Client Services Agent

About the role

Agents at Acumen must exhibit a service-forward mindset as they embody the organization's mission of facilitating freedom, choice, and opportunity for individuals with disabilities and their families. This role is critical to ensuring the company as a whole has a positive and healthy working relationship with new and existing clients, their families, and support coordinators.

Responsibilities

• Support clients (employers and employees) during their enrollment process
• Process related paperwork and manage electronic communication
• Accurate data entry using several databases simultaneously while meeting deadlines
• Establish, foster, and grow relationships with clients and program contacts, including third-party organizations
• Understand and stay up to date on program rules, regulations, and implementation needs while effectively communicating and explaining these rules to external and internal stakeholders
• Act as a communication liaison between clients and across all Acumen’s departments, including communicating opportunities and/or issues that may directly impact the client or Acumen
• Provide accurate day-to-day support to clients, including receiving, researching, and resolving all client inquiries within contractual timeframes
• Ensure compliance with all state and federal guidelines, including managing escalated issues with client families and states within contractual timeframes
• Develop strategies to support the growth of existing programs through marketing, education, and community outreach to potential recipients and social services organizations
• Work collaboratively with other internal departments to ensure all issues are addressed effectively in verbal and written communication
• Manage a fluctuating volume of calls and emails
• Provide effective and efficient customer service via calls and/or electronic communication to clients and internal departments
• Perform other work-related duties as assigned

Team Member Responsibilities

• Take personal responsibility for actions, demonstrated through owning problems and problem-solving without projecting failures onto others
• Demonstrate excellence in work standards and tenacity in completing tasks
• Effectively problem-solve, make decisions, resolve crisis situations, and develop resolutions between parties
• Work well with other team members and departments
• Interact and cooperate respectfully to efficiently accomplish mutual goals and assignments
• Request support from the team with ample time to meet deadlines
• Ensure effectiveness in processes to achieve or seek best practices

Requirements

• At least one year of experience with data entry (manual keying of information into databases)
• Works well independently with limited supervision
• Self-starter with effective communication skills
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment
• Prior experience in customer service and/or client relations
• Ability to handle fluctuating inbound and outbound call volume
• Must be able to work a flexible schedule, including weekends, weeknights, and holidays
• Experience working with multiple applications simultaneously
• Ability to prioritize and handle competing requests successfully
• Knowledge and experience using Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Internet, Email, and PDFs
• Patience, perseverance, and follow-through mentality
• Ability to communicate professionally both orally and in writing
• Attention to detail and critical thinking skills
• Ability to handle responsibility with limited supervision
• High standard of integrity
• Basic math skills
• Excellent organizational skills, time management, and task orientation
• Good interpersonal communication skills
• Ability to handle and accommodate complex clients
• Ability to plan for and meet multiple deadlines
• High school diploma or equivalent with some college preferred (or equivalent work experience)

Preferred Qualifications

• Willingness to obtain certain state-required certifications
• Ability (if required by program) to travel, including overnight(s), via ground transportation and/or flight
• Maintain a valid driver's license within the state of residence and valid automobile insurance (if required by program)
• Able to provide a secure remote workspace with high-speed internet when applicable

Communication Skills

• Excellent communication and relationship skills with all stakeholders, including clients, state entities, and colleagues
• Ability to effectively and respectfully interact with a client base that has varying levels of ability, educational backgrounds, authority, and ethnicities
• Ability to maintain confidentiality
• Ability to speak in public, including trainings
• Ability to communicate effectively with diverse internal and external customers to accomplish tasks or reach an understanding diplomatically and respectfully

Equipment Normally Used

• Telephone and headset
• Computer with multiple screens
• Copier, scanning system, printer, postage machine, and calculator
• Fax machines and other office equipment as needed

Physical and Mental Demands

• Ability to sit for extended periods while entering data into multiple systems
• Regular use of fingers, hands, arms, and eyes to input data, fold, and/or cut paper
• Required to answer the phone and respond to team members and internal customers
• Operate and maintain office equipment, including computers, copy machines, scanning and reading equipment, and calculators, requiring repetitive motion of fingers, hands, arms, and eyes
• Frequently required to stand, walk, and talk for an hour or more
• Vision ability, including close vision, color vision, and the ability to adjust focus
• Ability to work under stressful conditions that may require handling multiple work assignments with specific deadlines
• Ground travel upon demand