Customer Service Coordinator

The University 
 
At Durham University we are proud of our people.  A globally outstanding centre of educational excellence, a collegiate community of extraordinary people, a unique and historic setting – Durham is a university like no other.  

Across the University we have a huge variety of roles and career opportunities, which together make us a large and successful community, which is a key hub of activity within our region and nationally.  Whether you are at the very start, middle or end of your career, there is a role for you. We believe everyone has their own unique skills to offer.  

We would be thrilled if you would consider joining our thriving University.  Further information about the University can be found here
 
The Role and the Department 
 
The Customer Services Team is part of University Library and Collections. We provide all front-line (face to face and virtual) customer, visitor and enquiry services across our department. This includes visitor services at our museums and user services in our Libraries and study spaces, including 24/7 term-time opening.  

Customer Services Coordinators are essential to the development and provision of specialist library services. They co-ordinate the day-to-day operations of the library and have areas of responsibility which include a highly responsive enquiry service, social media, user experience, digitisation, online support and circulation operations, as well as lots of opportunities to get involved in wider service delivery. The team of eight co-ordinators, have responsibility for line management of Shelving Assistants, Customer Services Assistants, Information Assistants and Library Assistants.  

The Customer Services Co-ordinators team work Monday to Sunday, working early morning, day and evening shifts as part of a standard rota, typically covering between 7.45am and 8pm, including Bank Holidays. The hours for this post will be worked across four days.

Working at Durham   
 
A competitive salary is only one part of the many fantastic benefits you will receive if you join the University: you will also receive access to the following fantastic benefits:  
 
•    Pro rata 27 Days annual leave per year in addition to 8 public holidays and 4 customary days per year – a total of 39 days per year.
•    No matter how you travel to work, we have you covered.  We have parking across campus, a cycle to work scheme which helps you to buy a bike and discount with local bus and train companies. 
•    Lots of support for health and wellbeing including discounted membership for our state of the art sport and gym facilities and access to a 24-7 Employee Assistance Programme. 
•    On site nursery is available and access to holiday camps for children aged 5-16 throughout the year.
•    Family friendly policies, including maternity and adoption leave, which are among the most generous in the higher education sector (and likely above and beyond many employers). 
•    There is a genuine commitment to developing our colleagues professionally and personally.  There is a comprehensive range of development courses, apprenticeships and access to qualifications and routes to develop your career in the University.  All staff have dedicated annual time to concentrate on their personal development opportunities.  
•    The opportunity to take part in staff volunteering activities to make a difference in the local community 
•    Discounts are available via our benefits portal including; money off at supermarkets, high street retailers, IT products such as Apple, the cinema and days out at various attractions.  
•    We offer generous pension schemes.  
 

Durham University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion

Our collective aim is to create an open and inclusive environment where everyone can reach their full potential and we believe our staff should reflect the diversity of the global community in which we work.   As a University equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are a key part of the University’s Strategy and a central part of everything we do.  We also live by our values and our Staff Code of Conduct.  At Durham we actively work towards providing an environment where our staff and students can study, work and live in a community which is supportive and inclusive. It’s important to us that all of our colleagues are aligned to both our values and commitment to EDI. 
 
We welcome and encourage applications from members of groups who are under-represented in our work force including people with disabilities, women and black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.  If you have taken time out of your career, and you feel it relevant, let us know about it in your application.  If you are a candidate with a disability, we are committed to ensuring fair treatment throughout the recruitment process. We will make adjustments to support the interview process wherever it is reasonable to do so and, where successful, reasonable adjustments will be made to support people within their role. 

What you need to demonstrate when you apply/Person Specification  
  
When you apply it is important that you let us know what skills/experience you have from a similar role and/or what skills/experience you have which would make you right for this role.  Further information about the role and responsibilities is at the end of this job description.  Where a criteria has an asterisk* next to it, it may be given additional weighting when your application is considered.    
  
Your application should cover the following criteria:  

Essential Criteria

Qualifications/Experience

1.     Five GCSE’s at least Grade C or level four (or equivalent) including English Language and Mathematics or a Post-16 qualification or equivalent experience.

2.     Relevant experience in a Customer Services role or environment. *   

3.     Experience of working collaboratively with other team members to ensure the delivery of high-quality services. *

Skills/Abilities/Knowledge

4.     Excellent spoken and written communication skills and the ability to develop effective working relationships, both internally and externally.

5.     Strong digital competence across a range of digital devices and apps including internet, email, digital communication tools, Microsoft 365 applications, digital booking system, social media applications, project planning.

6.     Committed to continuing professional development to enhance skills and expand knowledge.

7.     Ability to, and experience of, taking a proactive approach to solving problems yourself and as part of a team, resolving issues, planning appropriate solutions and making pragmatic decisions. 

8.     Ability to, and experience of, effectively networking to share and discuss good practice and exchange information.  

9.     Ability to, and experience of, contributing to operational planning activities. 

10.  The ability to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines without compromising on quality.

11.  Flexible Approach to working patterns which will include a commitment to early morning, evening and weekend working as the University demands.

Desirable Criteria

How to apply 
 
To progress to the assessment stage, candidates must evidence each of the essential criteria required for the role in the person specification above.  Where there are desirable criteria we would also urge you to provide any relevant evidence.  Please don’t forget to check if there is any weighted criteria (see above). 
 
While some criteria will be considered at the shortlisting stage, other criteria may be considered later in the assessment process, such as questions at interview.   
 
Submitting your application  
 
We prefer to receive applications online.  We will update you about your application at various points during the process, via automated emails from our e-recruitment system. Please check your spam/junk folder periodically to ensure you receive all emails  
  
What you are required to submit: 
•    A CV  
•    A supporting statement which shows examples of how you meet all of the criteria within the Person Specification   

Contact details  
 
If you would like to have a chat or ask any questions about the role, Katharine Davidson-Brown Library Customer Services Manager, would be happy to speak to you.  [email protected].
 
Typical Role Requirements  

   
Service Delivery

·       Show a commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and the University’s values.

·       Supervise the implementation of changes to procedures and practices relating to your service area.

·       Respond to queries and provide information/advice, while raising more specialist or complex queries with more experienced team members.

·       Use your experience and problem-solving skills to investigate and resolve issues relevant to your role and make recommendations based on your findings.

·       Enhance Durham University’s reputation by providing support to the running of internal and external outreach activities.

·       Monitor and analyse the use of Library Services to ensure efficiency and report your findings to senior colleagues.

·       Continually review what is required from service stakeholders to make sure the best possible service is provided.

·       Ensure that information used to analyse user experience and service delivery is accurate and provide reports and analysis to senior colleagues.

·       Ensure that data and information is accurate and share reports with internal networks.

Planning and Organising

·       Plan and organise own workload and the activities of other team members to deliver the role.

·       Organise and schedule resources, activities and events.

·       Contribute to planning the operational priorities of your team and make suggestions to senior colleagues on how to improve the service.

·       Monitor processes and activities to ensure team priorities are met.

·       Help manage and coordinate resources, activities and events.

Teamwork and Team Development

·       Supervise and delegate tasks to other members of the team and make sure that they are completed.

·       Explain systems and procedures to new starters and provide specialist advice and guidance (including any training) to help less experienced team members carry out their role.

·       Contribute to performance review processes by providing feedback on individual and team objectives and expectations and considering any development needs.

·       Provide specialist support and advice to team members.

·       Make changes to the services provided by your team in discussion with other team members.

·       Identify opportunities and contribute to decisions on how to improve services being delivered by the team.

·       Seek feedback from service stakeholders on their requirements from your service and recommend improvements to senior colleagues.

Communications/Liaison

·       Update and apply changes to processes and procedures.

·       Use your knowledge and expertise to provide advice and guidance to resolve problems and respond to a wide range of queries.

·       Create good working relationships with other team members and anyone else that you come across as part of your role to work together on joint activities.

·       Liaise with contacts both internally and externally to ensure that services are being delivered in an efficient and collaborative way.

·       Record information, such as feedback and usage data and share with internal partners.

·       Create good working relationships with internal and external partners and suppliers to work together on joint initiatives.

·       Build relationships with contacts to share good practice and exchange information.

·       Use creative and engaging ways to communicate and promote information about library services to your stakeholders.

·       Provide induction for new members of staff, and service users.

·       Any other reasonable duties.  

Please note that in submitting your application Durham University will be processing your data. We would ask you to consider the relevant University Privacy Statement Privacy Notices - Durham University  which provides information on the collation, storing and use of data.   
  
SECONDMENT
The post is  part time, fixed term  until 31st March 2025 may be offered on an internal secondment basis subject to the agreement of the current line manager.
If an internal member of staff is appointed to this role on a secondment basis, for pension purposes this will be processed in line with Step-Up arrangements.  For further details please click here.

When appointing to this role the University must ensure that it meets any applicable immigration requirements, including salary thresholds which are applicable to some visas.