Management and Leadership Customer Service Training
CUSTOMER SERVICE LEADERSHIP STREAM
Course Outline
This Program is designed to provide graduates with a Nationally Accredited Professional Qualification for Customer Service Managers – the nationally recognised Certificate IV in Frontline Management (BSB40807) or Customer Contact (BSB40307) or the advanced Diploma of Management (BSB51107) focusing on Customer Service Management and Australia’s only formal and nationally recognised “Certified Customer Service Manager” designation – Dip. Man. CCSM.
The course focuses on the ‘science and art’ of Customer Service Management and the Certified Customer Service Manager (Level I and Advanced) qualifications have been approved for Federal Government employer incentive payments of up to $8,000 per eligible candidate (terms and conditions apply).
Customer Service Managers come from a variety of backgrounds but unlike other professions such as Accounting there has been, in Australia, no formal industry body recognition. Anyone may call themselves a customer service manager but few have any qualification other than experience to prepare them for the role. Despite job titles such as customer service director, customer relationship manager, call centre manager, manager – customer experience, national manager customer satisfaction and consumer relations manager, few people holding these positions have any customer service qualifications. They come from diverse backgrounds – some have undergraduate degrees from a wide variety of disciplines, others have completed more generalised post graduate study such as an MBA. A significant component of Australia’s customer service managers and professionals have no formal qualifications instead gaining considerable experience at a variety of levels in the organisation before working their way up ‘through the ranks’.
Professionals in other roles study their chosen discipline and then are recognised by their professional association. For example, despite studying a recognised accounting degree, an accountant is not ‘Certified’ or ‘Chartered’ until they have worked through their professional body’s course requirements and are recognised as qualified in the field. The CSIA believes it is time Australian organisations treat service as importantly as finance.
The CCSM program includes a workbook, lectures, assignments and an assessment by an RTO leading to a nationally recognised Certificate IV in Frontline Management or Customer Contact or a Diploma of Management under the Australian Qualifications Framework.
It is time for all those in industry and the government sector with customer service management responsibilities to gain formal professional qualifications and for CEOs and human resource departments to insist on only employing customer service leaders recognised by Australia’ peak professional body for Customer Service – the Customer Service Institute of Australia.
The Certified Customer Service Manager Qualification has two levels:
Certified Customer Service Manager (Level I) – CCSM
The CSIA’s standardised minimum qualification for designation is a Certified Customer Service Manager (Level I) can lead to a Nationally recognised as a Certificate IV in Frontline Management or Customer Contact. The Certificate IV in Frontline Management or Customer Contact program has been approved for Federal Government employer incentive payments of up to $4,000 per eligible candidate (terms and conditions apply). Up and coming professionals in the service arena will be able to demonstrate they are suitably qualified to face the many challenges confronting today’s customer service leaders by obtaining this qualification. The course is designed for Customer Service Managers with or without formal training, supervisors, and contact centre or frontline team leaders seeking to develop customer service leadership and management skills.
The Level I program is designed for:
Customer Service Team leaders and supervisors in contact centre, retail or internal operations environments. It is ideal for providing formal qualifications and skills to up and coming customer service personnel being developed for their first leadership role.
Certified Customer Service Manager (Advanced) – Dip. Man. CCSM (Adv.)
The Advanced Program is designed to provide graduates with a Nationally Accredited Professional Qualification for Customer Service Managers – the Diploma of Management focusing on Customer Service Management and Australia’s only formal and nationally recognised Certified Customer Service Manager (Advanced). The Diploma of Management program has been approved for Federal Government employer incentive payments of up to $8,000 per eligible candidate depending on your current qualifications (terms and conditions apply).
The Advanced Level program is designed for:
Senior Customer Service Team leaders and supervisors in contact centre, retail or internal operations environments. It is ideal for providing formal qualifications and skills to customer service team leaders being developed for their management roles.
Senior customer service mangers and those who are or are seeking to become Chief Customer Officers will also benefit from this advanced qualification.
Should any participants on completion of the Certified Customer Service Manager (Level I) Course wish to progress their qualification, they can do so by completing a further 1 day of class room training and completion of the Advanced Customer Service Management Workbook. Participants which graduate the Advanced course will be awarded a Certified Customer Service Manager (Advanced) Certificate and after successful assessment by the CSIA RTO a Nationally Recognised Diploma of Management for Customer Service Management. There is a further cost for Certified Customer Service Manager (Level I) graduates to upgrade their qualification. The cost to study and upgrade to the advanced qualification is $2,300 plus GST. Those upgrading their skills in this way may be eligible for a $4,000 government incentive payment.
Course Features and Outline
Customer service is increasingly becoming a vital business issue as organisations realise the benefits of an integrated, strategic customer service management system for providing effective customer support. Professionals working within customer-focused businesses, or those managing their organisation’s customer service function, need to keep informed about the latest techniques and experiences. From small customer service departments to large call centres, the importance of developing a valued relationship with customers via a Customer Service Management System is an essential foundation of long-term business growth.
CCSM Course Benefits
From June 2003 the CCSM program has been the formal professional qualification required for immediate full Membership status of the CSIA. The CSIA is the peak customer service body in Australia and the only customer service organisation for professionals in Australia which is a Member of the International Council of Customer Service Organizations
Upon successful completion of the program, graduates are awarded a free year’s membership of the CSIA at full Member status and recognition of member’s professional standing through a certificate and use of the CSIA’s designatory post-nominal letters: CCSM. Those who have completed the Diploma of Management will be permitted use of the Dip. Man. CCSM (Adv.) post-nominal letters.
Becoming a ‘Certified Customer Service Manager’ opens many doors both domestically and internationally. The ‘CCSM’ designation is your passport to a leadership career in customer service. The CCSM program has been developed with a mix of technical rigour and practical workplace based projects with a focus on developing leaders in the customer service discipline able to quickly contribute at the organisation’s most senior level including board membership
Experiencing the satisfaction of completing a demanding and rigorous course
Soon all employers will look for the Certified Customer Service Manager qualification when seeking to hire customer service personnel or promote from within their organisations.
Benefits for Employers
The goal of this professional qualification is to increase the level of customer service in organisations across Australia
Employers will have access to customer service leaders with more confidence. This confidence will be developed through increased job skills and a greater understanding of customer service management methods, tools and techniques
The practical, work place based projects will enable your CCSM graduates to tackle problems relevant to your customer service management system while they learn
Only two days away from the job – the bulk of the program is self-paced learning via workbook, internet and projects – only two days of lectures and assessment are held off-site
Because CSIA is a not for profit enterprise, the fees are modest and competitive when compared with other disciplines’ professional qualifications and even ad-hoc customer service training, ‘seminars’ and ‘workshops’
Course Features
The certification program features a work book, readings, assignments, featuring relevant material from Australia’s best service specialists and practitioners
To really motivate and inspire candidates the course has a full day of lectures and interaction with some of Australia’s service leaders and is finalised with a further day of assessment, review and feedback
Students can work at their own pace with only two days of off-site lectures and assessment – the work book and projects can be completed over time to fit in with existing work commitments
The work book is comprised of seven modules, each covering a vital aspect of service excellence and includes readings, case-studies, exercises and projects – a copy of CSIA’s best-selling case-study book Customer Service Excellence is also included free with the study materials
The course has been designed to remain up to date and is subject to ongoing review by some of Australia’s most senior customer service executives and CEOs
Course Outline:
By the end of this course, graduates will be able to:
1. Understand the value of a customer service philosophy for business growth and service excellence
Identify and define a diversity of attitudes, knowledge and skills required to focus on customers and customer needs
Address diverse customer needs and values
Describe how leadership, vision/mission statements and application of resources influence an organisation’s customer service focus
2. Develop and assess the success of a Customer Service Management System including the International Customer Service Standard and Certification Trustmark Program
Develop an integrated approach to customer service process management
understand implementation, assessment and compliance with the International Customer Service Standard
Explain how to use best practice methodology to increase market share and customer retention
3. Display Service Leadership
Identify key customer service leadership principles and skills
Apply customer service management principles and models to your work
Nurture your own leadership skills and identify opportunities for self-improvement
Develop leadership skills for influencing, correcting and leading a customer-driven organisation
4. Manage Service Personnel
Recruit and select excellent customer focussed employees
Develop teamwork systems
Assess the attitude, skills and competencies of employees with regard to providing high quality service centric outcomes
Effectively monitor employee performance and satisfaction levels.
5. Understand and Develop Infrastructure and Technology
Develop operating systems that support excellent customer service
Identify relevant technology solutions and how to effectively benefit from implementation
Improve service delivery and process management
Effectively assess outsource providers and the impact on customers of these strategic partnerships
Devise a strategic system which handles customer inquiries and billing as well as retaining and growing clients
6. Effectively Utilise Measurement Systems and Tools
Develop and implement a balanced scorecard to measure and predict customer service performance
Describe the means of measuring and analysing both internal and external customer satisfaction
Design and implement a compliant and feed back monitoring system able to feed into continuous improvement
7. Ensure Integration and Operationalisation
Drive exceptional customer loyalty through best practice customer service
Develop a plan for implementing and integrating an customer service management system in the workplace
Expand, strengthen, and improve your organisation’s customer service processes
Course duration:
Two days with CSIA instructors in a classroom environment and ongoing mentoring workplace based activities and assessment with the program being completed in approximately 9 to 18 months.
Recognition of Prior learning and Assessment
CSIA respects that your previous studies, short courses, work and life experiences contribute to your skills and competency. The CSIA qualifications 
the skills and knowledge you gained throughout your life. To reflect this approach you’ll be assessed through course work, workplace activities and the observations of your managers, customers and colleagues. CSIA collates this data into a body of evidence that demonstrates your competence.
How to Apply
Due to the personal attention provided to each candidate’s projects and work book, course places are strictly limited each semester. A detailed application must be completed and forwarded to CSIA in the first instance.
Qualifications, experience and references will be checked prior to acceptance of candidates and processing of course fees. Please click here to download an application or contact us on 1300 912 700
