Lead Customer Services Representative, DCSS

THIS IS A NEW ASSEMBLED EXAMINATION. The eligible list resulting from this examination will cancel any existing list and may last approximately one year, but can be extended.

Supplemental Questionnaire: A properly completed Supplemental Questionnaire must be submitted with each application. Failure to submit the Supplemental Questionnaire will result in disqualification.

Applications and Supplemental Questionnaires must be in the possession of the Human Resource Services Department by 5:00 p.m. on the Last Day for Filing.

Applications and Supplemental Questionnaires will only be accepted on-line.

Qualified bilingual persons who speak English and are also fluent in: Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Laotian, Korean, Mien, Tagalog, Amharic, Farsi, Dari, Tigrigna, Russian, Romanian or Sign Languages are especially encouraged to apply. There is an additional bi-weekly compensation for persons in positions designated bilingual. Qualified candidates may be tested to demonstrate language proficiency.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENT: TYPING CERTIFICATE

A typing certificate with a typing speed of at least 40 net words per minute from a temporary agency, employment agency, or community college, printed on letterhead with the address and phone number of the agency or college must be uploaded to your online application (under the resume tab) by 5:00p.m. on the last day for filing. The typing certificate must be dated within six (6) months of the filing deadline.

It is your responsibility to ensure that your typing certificate is uploaded prior to submission of your application. Failure to do so will result in disqualification. NO EXCEPTIONS.

To obtain a typing certificate, you may wish to contact East Bay Works - Career Centers. Click on the following link, and go to the "locations" tab to locate a center near you. www.eastbayworks.com/

Additional typing test resource information is available here.

THE DEPARTMENT

The Alameda County Department of Child Support Services provides quality child support services to parents for the care and well-being of their children. We establish parentage, locate absent parents, establish and enforce orders for child and medical support, and collect payments. When parents can rely on monthly child support payments, positive outcomes for children increase. We believe the best way to achieve this is to establish partnerships with parents and communities to encourage responsible parenting, family self-sufficiency and child well-being. We value and promote integrity, service excellence, open communication, growth and development, collaboration and innovation. We are seeking employees who want to part of a dynamic organization, who are committed to our organizational purpose, values and carrying out our mission.

THE POSITION

Under general supervision, Lead Customer Service Representatives act as  leads and provide first line customer service in an inbound/outbound customer contact center; investigate and resolve escalated customer service inquiries and calls from the general public; write policies and procedures for review by the Child Support Supervisor; participate in the training and evaluation of customer service staff; and perform related duties as required.  

THE IDEAL CANDIDATE

• Have a strong ability to tactfully and courteously serve people from diverse backgrounds.
• Establish and maintain good working relationships with internal and external customers and deliver the highest level of performance.
• Lead others through effective feedback and coaching to meet established goals.
• Have the ability to work under pressure in a fast paced environment.
• Apply sound judgement when prioritizing, organizing, assigning and monitoring operations and workloads.
• Effectively manage escalated customer service matters, can track and analyze information, offer appropriate solutions to problems, and follow-up to ensure resolution within established timeframes.
• Experience developing and delivering on the job training to small groups and individuals.

Click here to view recruitment flyer.

Click here to view full Job Description for Lead Customer Services Representative, DCSS

Education:  

Graduation from high school, or possession of a Certificate of Proficiency issued by the California State Board of Education, or possession of a G.E.D. certificate.  

AND

Experience:

Either I:  The equivalent of six months of full-time experience in the class of Child Support Assistant I or Customer Service Representative in the Alameda County classified service.    

Or

Pattern II

Experience:  

The equivalent of two years full-time experience in a call center or customer contact environment including experience with online, chat and social media, one year of which must have included lead or supervisory responsibility.    

Or

Pattern III

Experience:  

Any combination of training, education or experience which would provide an applicant with the required knowledge, skills and abilities listed below.  

Substitution: 

A Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited college or university in business management, public administration, or a closely related field may be substituted for six months of the required experience in pattern II above.   

Special Requirements:  

Must be able to type at a minimum of 40 net words per minute from clear copy. 

A thorough pre-employment background investigation, including fingerprinting will be conducted for all candidates who have accepted a conditional offer of employment to ensure they are suitable for Child Support related work.  Any felony conviction will be disqualifying.  Upon employment, subsequent background investigations will be conducted on a periodic basis to determine ongoing suitability for Child Support related work  

NOTE:     The Civil Service Commission may modify the above Minimum Qualifications in the announcement of an examination.  

The most suitably qualified candidates will possess the following competencies:

Knowledge of:  

• Lead work and staff development techniques and practices
• Automated systems capability and applications; modern office practices and procedures including the use of standard computer programs such as Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook
• Familiarity with using social media platforms
• Business arithmetic
• Laws, regulations, and codes governing the access to, and use of, confidential information and legal documents
• Legal terminology applicable to child support documents
• Techniques and practices for  providing effective customer service to individuals from various social-economic and ethnic groups, in person, via telephone, and through correspondence (including contacts with irate  individuals)
• Modern call center technology
• Techniques and practices for effectively managing interactions with disruptive and confrontational people.  

 Ability to: 

• Interpret and explain procedures to others, and answer a variety of questions related to department programs and processes
• Exercise sound judgment when prioritizing, organizing, assigning and monitoring operations and workload
• Develop and deliver training
• Work under pressure in a fast paced customer contact environment
• Use a multi-line, call center, phone system
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with staff, peers, other agencies, and the public
• Maintain confidentiality
• Learn specific operations and procedures of the job
• Give effective feedback to coach and encourage customer service representatives to perform at their best
• Contribute to the overall team effort to meet and exceed  team performance goals (this includes quantitative and qualitative goals which are set by the department)
• Prioritize work to meet individual and team goals
• Respond to customer inquiries within established turnaround times
• Evaluate inquiries and offer appropriate solutions
• Listen, understand, follow and communicate oral and written directions and apply them effectively in a variety of situations
• Use sound judgment when evaluating a wide variety of information; identify alternatives from diverse sources and choose the best solution from several options, then initiate appropriate actions within prescribed guidelines
• Effectively communicate verbally while using excellent  customer service skills
• Effectively communicate in writing; including accurate spelling, proper grammar, punctuation, and correct vocabulary  

THE EXAMINATION WILL CONSIST OF THE FOLLOWING STEPS:

1). A review of candidates' applications to verify possession of minimum requirements. Those candidates who possess the minimum requirements for the class will move on to the next step in the examination process which is a performance examination.

2). The performance examination will be a  computer-based OPAC examination. Those candidates who successfully pass the performance examination will move on to the next step of the examination process, an oral examination.

3). An oral interview, which will be weighted as 100% of the candidate's final examination score. The oral interview may contain situational exercises.

Candidates must attain a qualifying rating on each portion of the examination
WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE CHANGES TO THE ANNOUNCED EXAMINATION STEPS.

Alameda County utilizes a Civil Service Selection System founded on merit. Such a system is competitive and based on broad recruitment efforts and equal opportunity for qualified applicants to test in an examination process designed to determine the qualifications, fitness and ability of competitors to perform duties of the vacant position. Many of our recruitments are targeted and specific to the needs of a current vacant position, in which case, the eligible list may be exclusively used for that current vacant position. Other recruitments many be more broadly used for both current and future vacancies, or for other alternate jobs with comparable scopes of work.

To learn more about our recruitment and selection process, please visit the "What You Need to Know" section of our website, www.acgov.org/hrs

Applicants will be informed via email with reasonable notice in advance of any examination process which will require their attendance. The following dates are tentative and subject to change based on the needs of the Agency.

Alameda County offers a comprehensive and competitive benefits package that affords wide-ranging health care options to meet the different needs of a diverse workforce and their families. We also sponsor many different employee discount, fitness and health screening programs focused on overall well being.  These benefits include but are not limited to*:

For your Health & Well-Being

• Medical – HMO & PPO Plans
• Dental – HMO & PPO Plans
• Vision or Vision Reimbursement
• Share the Savings
• Basic Life Insurance 
• Supplemental Life Insurance (with optional dependent coverage for eligible employees) 
• County Allowance Credit
• Flexible Spending Accounts - Health FSA, Dependent Care and Adoption Assistance
• Short-Term Disability Insurance
• Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Voluntary Benefits - Accident Insurance, Critical Illness, Hospital Indemnity and Legal Services
• Employee Assistance Program

For your Financial Future

• Retirement Plan - (Defined Benefit Pension Plan)
• Deferred Compensation Plan (457 Plan or Roth Plan)

For your Work/Life Balance

• 11 paid holidays
• Floating Holidays
• Vacation and sick leave accrual
• Vacation purchase program
• Catastrophic Sick Leave
• Group Auto/Home Insurance
• Pet Insurance
• Commuter Benefits Program
• Guaranteed Ride Home
• Employee Wellness Program (e.g. At Work Fitness, Incentive Based Programs, Gym Membership Discounts)
• Employee Discount Program (e.g. theme parks, cell phone, etc.)
• Child Care Resources
• 1^st United Services Credit Union 

*Eligibility is determined by Alameda County and offerings may vary by collective bargaining agreement.  This provides a brief summary of the benefits offered and can be subject to change.

All notices related to County recruitments for which you have applied will be sent/delivered via email. Please add @acgov.org and alamedacountyHR@acgov.org as accepted addresses to any email blocking or spam filtering program you may use. If you do not do this, your email blocking or spam filtering program may block receipt of the notices regarding your application for recruitments. You are also strongly advised to regularly log into your County of Alameda online application account to check for notices that may have been sent to you. All email notices that will be sent to you will also be kept in your personal online application account. You will be able to view all of your notices in your online application account by clicking on the 'My applications' button on the Current Job Openings page.

Please take the steps recommended above to ensure you do not miss any notices about a recruitment for which you have applied. The County of Alameda is not responsible for notices that are not read, received or accessed by any applicant for a County recruitment.

NOTE: All notices are generated through an automated email notification system. Replies to the email box alamedacountyHR@acgov.org are routed to an unmonitored mailbox. If you have questions please go to our website at www.acgov.org/hrs. You may also contact the Human Resources Analyst listed on the bulletin for the recruitment for which you have applied.

Tracy Gonzalez, Human Resources Analyst
Human Resource Services Division, County of Alameda
510-272-5085; Email: Tracy.Gonzalez@acgov.org
www.acgov.org/hrs

Alameda County has a diverse workforce, that is representative of the communities we serve, and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All aspects of employment are based on merit, competence, performance and business need. Alameda County does not discriminate in employment on the basis of, race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors protected under federal, state and local law. Alameda County celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive, and welcoming workplace environment.