Customer Service Representative (Temp - Hiring Event)

Customer Service Representative

About Austin Water: For over 100 years, Austin Water has been committed to providing safe, reliable, high-quality, and affordable water services to our customers. Today, we serve over 1,000,000 people in the Austin metropolitan area, across more than 548 square miles. As one of the fastest-growing cities in the country, we're not just keeping upwe're leading the way with sustainable infrastructure, advanced treatment technology, and environmental innovation.

Austin Water consistently ranks among the best in the country when it comes to water quality. We also treat, return, and recycle wastewater in ways that protect environmental resources. Austin Water exceeds federal and state requirements for clean water and environmental compliance at our water and wastewater treatment plants.

Job Description:

Under general supervision, this position is responsible for handling customer questions, complaints, and billing inquiries.

Duties, Functions and Responsibilities:

• Receives by email, fax, or phone, inquiries from customers, contractors, and other city departments.
• Resolves customer issues with one call resolution.
• Answers customer requests or inquiries concerning services, products, billing, and equipment.
• Verifies customer account and active services using various databases and software applications.
• Researches customer account information to explain services, charges, and adjustments.
• Logs customer complaints, creates service requests, and routes to the appropriate department(s).
• Maintains and files all generated service requests.

Responsibilities - Supervisor and/or Leadership Exercised:

May train others.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

Must possess required knowledge, skills, abilities, and experience and be able to explain and demonstrate, with or without reasonable accommodations, that the essential functions of the job can be performed.

• Knowledge of billing procedures.
• Knowledge of good customer relations practices.
• Skill in oral and written communication.
• Skill in handling multiple tasks and prioritizing.
• Skill in using computers and related software.
• Skill in planning and organizing.
• Skill in handling conflict and uncertain situations.
• Ability to work with frequent interruptions and changes in priorities.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective communication and working relationships with city employees and the public.

Minimum Qualifications:

Graduation from an accredited high school or equivalent, plus two (2) years of experience in billing, credit counseling, or customer service.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bilingual in English and Spanish.
• Experience working in a utility or similarly-regulated environment.
• Customer service experience in a high-volume call center environment.
• Experience using two-way radio to dispatch field crews.
• Experience using geographic information systems (GIS) or other geographic mapping software.
• Experience with automated billing system (e.g. the City of Austin Customer Care and Billing System CC&B).
• Database or software experience, including data entry and researching customer account information.
• Experience creating, routing, tracking, filing, and maintaining generated service requests.
• Ability to travel to more than one work location.

Notes to Candidate:

Position Overview: This position is responsible for radio, telephone and dispatching communications to customers and field service crews, initiating service requests and work orders, ensuring that calls are received, reviewed, documented, and referred to appropriate parties for resolution, providing assistance to field service crews via 2-way radio, and conducting notifications for water outages, main breaks, and street cuts.

Pay Range: $23.76 - $27.32

Position(s) will be filled at the following location: Glen Bell Service Center
3907 S Industrial Dr, Austin, TX 78744

Days and Hours:

Call center has multiple shifts covering a 24/7 operation, requiring on-call availability and mandatory service in certain situations. All shifts may be required to work overtime, on-call, weekends, nights, holidays, and during bad weather events. Shift assignments will be based on business need at time of hire and are subject to change at management discretion.

Benefits:

Working with Austin Water provides a number of health and welfare benefits, such as medical, paid leave time, a great retirement plan, training opportunities and more click HERE for more information.

When completing the City of Austin employment application:

• A detailed, complete employment application is required. It helps us to better evaluate your qualifications and will be used to determine salary if you are selected for this position.
• Provide each job title and accurate employment dates for all jobs included on the application.
• Your work history should include the duties you performed, any supervisory or lead responsibilities, and any equipment and computer software used.
• The City of Austin employment application is an official document; incomplete applications will not be considered.
• A rsum is required but will not substitute for a complete employment application. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
• A cover letter is also required. In the cover letter candidates should describe, in concise detail, their interest in this position and highlight any prior experience that is relevant to this position.

If you are selected as a top candidate:

• Verification of your education (which may include high school graduation or GED, undergraduate and/or graduate degrees) will be required. You must provide proof of education from an accredited organization/institution.
• If you are in the military or a veteran, you will need to provide a copy of your DD-214 prior to confirming a start date.
• A criminal background investigation is required

Driving Requirement: This position requires a valid Texas Class C Driver License or the ability to acquire one by your hire date. External New Hires must meet the City of Austin's Driver Record Evaluation (DRE) requisite. To be considered for a driving position, applicants cannot have more than three moving violations or a total of six Driver Record Evaluation points within a period of thirty-six (36) months.

Travel:

If you are selected for this position, and meet the Driver Safety Standards in the City of Austin Driver Safety Program, you may drive when necessary to multiple locations as part of your regular job duties. Otherwise, you are responsible for getting to and from these locations.

Critical Employee:

• This position has been designated as critical for the City of Austin. Critical positions are necessary and vital and support activities that impact City or department operations. Work can be done while at a designated work site or while working at an alternate work location. Critical employees may be reassigned to another area to provide essential services to support any extraordinary situations or emergency conditions.

Secondary Employment:

• All Austin Water employees are prohibited from accepting or engaging in any secondary employment that might conflict or interfere with an employee's duty and responsibility to the Department.
• Austin Water will review all secondary employment.
• Employees are required to submit a Secondary Employment Application for review and approval upon being hired with Austin Water, as well as current Austin Water employees considering secondary employment.

90-day Provision:

This posting may be used to fill additional vacancies that occur within the department.

All Austin Water worksite locations are tobacco-free. Use of tobacco products and/or e-cigarettes is not permitted on any AW worksite including construction sites, parking lots, garages or in any personal vehicle located on the premises.

Please note this posting may close any time after 7 days.

Please be aware that the Job Posting Close Date reflects the final day to apply, but the posting will close at 11:59 PM the day before the date listed. All application steps, including attachments and submission, must be fully completed before that time.

Join the City of Austin Team

At the City of Austin, we are more than just an employerwe are a vibrant community dedicated to shaping one of the nation's most dynamic and innovative cities. As we strive to fulfill our commitment as public servants, it is important that we ground our efforts in a set of guiding principles Empathy, Ethics, Excellence, Engagement, and Equity that anchor our delivery of services that significantly impact the lives of Austinites.