What are the responsibilities and job description for the Sr. Manager, Customer Service position at Guitar Center?
Key Responsibilities:
The Senior Manager - CC Customer Service is a customer-obsessed leader responsible for the overall performance and quality of service teams within the Contact Center. This role ensures a consistently exceptional customer experience by driving service standards, managing escalations, and leading initiatives that improve quality, efficiency, and loyalty across all contact channels.
Customer Experience & Service Strategy
- Partner with Contact Center leadership to define and execute customer service strategies that support loyalty, retention, and brand reputation.
- Lead multiple customer service teams, including Supervisors/Team Leads and frontline agents, to deliver world-class service.
- Establish clear service standards around first contact resolution, handle time, quality, and customer satisfaction.
- Own the service escalation framework, ensuring timely and effective resolution of complex issues and VIP cases.
- Champion a customer-first culture grounded in empathy, active listening, and problem solving.
Operational Excellence
- Oversee day-to-day service operations including attendance, schedule adherence, real-time management, and workflow design.
- Partner with Workforce Management to forecast volume, plan coverage, and optimize schedules across phone, email, chat, and social channels.
- Ensure adherence to policies, procedures, and regulatory requirements related to customer service and complaint handling.
- Continuously review and refine processes to remove friction, reduce repeat contacts, and drive efficiency.
Quality, Training & Knowledge Management
- Leverage Cresta Coaching to establish Quality standards; build robust performance accountability to exceed quality standards that continual improve the customer experience.
- Partner with Training and Knowledge Management teams to ensure agents have up-to-date resources, product information, and playbooks.
- Identify skills and knowledge gaps; build targeted development plans and training interventions.
- Use coaching, side-by-sides, and feedback loops to elevate service skills, de-escalation, and problem resolution.
Analytics & Continuous Improvement
- Monitor and analyze key customer satisfaction metrics as established and agreed to with Contact Center Senior Leadership.
- Leverage data and customer feedback to prioritize improvements in policies, processes, and tools.
- Partner with Technology and Analytics teams to implement AI-enabled tools (such as virtual assistants, agent assist, and sentiment analytics) that enhance service quality and efficiency.
- Run pilots and continuous improvement initiatives using structured methodologies (e.g., root cause analysis, process mapping).
Cross-functional Collaboration
- Collaborate with eCommerce, Stores, Merchandising, and Supply Chain to proactively address customer-impacting issues (inventory, fulfillment, returns, repairs).
- Provide customer insights and trends to influence policy changes, product improvements, and end-to-end journey design.
- Partner with Marketing and Loyalty teams to support service aspects of campaigns, events, and membership programs.
Qualifications:
MINIMUM Requirements & Special ATTRIBUTES:
- Bachelor’s degree in Business, Communications, Operations, or related field; advanced degree a plus.
- 6 years of progressive leadership experience in a contact center or customer service environment, including 3 years leading supervisors or managers.
- Proven track record of improving customer satisfaction, first contact resolution, and overall service performance.
- Personal experience with musical instruments, music industry or related fieldDeep understanding of contact center service operations, including multi-channel support, workforce management, and quality assurance.
- Experience with CRM systems, contact center platforms, and knowledge management tools.
- Familiarity with AI-driven and automation tools (e.g., chatbots, agent assist, sentiment analysis) and how they support customer service outcomes.
- Excellent communication, conflict resolution, and de-escalation skills; comfortable handling executive-level escalations.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to translate insights into actionable improvements.
- Demonstrated ability to lead teams through change and build an engaged, customer-focused culture.