Our customers are at the heart of our business, and we are passionate about everything we do to support our customers, communities, and the environment.
We are looking for individuals with a great work ethic, the ability to speak effectively at all levels, and a passion for providing high-quality customer service, to join our Financial Customer Care department as a Collections Advisor.
What you’ll be doing as a Collections Advisor:
Our Collections Advisors support customers through inbound and outbound calls via telephone and via written communication methods to reach fair and consistent outcomes while safeguarding Thames Water from preventable loss.
As a Collections Advisor, you will be the first point of contact for our customers, and you will strive to deliver a great customer service experience for everyone you speak to. We are in difficult times with the cost-of-living crisis and our customers need our help more than ever, assisting vulnerable and non-vulnerable customers. Our customer-first approach means ensuring you fully appreciate their situation and affordability when organising collections through payments and payment plans.
- This requires taking ownership and managing each situation, asking the relevant questions and coming to a resolution that leaves the customer knowing that they have been heard and helping in the best way possible.
- You’ll be representing Thames Water and working to help customers resolve billing enquiries and disputes, giving you the chance to contribute to the success of the department by achieving personal targets and quality measures.
Our Financial Customer Care department is open between the hours of 8 am to 8 pm Monday to Friday and on 1 in 3 Saturdays between 8 am to 1 pm. The role of Collections Advisor is a shift-based, hybrid role, full-time working - 36 hours a week, working on a six-week rotational pattern, which is 8.00 am to 3.45 pm / 8.30 am to 4.15 pm / 9.00 am to 4.45 pm / 9.30 am to 5.15 pm / 10.00 am to 5.45 pm / 12.15 pm to 8.00 pm,
Please note you must be able to commit in full to the first six-week training without absence (holiday/days off), this is to ensure you are fully equipped with systems and processes knowledge before living in the role.
May Cohort - Tuesday 7th May 2024 or Monday 3rd June 2024
What you should bring to the role
- A strong passion for customer service with a professional appreciation of what makes first-class customer service important, as are flexibility, multi-tasking, and problem-solving.
- Experience in a telephony-based financial assistance or collection role, within financial services or utilities would be desirable.
- Experience taking payments and arranging suitable payment plans.
- Assisting vulnerable and non-vulnerable customers by identifying appropriate arrears solutions.
- Strong solve problems skills and the ability to help customers who are experiencing financial difficulties.
- The ability to empathise and actively listen to our customers.
- Be resilient whilst helping customers with difficult issues/circumstances.
- Good IT skills and knowledge of Microsoft Excel, Outlook, and Word.
- An excellent telephone manner with good written and verbal communication and social skills to interact with our customers.
- Be an enthusiastic team player.
- Be keen to learn and progress.
- Good listening and problem-solving skills.
- Flexibility to work rotational shifts.(information on shifts is noted above).
What’s in it for you?
This is a fantastic opportunity to make a difference and you’ll be working with like-minded people who have customers at the heart of everything they do. We’re committed to giving you great training and we’ll make sure you have everything you need to thrive in this role.
Our competitive salary package includes 24 days of holiday per year increasing to 28 with the length of service and a wider benefits scheme including our benefits hub, which is packed full of offers and information to save you money and support your wellbeing.
Please note the role will be office-based while training and probation are complete and then move to hybrid working.
The starting salary for the Collections Advisor is £24,560 per annum.
Who are we?
At Thames Water, our purpose is crystal clear - to deliver life’s essential service so our customers, communities and planet can thrive.
Water is life’s great leveller. Every living thing needs it, every single day. From people to plants, birds to bees, farms to factories, we all need it to thrive, and we’re committed to taking care of it for us all.
But keeping water flowing is becoming harder. From scorching summers to wetter winters, extreme weather affects everything from our pipes to our local rivers. We need to keep millions more kettles boiling, public services operating, washing machines spinning, showers running and more, so every drop is more precious than ever. Are you ready to play your part?
Working at Thames Water
At Thames Water, we recognise that people are at the heart of our business. To help us succeed in providing life's essential service, we need a range of skills and capabilities, representative of society throughout our business.
We seek to attract and retain a cultural mix of people who can offer different but complementary attitudes, values, talents, and knowledge. We understand the importance of appreciating and harnessing the unique skills, experiences, backgrounds office-based, and differences that each individual brings.
Our over-arching diversity and inclusion aim is to ensure Thames Water is a diverse and inclusive great place to work. We encourage applications from everyone and offer extra support for those who need it throughout the recruitment process.
Find out more about working at Thames Water.
When a crisis happens, we all rally around to support our customers. As part of Team Thames, you’ll have the opportunity to sign up to support our customers on the frontline as an ambassador. Full training will be given for what is undoubtedly an incredibly rewarding experience. It’s also a great opportunity to learn more about our business, meet colleagues and earn some extra money along the way.
Disclaimer: due to the high volume of applications we receive, we may close the advert earlier than the advertised date, so we encourage you to apply as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.