call center agent tasks for resume

Call Center Resume Examples & The Skills to Include [+Templates]

Updated: September 18, 2024

Published: July 27, 2018

Writing a good call center resume can be the difference between landing your dream job and being rejected. A good resume shows excellent use of structure, inclusion of keywords, skill sets, and more.

You must include the relevant qualifications, skills, and experiences that align with call center job requirements if you want to stand out from other candidates. Customizing your resume for each job you apply to will take you further than using the same resume for every application, even if it’s for the same position.

Table of Contents

What is a call center resume?

Call center resume tips: where to begin, call center resume tips, call center resume examples & templates, call center resume summary, call center resume objectives, call center resume skills, create your resume with confidence.

12 Free Customizable Resume Templates

Fill out this form to access your free professionally-designed templates, available on:

• Microsoft Word
• Google Docs
• Microsoft PowerPoint
• Google Slides

Download Free

All fields are required.

You're all set!

Click this link to access this resource at any time.

A call center resume focuses primarily on your skills, professional background, and qualifications, aligning them with the job requirements. Depending on the job position, such as the seniority level or the size of the organization, you should know the average length of your resume.

Although I recommend customizing your call center resume, there are some details you will include like in any normal resume, such as:

• Your name and contact information.
• Your education.
• Relevant work experience.
• Helpful skills.
• Relevant non-work experience if you're new to the job market.

In the next section, I’ll show you some specific templates you can leverage based on your skill set and the open role.

If you’re creating your resume from scratch, you might get caught up on the resume’s layout and the information will go on it. There are a couple of directions I recommend you take if you’re not sure where to begin.

The first is to try AI tools to get started. There are many free AI tools that have emerged in recent years that can help you brainstorm copy and create your resume. ChatGPT can do a surprisingly good job of tweaking the text on your resume. Another AI tool you could use to make your resume is Rezi , which specializes in resume creation, unlike ChatGPT.

As with any AI tool, you’ll still need to make revisions to make sure there are no typos and that the resume accurately represents you, your voice, and your experience. (Beware: Sometimes ChatGPT can create scenarios and numbers out of thin air!)

What’s more, you’ll want to be sure that any AI-supported call center resumes don’t sound like any of the hundreds of other people who use AI to create theirs.

The other direction I would guide you towards is using a premade template that can take care of the layout for you and give you an idea of what kind of information you should provide. Here are a few templates you can use to get started.

These templates will help you better understand how to craft a strong resume that will grab the attention of potential employers. Consider the role you're applying to and find the example below that most closely aligns.

Featured Resource: Free Resume Templates

1. Outstanding Communication Skills

Effective communication is a critical factor in achieving success in the call center industry.

As a call center representative, you will be required to actively listen to callers, ask thoughtful questions to understand their issues, and communicate solutions effectively.

Additionally, you must be able to think on your feet, go off script, and respond appropriately to customer complaints. Therefore, I highly suggest you highlight your communication skills prominently in your resume.

Employers want to hire someone who doesn’t need constant reassurance on how to respond to a customer and can effortlessly communicate.

How to Improve This Skill

• Learn as much about your company’s customer protocols as possible and keep them handy. That way, you’re not scrambling to figure out what to do next while on the phone.
• Summarize the key points you discussed during your call with the customer to ensure you’re both on the same page and prepare them for the next steps.

Pro tip: Highlight your ability to listen and communicate effectively to solve customer problems based on your past experiences.

2. Learning Proficiency

To excel in a customer service role, you must have a comprehensive understanding of the product you’re supporting.

While it may not be realistic to expect a complete mastery of the subject matter from day one, you’ll need to be proactive in learning and finding answers.

Effective training, coupled with attention to detail and an ability to retain information, can help you quickly develop the knowledge needed to provide exceptional customer support.

By prioritizing ongoing learning, you can position yourself as a valuable asset to your team.

• Take notes during your training. Consider what you need to know to complete each task and break each module into smaller steps.
• Leverage outside sources like video tutorials and online lessons to supplement your knowledge and skills.
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions.

Pro tip: Include any additional certifications or credentials you have pursued as part of your self-development journey to highlight your proficiency in learning.

3. Problem-Solving and Troubleshooting

Customers are going to call with issues. Some of them you’ll know how to fix, and some of them you won’t. For the latter, you’ll need to develop a process for diagnosing their issue and determining how to fix it.

You’ll need knowledge of your organization’s system and the ability to detect issues using the process of elimination.

Effective problem-solving requires logical reasoning, as well as the ability to communicate clearly and empathetically with the customer. By honing these skills, you can become a more effective customer service representative.

• Get familiar with your company’s knowledge base to help you assist customers with their inquiries.
• Roleplay using hypothetical issues a caller may have that aren’t explicitly covered in your training. Work through how you would solve it.

Pro tip: Instead of simply saying that you can problem-solve, provide specific examples of how you have used these skills to solve challenges in your past roles. For instance, you could mention how you documented a standard process and increased customer satisfaction by 25%. If you get an interview, you can then expand on this experience.

4. Close Attention to Detail

When working directly with customers, you need to pay close attention to detail.

Customers will be reaching out with specific problems, questions, and concerns. You must pay attention to the details and ensure you’re offering the correct solution.

Additionally, misspellings and grammatical errors are signs of unprofessionalism and will deter employers from trusting you.

By prioritizing attention to detail in all aspects of your work, you can demonstrate your commitment to providing exceptional customer service.

• Listen to live calls for practice and see if you came up with the same solution your colleague did. If listening to your own calls, find what could be improved. Did you miss an important detail? Did the caller have to repeat themselves?
• Use typing tests to improve your speed, accuracy, and data entry skills.

Pro Tip: A great way to demonstrate your attention to detail is by presenting a well-structured, error-free resume. Take the time to proofread your resume thoroughly, and consider enlisting the help of a friend, colleague, or family member to review it before submission. I’ve had others catch mistakes on work I reviewed multiple times, so having fresh eyes is always a big help.

5. Strong Organizational Skills

Call center agents are required to keep a record of all customer interactions. Since agents speak with several customers daily, it can get confusing to remember which customer had which problems.

If you keep to-do lists, budget spreadsheets, or other records, add these skills to your resume. Remember, a lot of the skills you use in your personal life can end up becoming valuable soft skills that employers need and value.

• Get comfortable with recording thorough notes in your CRM or ticketing systems. They’ll be in the same place as your customers' records.
• Finish recording all pertinent information about the customer and their inquiry into your tracking system before moving on to the next call. This decreases the chance that you’ll forget details.

Pro tip: Highlight any relevant software or tools you have used to streamline your work processes and enhance your organizational skills.

Customers expect to be heard, appreciated, and valued, especially if they’re having an issue and reaching out for support. As a result, one important aspect of providing customer service in a call center is doing so with empathy.

Treating the customer like another number (or worse) is a surefire way to impact the experience negatively.

• Put yourself in the customer’s shoes. How would you like to be spoken to?
• Start by apologizing for the difficulties they are experiencing and express that you will work to resolve the issue. This lets the customer know that you care.

Susan Preiss from BlueOcean recommends making empathy a part of your recruitment, training, and onboarding processes. She suggests measuring and managing it throughout your quality monitoring programs. She further says, “Reward agents for it when they demonstrate exceptionally strong decision-making skills that result in customer satisfaction success stories.”

Pro tip: Mention any volunteering or social service work you have done to demonstrate empathy. If you’ve ever encountered a situation where you showed empathy during a difficult time, if it makes sense, add it in!

7. Ability to Stay Calm in Emergencies

Something that’s underappreciated in the industry is an employee who can remain level-headed. When working closely with customers, it’s easy to end up in tough situations with unhappy or angry customers. I know I’ve had moments where I’ve had to call up a tech support line in sheer panic because something wasn’t working right, desperate for a solution.

The worst thing a call center agent can do is panic because it will only induce more panic in the customer if they’re already in a state of distress. Proving that you are calm in even the worst of scenarios will be a major boost in employers’ eyes.

• Be confident. Remember that you are the expert, and the customer is looking to you for guidance.
• Allow the customer to vent. Letting an angry caller get their frustration out at the onset of the call allows you to calmly solve their issue and signals to them that you are listening.

Pro tip: Avoid just mentioning “I can stay calm in emergencies” in your resume. Instead, provide a specific example of when you had to work under pressure. Then, describe your actions and the results.

8. Persuasive Selling

A big part of working on the frontlines is directly selling products or services to customers. You will be the voice that customers hear, and what you say matters.

Thus, companies want to hire call center agents who can sway prospects toward making purchases or buying upgrades that serve customers and make their lives better..

To be clear, I’m not talking about sales in a way that means being deceitful, but if you strongly agree that the products or services will improve your customers’ lives, you should be able to relay that confidently.

• Know what products would work for a particular customer’s needs or pain points. Get familiar with what problems your products solve so that you can suggest them to customers who could benefit from them.
• Get comfortable hearing the word “no.” Rejection can be intimidating, but you should just look at sales as another avenue for you to solve problems for the customer.

Pro tip: Present references (letters of recommendation) from former employers emphasizing your persuasion skills.

Whether this is your first time making a call center resume or you’ve made a few, it can become an overwhelming process. I have outlined a few of my top tips you can use when you make your resume.

Match keywords on job descriptions.

It can be tricky to predict what kind of skills or information a call center may require since every company has their own processes and needs, so I recommend looking up call center jobs through LinkedIn , Indeed , or Glassdoor and take note of the job descriptions.

What kind of skills do they require from their candidates?

What does working for this company’s call center look like?

A call center may require you to be skilled in job-specific software like a VoIP program that lets you make calls faster than a traditional phone or a CRM that you can use to pull up customer information.

If you have the skills the job requires, you can put them in your resume, and if you don’t, then that’s something you can work on during your job search and then add to your resume. You can gain an incredible amount of valuable information by simply going through the job description.

Make your resume easy to skim.

One mistake I see a lot of candidates make in their resumes is using walls of text. It’s understandable to want to include as much information about yourself as possible in a resume, but always make it easy for the hiring team to read. Here are a few tips:

• Include headings and subheadings.
• Use, at a maximum, two fonts.
• Make sure your font size is no smaller than 10 pt because you don’t want the hiring team struggling to read your fine print.
• Use specific but concise language to get your point across, without making your resume a long read.

Remember, hiring teams go through hundreds of applications, and you don’t want to be out of the running simply because no one wants to sit through reading a novel of a resume.

Make text reader-friendly.

Earlier I showed you some great visual resume templates like the Creative Resume Template that have the potential to wow the hiring team.

There’s a caveat. When creating graphic-heavy resumes, consider using them in conjunction with a more traditional text-based resume.

A graphic resume is better suited to hand in person or include as an attachment in an application because a large number of companies use automated resume screeners before the resume ever makes it in front of a real person.

Save in the correct format.

Once you’re done with your call center resume, you’ll want to make sure you save it in the right format. Depending on the call center hiring team’s portal, you might be able to submit a .doc file or even a .jpg, but for the most part, you’ll end up saving your resume in a .pdf format.

The great thing about a .pdf file is that the text can easily be detected by text-reading software and is typically a small file size, which is great if you have to send your resume over by email. What’s more, it protects any of your formatting (compared with a .doc file).

There is some controversy around the use of AI in a professional setting because of the argument that it’s being done for you rather than by you. However, I think AI is a great direction when you’re in the starting phase of your resume creation.

I want you to consider AI as an additional tool in your belt rather than a lazy shortcut. Even when you use AI, you still have to do the work to tailor the resume to your skills and experience.

Here are a couple of ways AI can be a great asset when making your call center resume:

Use an AI resume builder like Rezi .

Earlier, I showed you a resume that was built with Rezi . The team at Rezi studied application trackers and how they interacted with candidate resumes to deliver a platform that helps people start on the right foot.

Use AI-driven proofreading platforms.

I like Grammarly and Hemmingway to make sure your spelling, grammar, and tone are error-free. These tools can come in handy during the creation of your call center resume, and afterwards to make sure everything is as it should be. You don’t want to lose a job opportunity over any mistakes that could take seconds to fix.

Now that you’ve got a game plan, it’s time to put in the work. Crafting a strong resume highlighting your relevant skills and experience can help you stand out from the competition and increase your chances of landing your desired position.

Consider using the templates and examples above as a starting point, or create a unique resume that reflects your personal experience. I’ve shared examples of complete resumes and the sections and keywords you want to include. Remember, if you aren’t sure exactly what should go in the skills section of your resume, I recommend you look up the job description for each job and tailor your resume appropriately. It really does make a difference to an employer since they see you cared enough to do your research.

As I mentioned earlier, using AI as a tool can greatly assist in starting off your resume or in the final stages of proofreading. Whichever direction you choose to go in, it never hurts to have an additional tool in your resume-building belt.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in October 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

Don't forget to share this post!

Related articles.

12 Best Work from Home Customer Service Companies & Jobs in 2024

The Chief Customer Officer: Responsibilities and How to Become One

Customer Service Managers — What Do They Do?

CXO: The Customer Service Leader You Probably Haven't Hired Yet (Including Insights from Experts)

Lunch and Learns: How to Host One That Your Team Will Want to Attend

25 Email Management Tips To Claim Back Your Time

There’s a Customer Service Career Path for Every Personality, See Yours [+Expert Insights]

Best Customer Service Resume: How to Make Yours Stand Out [with Examples]

How to Write a Customer Service Job Description to Attract the Best Candidates [Template]

The Top 27 Customer Service Certifications & Courses You Need to Take

Resume templates to create a killer resume for your job application.

Service Hub provides everything you need to delight and retain customers while supporting the success of your whole front office