What skills does a call centre agent need?

A call centre agent needs 17 essential skills including characteristics of products, credit card payments, characteristics of services, guarantee customer satisfaction, create solutions to problems. Core competencies include .

Will AI replace call centre agent jobs?

The AI disruption score for call centre agent is 87/100 (very high risk). Some tasks may be automated but the role will evolve rather than disappear entirely.

RetailSales workersISCO 5244

call centre agent

Call centre agents handle incoming or outgoing customer calls for a business. They call existing and prospective customers to promote goods and services. They also obtain sales and arrange sales visits.

European Skills Framework

Skills and knowledge areas required for this occupation based on European classification.

Essential (17)

characteristics of productscharacteristics of productsThe tangible characteristics of a product such as its materials, properties and functions, as well as its different applications, features, use and support requirements.credit card paymentscredit card paymentsThe methods involving payment done through credit cards.characteristics of servicescharacteristics of servicesThe characteristics of a service that might include having acquired information about its application, function, features, use and support requirements.guarantee customer satisfactionguarantee customer satisfactionHandle customer expectations in a professional manner, anticipating and addressing their needs and desires. Provide flexible customer service to ensure customer satisfaction and loyalty.create solutions to problemscreate solutions to problemsSolve problems which arise in planning, prioritising, organising, directing/facilitating action and evaluating performance. Use systematic processes of collecting, analysing, and synthesising informat...perform multiple tasks at the same timeperform multiple tasks at the same timeExecute multiple tasks at the same time, being aware of key priorities.speak different languagesspeak different languagesMaster foreign languages to be able to communicate in one or more foreign languages.keep task recordskeep task recordsOrganise and classify records of prepared reports and correspondence related to the performed work and progress records of tasks.adapt to changing situationsadapt to changing situationsChange approach to situations based on unexpected and sudden changes in people's needs and mood or in trends; shift strategies, improvise and naturally adapt to those circumstances.use customer relationship management softwareuse customer relationship management softwareUse specialised software to manage company’s interactions with current and future customers. Organise, automate and synchronise sales, marketing, customer service, and technical support, to increase t...listen activelylisten activelyGive attention to what other people say, patiently understand points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times; able to listen carefully the needs of cus...present reportspresent reportsDisplay results, statistics and conclusions to an audience in a transparent and straightforward way.have computer literacyhave computer literacyUtilise computers, IT equipment and modern day technology in an efficient way.tolerate stresstolerate stressMaintain a temperate mental state and effective performance under pressure or adverse circumstances.communicate by telephonecommunicate by telephoneLiaise via telephone by making and answering calls in a timely, professional and polite manner.process dataprocess dataEnter information into a data storage and data retrieval system via processes such as scanning, manual keying or electronic data transfer in order to process large amounts of data.handle tasks independentlyhandle tasks independentlyHandle inquiries or information independently with little or no supervision. Depend on one's self to communicate with others and perform daily tasks such as working with data, creating reports, or usi...

Optional (15)

e-procuremente-procurementThe functioning and methods used to manage electronic purchases.knowledge baseknowledge baseAn online library that contains information about a product or service to help customers finding answers to their queries.teamwork principlesteamwork principlesThe cooperation between people characterised by a unified commitment to achieving a given goal, participating equally, maintaining open communication, facilitating effective usage of ideas etc.e-commerce systemse-commerce systemsBasic digital architecture and commercial transactions for trading products or services conducted via Internet, e-mail, mobile devices, social media, etc.communication principlescommunication principlesThe set of commonly shared principles in regards with communication such as active listening, establish rapport, adjusting the register, and respecting the intervention of others.handle helpdesk problemshandle helpdesk problemsInvestigate what causes problems, test and improve solutions in order to reduce number of calls to the helpdesk.perform data analysisperform data analysisCollect data and statistics to test and evaluate in order to generate assertions and pattern predictions, with the aim of discovering useful information in a decision-making process.answer incoming callsanswer incoming callsRespond to customers' inquiries and provide customers with appropriate information.educate on data confidentialityeducate on data confidentialityShare information with and instruct users in the risks involved with data, especially risks to the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of data. Educate them on how to ensure data protection.perform escalation procedureperform escalation procedureAssess situations in which a solution cannot be provided right away, and ensure that it is brought to the next levels of support.provide ICT supportprovide ICT supportResolve ICT-related incidents and service requests from customers, clients or colleagues including password resets and updating databases such as Microsoft Exchange email.apply operations for an ITIL-based environmentapply operations for an ITIL-based environmentProperly operate ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) based service desk procedures.provide customer follow-up servicesprovide customer follow-up servicesRegister, follow-up, solve and respond to customer requests, complaints and after-sales services.think proactivelythink proactivelyTake initiatives to come up with improvements.prioritise requestsprioritise requestsPrioritise incidents and requests reported by customers or clients. Respond professionaly and in a timely fashion.