Sales processor to call centre agent
A sales processor already meets 39% of what the call centre agent role asks for. The move turns on 9 required skills not yet in the profile.
60.2/ 100
1 How much of what a call centre agent is expected to do is already part of a sales processor’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 agent role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A call centre agent role treats 8 of its required skills as things a sales processor 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 multiple tasks at the same time
- present reports
What stands in the way is 9 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 10 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A call centre agent role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a sales processor background worth leading with.
- already held process data information skills
- already held e-commerce systems information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held perform multiple tasks at the same time management skills
- already held characteristics of services business, administration and law
- already held characteristics of products engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held provide customer follow-up services assisting and caring
All 10 carried skills, including the 8 the call centre agent role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 22 missing skills fall into 8 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 adapt to changing situations required
- still to learn communicate by telephone required
- still to learn listen actively required
- optional, not held educate on data confidentiality optional
- optional, not held handle helpdesk problems optional
- optional, not held perform escalation procedure optional
- optional, not held think proactively optional
- still to learn handle tasks independently required
- still to learn keep task records required
- still to learn guarantee customer satisfaction required
- optional, not held apply operations for an ITIL-based environment optional
- optional, not held answer incoming calls optional
- still to learn use customer relationship management software required
- optional, not held perform data analysis optional
- optional, not held provide ICT support optional
- still to learn credit card payments required
- optional, not held e-procurement optional
- still to learn tolerate stress required
- optional, not held prioritise requests optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a call centre agent role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 guarantee customer satisfaction practise this
- 02 handle tasks independently practise this
- 03 tolerate stress 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 10 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 multiple tasks at the same time skill
- already held present reports skill
- already held process data skill
- already held speak different languages skill
- already held e-commerce systems knowledge
- already held provide customer follow-up services skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held communication principles optional
- optional, not held teamwork principles optional
- optional, not held knowledge base optional
13 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held apply operations for an ITIL-based environment optional
- optional, not held e-procurement optional
- optional, not held answer incoming calls optional
- optional, not held communication principles optional
- optional, not held educate on data confidentiality optional
- optional, not held handle helpdesk problems optional
- optional, not held knowledge base optional
- optional, not held perform data analysis optional
- optional, not held perform escalation procedure optional
- optional, not held prioritise requests optional
- optional, not held provide ICT support optional
- optional, not held teamwork principles optional
- optional, not held think proactively optional
24 held skills the call centre agent role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role channel marketing knowledge
- not needed by the target role company policies knowledge
- not needed by the target role customer service knowledge
- not needed by the target role electronic communication knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure client orientation skill
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role international business knowledge
- not needed by the target role issue sales invoices skill
- not needed by the target role manage digital documents skill
- not needed by the target role meet deadlines skill
- not needed by the target role multimodal transport logistics knowledge
- not needed by the target role negotiate sales contracts skill
- not needed by the target role process order forms with customer's information skill
- not needed by the target role process payments skill
- not needed by the target role provide customers with order information skill
- not needed by the target role provide information skill
- not needed by the target role sales activities knowledge
- not needed by the target role show diplomacy skill
- not needed by the target role supply chain principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role use databases skill
- not needed by the target role use different communication channels skill
- not needed by the target role use e-services skill
- not needed by the target role use spreadsheets software skill
- not needed by the target role work independently in sales skill
5 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 credit card payments required
- optional, not held e-procurement optional
- optional, not held communication principles optional
- optional, not held knowledge base optional
- optional, not held teamwork principles optional
Other moves recorded from sales processor
Common questions about this move
Can a sales processor become a call centre agent?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A sales processor already covers 39% of what a call centre agent is expected to do: 10 skills carry over, 8 of which the call centre agent role treats as required.
What skills does a sales processor need to become a call centre agent?
9 required skills are missing, plus 13 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is guarantee customer satisfaction.
How hard is the move from sales processor to call centre agent?
Its learning distance is 60.2 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.