Call centre agent to call centre supervisor
A call centre agent already meets 32% of what the call centre supervisor role asks for. The move turns on 15 required skills not yet in the profile.
67.7/ 100
1 How much of what a call centre supervisor is expected to do is already part of a call centre agent’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the call centre supervisor role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A call centre supervisor role treats 6 of its required skills as things a call centre agent already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- characteristics of products
- characteristics of services
- create solutions to problems
- have computer literacy
- perform data analysis
- present reports
What stands in the way is 15 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 12 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A call centre supervisor role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a call centre agent background worth leading with.
- already held use customer relationship management software working with computers
- already held adapt to changing situations communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held perform data analysis working with computers
- already held characteristics of services business, administration and law
- already held characteristics of products engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held teamwork principles generic programmes and qualifications
All 12 carried skills, including the 6 the call centre supervisor role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 21 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn manage ICT project required
- still to learn analyse staff capacity required
- still to learn forecast workload required
- still to learn manage business knowledge required
- still to learn perform project management required
- optional, not held manage staff optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- still to learn maintain high quality of calls required
- still to learn measure call quality required
- still to learn interpret automatic call distribution data required
- still to learn supervise data entry required
- optional, not held analyse call performance trends optional
- still to learn call quality assurance management required
- still to learn employment law required
- still to learn call routing required
- still to learn call-centre technologies required
- still to learn secure sensitive customer's information required
- optional, not held abide by business ethical code of conducts optional
- optional, not held apply information security policies optional
- still to learn train employees required
- optional, not held build rapport with people from different cultural backgrounds optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a call centre supervisor role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 maintain high quality of calls practise this
- 02 manage ICT project practise this
- 03 measure call quality practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 12 skills that carry over
- already held characteristics of products knowledge
- already held characteristics of services knowledge
- already held create solutions to problems skill
- already held have computer literacy skill
- already held perform data analysis skill
- already held present reports skill
- already held adapt to changing situations skill
- already held provide customer follow-up services skill
- already held speak different languages skill
- already held teamwork principles knowledge
- already held tolerate stress skill
- already held use customer relationship management software skill
6 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held abide by business ethical code of conducts optional
- optional, not held apply information security policies optional
- optional, not held build rapport with people from different cultural backgrounds optional
- optional, not held analyse call performance trends optional
- optional, not held manage staff optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
20 held skills the call centre supervisor role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role answer incoming calls skill
- not needed by the target role apply operations for an ITIL-based environment skill
- not needed by the target role communicate by telephone skill
- not needed by the target role communication principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role credit card payments knowledge
- not needed by the target role e-commerce systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role e-procurement knowledge
- not needed by the target role educate on data confidentiality skill
- not needed by the target role guarantee customer satisfaction skill
- not needed by the target role handle helpdesk problems skill
- not needed by the target role handle tasks independently skill
- not needed by the target role keep task records skill
- not needed by the target role knowledge base knowledge
- not needed by the target role listen actively skill
- not needed by the target role perform escalation procedure skill
- not needed by the target role perform multiple tasks at the same time skill
- not needed by the target role prioritise requests skill
- not needed by the target role process data skill
- not needed by the target role provide ICT support skill
- not needed by the target role think proactively skill
4 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn call quality assurance management required
- still to learn call routing required
- still to learn call-centre technologies required
- still to learn employment law required
Other moves recorded from call centre agent
- live chat operator 59% covered · moderate
- ICT help desk agent 46% covered · substantial
- customer service representative 36% covered · substantial
- car leasing agent 35% covered · substantial
- sales processor 32% covered · substantial
- ICT help desk manager 30% covered · substantial
- customer contact centre information clerk 28% covered · substantial
- contact centre supervisor 27% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a call centre agent become a call centre supervisor?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A call centre agent already covers 32% of what a call centre supervisor is expected to do: 12 skills carry over, 6 of which the call centre supervisor role treats as required.
What skills does a call centre agent need to become a call centre supervisor?
15 required skills are missing, plus 6 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is maintain high quality of calls.
How hard is the move from call centre agent to call centre supervisor?
Its learning distance is 67.7 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.