Customer service representative to live chat operator
A customer service representative already meets 32% of what the live chat operator role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.
68.9/ 100
1 How much of what a live chat operator is expected to do is already part of a customer service representative’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 live chat operator role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A live chat operator role treats 5 of its required skills as things a customer service representative already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- create solutions to problems
- guarantee customer satisfaction
- have computer literacy
- perform multiple tasks at the same time
- process data
What stands in the way is 12 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 live chat operator role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a customer service representative background worth leading with.
- already held perform escalation procedure communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held knowledge base information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held use customer relationship management software working with computers
- already held process data information skills
- already held carry out active selling communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held e-commerce systems information and communication technologies (icts)
All 12 carried skills, including the 5 the live chat operator role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 23 missing skills fall into 10 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 discern written communication required
- still to learn respond to inquiries in written form required
- still to learn use internet chat required
- still to learn adapt to changing situations required
- still to learn persuade clients with alternatives required
- optional, not held utilise cross-selling optional
- optional, not held handle helpdesk problems optional
- optional, not held use communication techniques optional
- still to learn handle tasks independently required
- still to learn type at speed required
- still to learn keep task records required
- still to learn characteristics of services required
- optional, not held e-procurement optional
- optional, not held sales argumentation optional
- still to learn information confidentiality required
- optional, not held call-centre technologies optional
- still to learn characteristics of products required
- still to learn work with e-services available to citizens required
4 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a live chat operator role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 work with e-services available to citizens practise this
- 02 characteristics of products study this
- 03 characteristics of services study 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 create solutions to problems skill
- already held guarantee customer satisfaction skill
- already held have computer literacy skill
- already held perform multiple tasks at the same time skill
- already held process data skill
- already held carry out active selling skill
- already held e-commerce systems knowledge
- already held knowledge base knowledge
- already held perform data analysis skill
- already held perform escalation procedure skill
- already held provide customer follow-up services skill
- already held use customer relationship management software skill
The 4 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held exercise patience optional
- optional, not held prioritise requests optional
- optional, not held answer incoming calls optional
- optional, not held communication principles optional
- optional, not held use communication devices optional
11 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held e-procurement optional
- optional, not held sales argumentation optional
- optional, not held utilise cross-selling optional
- optional, not held answer incoming calls optional
- optional, not held call-centre technologies optional
- optional, not held communication principles optional
- optional, not held exercise patience optional
- optional, not held handle helpdesk problems optional
- optional, not held prioritise requests optional
- optional, not held use communication devices optional
- optional, not held use communication techniques optional
27 held skills the live chat operator role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role apply conflict management skill
- not needed by the target role apply knowledge of human behaviour skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
- not needed by the target role consumer protection knowledge
- not needed by the target role contact customers skill
- not needed by the target role control of expenses skill
- not needed by the target role customer service knowledge
- not needed by the target role data mining methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role determine charges for customer services skill
- not needed by the target role ensure client orientation skill
- not needed by the target role facilitate official agreement skill
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role implement customer follow-up skill
- not needed by the target role keep records of customer interaction skill
- not needed by the target role listen actively skill
- not needed by the target role manage schedule of tasks skill
- not needed by the target role measure customer feedback skill
- not needed by the target role process customer orders skill
- not needed by the target role process order forms with customer's information skill
- not needed by the target role process refunds skill
- not needed by the target role provide information skill
- not needed by the target role relationship marketing knowledge
- not needed by the target role sales activities knowledge
- not needed by the target role show diplomacy skill
- not needed by the target role speak different languages skill
- not needed by the target role upsell products skill
- not needed by the target role use e-services skill
7 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 characteristics of products required
- still to learn characteristics of services required
- still to learn information confidentiality required
- optional, not held e-procurement optional
- optional, not held sales argumentation optional
- optional, not held call-centre technologies optional
- optional, not held communication principles optional
Other moves recorded from customer service representative
- sales processor 45% covered · substantial
- after-sales service technician 44% covered · substantial
- call centre agent 44% covered · substantial
- ICT help desk agent 35% covered · substantial
- technical sales representative in office machinery and equipment 35% covered · substantial
- technical sales representative in chemical products 35% covered · substantial
- technical sales representative in agricultural machinery and equipment 35% covered · substantial
- technical sales representative in mining and construction machinery 35% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a customer service representative become a live chat operator?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A customer service representative already covers 32% of what a live chat operator is expected to do: 12 skills carry over, 5 of which the live chat operator role treats as required.
What skills does a customer service representative need to become a live chat operator?
12 required skills are missing, plus 11 optional ones. They fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is work with e-services available to citizens.
How hard is the move from customer service representative to live chat operator?
Its learning distance is 68.9 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.