Where am I going wrong

Xena_007

Well, I've been working ever since the age of 16 in Tesco for the past 6 years, I've also worked in the charity sector, helped over 50 local residents in my local community with key skills such as cv help, cover letter advice etc...

Along with this I graduated getting a 2:1 and have recently become a trustee..

So... The express and star release an article of how BT are struggling to fill call centre vacancies in the Sandwell area due to a lack of skills so reading this I thought hey why not apply given my customer facing experience and all the other things I've achieved I thought I would have at least got to an interview but already been rejected:mad:

heretolearn_2

That's only one job, pick yourself up and try again.


Did you factor in that customer service over the phone needs some different skills to face-to-face?

KiKi

Could be a million reasons.

I'd suspect the main one is that they have x jobs to fill, and 10 times that number applying who have call centre experience when you don't. It doesn't matter how good you are, it's how good everyone else is compared to you, and the weighting the company place on different factors such as skills and experience.

Don't take it personally. You may also find that your degree and other experience may put employers off for low level roles. Not saying it's right, I'm just saying that it's a possibility.

Chin up and keep applying.
KiKi

slig

That sucks. To me you sound like a great candidate, perhaps too good, which is the only reason I can think of why they didn't shortlist you. You have a degree and experience, so maybe when they've hired similar people in the past they haven't stayed long and it costs them money re-hiring and re-training people.

Try not to focus too much on one rejection. It's never going to be possible to know exactly what's going on behind the scenes and why they didn't pick you, so onwards and upwards, and find some more jobs to apply for. Perhaps you could re-word your cover letter slightly so that it is more clear that you aren't just wanting to do the job as a stopgap before you find something better, you are looking for something stable, a company in which you can progress, etc, and show real interest in the specific position.

DVardysShadow

Over qualified. You are far too much of an activist and too interested in change to ever be a good fit in a call centre at the entry level. They actually want dull unimaginative droids who will follow their scripts precisely, obediently following the company procedure even where it is patently inappropriate to the problem.

You might want to edit your post down substantially. Because if the employer identify themselves from your post, tracking your application down will be a doddle from the other info you have given. Unless you are happy to be blacklisted by them.

Xena_007

Thanks for the feedback guys very good points!

@ D Vardy - Yeah I was thinking that, it perhaps is a bit dodgy sharing so much info lol..

. it's interesting because I applied 3 weeks ago through one agency and I had not heard anything back ... A woman then told me at the job centre that another agency had taken over recruitment so as you would I went home and I applied through that agency.... Got a phone call , woman said its good I'll put your CV forward.... Got a missed a call early this week so I phoned them back and the woman wanted to organise a telephone interview there and then......

Then she asks me Have you applied through an other agency to which I responded yes then she goes I'm afraid you can't continue your application with us.....gutted... Then I told em that the initial application is void because you guys have taken over in which she said nope and that the other agency is still on the contract

So I chased up my application with the 1st agency and the woman says sorry but we cannot find your application and you will have to re-submit which I did .....and today I got rejected even though I was successful with the other agency for a telephone interview until me opening my big mouth and saying I have applied through another agency :T

Sorry about the novel lol

cmw1212

I've read the story and it says that they are not entry level call centre roles rather more complicated customer service which gives the impression that if you haven't worked in pretty much exactly the same job before you're getting nowhere.

Xena_007

cmw1212 wrote: »

I've read the story and it says that they are not entry level call centre roles rather more complicated customer service which gives the impression that if you haven't worked in pretty much exactly the same job before you're getting nowhere.

Yeah I agree, but on one hand Im getting to a telephone interview and then through another agency I'm not which surely is an indication of how flawed the recruitment process is....

I also know someone who works there who has not even got Cs at both Maths and English which is an "essential" requirement in the job description

acs_2

sometimes its as simple as there being so many applicants, and when there are enough on the shortlist, the rest simply go in the bin. its nothing to do with you as a candidate, its simply bad luck.

just keep plugging away, thats all you can do

Emmzi

You appear to think you are over qualified when in fact you have no call centre experience? So that is where you are going wrong.

Ask to do job shadowing free of charge at a call centre if that is really the career you want.

Also, this job seems unconnected to anything else you do. I would be questioning motivational fit and pretty sure you'd be off in 6 months so a waste of my training investment in you.

doodoot

Bad luck OP.

As for the over-qualified reasons, I'm afraid that I have to beg to differ where this belief is concerned.

I recently applied for an unqualified teaching assistant role, got to interview, did really well judging by the responses of the panel and went home looking forward to that golden phonecall offering me the job.

Imagine my sickened feeling when that golden phonecall told me that I was unsuccessful even though they were mightily impressed with my interview.

They gave the job to someone who was a level 3 qualified applicant.

Go figure.