got to be organised because I’m doing a university course at the same time as coming into work. I’ve got to know what I need to do and prioritise.

What subjects did you study?

For GCSE I did Geography, History and French. Then for A-levels, Geography, Biology, Drama and Maths.

I will get my degree in Business Management, then I will also achieve Chartered Management status. Hermes offers a lot of help, because you get management experience, which is what we are studying at university.

What subjects do you find useful in your job?

Geography – you need to know where places are and if they are hard to get to. Also, you’ve got to have a pretty good knowledge of English. I did Drama at sixth form, which helped me loads in terms of confidence and speaking in front of people.

Is this the job you always wanted to do?

At the end of sixth form, I knew I didn’t want to go to university, but I needed higher education to get myself where I wanted to be. So, after taking a year out, I looked at apprenticeships through UCAS. Then, I was put into the customer service team. This is a world I’ve never been in before. It’s really good – I've really enjoyed it.

Top tips

• I came from a school where university was the only option we were told about. I would suggest looking at apprenticeships too – it turned out to be a great opportunity for me

• Degree apprenticeships give you hands-on experience as well as your qualification, which is really attractive to employers.

Once William finished his apprenticeship, he can apply to become a customer service assistant. Customer service assistants deal with customer questions, purchases and complaints.

What to expect if you want be a customer service assistant

• Customer service assistant average salary: £17,00 to £25,000 per year
• Customer service assistant typical working hours: 37 to 40 hours per week

What qualifications do you need to be a customer service assistant?

You could get into this role via a college course, an apprenticeship or applying directly.

Sources: LMI for All, National Careers Service

This information is a guide and is constantly changing. Please check the National Careers Service website for the latest information and all the qualifications needed.

Find out more on the Prospects website about the role of a customer service manager.

For careers advice in all parts of the UK visit: National Careers Service (England), nidirect (Northern Ireland), My World of Work (Scotland) and Careers Wales (Wales).

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