Job Description

Who are we?

Tram Operations Limited (TOL) is a FirstGroup subsidiary that is proud to operate the London Trams service for Transport for London (TfL). The tram service with its 39 tramstops provides inter-urban, cross-borough services, in Southwest London, for customers travelling between Wimbledon and New Addington or Beckenham Junction and Elmers End to Croydon.

London Trams provides excellent connectivity with 7 National Rail stations in the region, such as East Croydon, Wimbledon, Elmers End and Beckenham Junction. The system also connects with many bus routes.

With around 20 million passenger journeys a year, London Trams has some of the busiest routes in the country, operating over 4,200 services each week across the tramway. Travelling with trams is environmentally friendly and seen as relaxing, fast, and efficient with excellent travel connections.

As a business we operate in a very open and supportive culture.

Tram Operations is part of FirstGroup, the largest rail operator in the UK and second largest bus operator in the UK outside London. FirstGroup operates services throughout the UK and Ireland, with over 30,000 employees providing services that make travel smoother and life easier. FirstGroup works hard to reduce its impact on the environment, introducing cleaner and more environmentally responsible methods of transport.

About the team

The TOL Customer Service and Revenue team is responsible for the day-to-day management of revenue protection and managing / responding to customer contacts, either received directly or via TfL. The Tramlink Shop is based at East Croydon and is managed by TOL.

About the job

As Customer Services Manager you will work with our operational colleagues, and TfL to ensure the customer is at the heart of our decision making. You will ensure that the customer experience is managed by influencing your colleagues\' decisions.

This is a diverse role and will suit someone who is self-motivated and who will become the Customer Champion within the business. You will advocate and ensure customer needs are reflected in decisions made across the business.

You will actively promote and support our core values, one of which is Committed to our Customers. This role is key to supporting front line colleagues to deliver great experiences for our customers.

You will be responsible for the customer communications and will provide a senior escalation for any issues arising from any reported customer issues. You will analyse the data and trends in relation to customer communications and develop a programme of development of customer service initiatives for the frontline employees. You are responsible for reporting all customer service results/customer contacts for Senior Management, Executive and Stakeholder review. You will manage and produce customer service content for each business period for the TOL Board report.

You will liaise with the Heads of Business to influence and support any customer initiatives You will oversee and maintain customer service levels and standards and will lead a frontline team of up to 6, whom you will motivate and develop. You will ideally have worked in transport previously and will share best practices. You will also proactively provide feedback to other departments on service trends which may improve the customer journey and experience.

The successful candidate will possess the following skills and experience:

• A customer focused person with a passion for ensuring the best possible delivery for our customers.
• A strong communicator (verbally and in written form), with the ability to influence and work collaboratively with others.
• Excellent communication and motivational skills to engage with all levels of the business. A team player who is comfortable challenging decisions.
• An energetic and enthusiastic approach to problem solving and team leadership across a broad range of topics.
• Experience of driving behavioural change and the ability to influence.
• Previous line management experience is essential.

• Ability to work effectively under pressure and to demonstrate a professional approach in range of situations. Keeping calm in challenging circumstances.
• Supporting front line staff to seek resolutions to issues affecting the customer experience.

As a minimum, you will need to have:

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• At least 5 years Customer Service Management experience ideally gained within the transport industry.
• Excellent IT skills and the ability to learn and utilise new systems.

The Reward and benefits will include, but not limited to:

• A competitive salary of \xc2\xa344,000-\xc2\xa348,000 (dependent upon experience).
• Free Oyster card for yourself and a nominated person to use across the TfL services around London.
• Discounted leisure rail travel across UK Rail Networks (subject to qualifying period).
• Free First UK Bus pass for yourself and discounted FirstGroup Rail Travel (subject to qualifying period).
• 32 days Annual Leave plus 8 Bank Holidays.
• Save As You Earn (SAYE) and Buy As You Earn (BAYE) share schemes.
• Contributory Company Pension Scheme.
• Employee lifestyle discounts (Perkbox).

Other information

You will be based 80% of your time in the Tramlink Shop in East Croydon and 20% of your time at the depot.

We all belong at Tram Operations. FirstGroup\'s vision is to provide an inclusive environment for all colleagues, across its group of businesses, ensuring all candidates have an equal opportunity to access meaningful employment.

We value our differences such as age, gender, LGBTQIA+, ethnicity, religion, and disability. We maintain a zero tolerance towards any form of prejudice towards our colleagues, customers, and future talent.

We celebrate and encourage diversity of thought, progressive ways of working and seeing all our colleagues grow and thrive.

We review all roles and job descriptions to ensure they are accessible and, where possible, we support and provide flexible working options; we recommend that you refer to each vacancy description for further details.

If you require additional support to complete your application due to a disability or neurodivergent condition, for example, dyslexia, dyspraxia, or autism, please follow the links below. We encourage you to share any additional needs you may require so we can provide a fair and equal process for all who apply.

https://exceptionalindividuals.com/neurodiversity/

https://www.healthassured.org/blog/neurodiversity/

FirstGroup