Westat is recruiting Help Desk Agents to work on a national education study starting in July 2019. Successful candidates will monitor and respond to incoming phone calls from schools, districts, and Westat field representatives to support data collection activities during the study. Agents may also be assigned to respond to voice mails, emails, and engage in live chat support.



Duties & Responsibilities:


• Monitor and respond to phone calls, voice mails, emails and live chat in a timely manner as assigned by Supervisors and Task Advisors.

• Ensure and adhere to project confidentiality requirements at all times.

• Record all incoming issues using call tracking software on the computer.

• Promptly follow up on all assigned Help Desk tickets.

• Agents are required to attend each day of scheduled training sessions.

• Agents are responsible for learning the material in the Help Desk knowledge base and other reference materials. Supplemental training and activities will be scheduled as time permits to reinforce initial training.

• Must be dependable and able to work a full-time 40-hour schedule according to your assigned shift. Shifts are available initially during the morning, and afternoon and early evening during later phases of the project. Agents are expected to be ready to take calls at the start of the shift.

• Must be flexible and willing to help out on other tasks as they arise. These tasks are assigned by Help Desk Supervisors and Task Advisors. Examples include but not limited to: calling schools for follow up, project testing, or assist with other operational tasks.

• Help Desk agents are monitored on voice calls and live chats for quality assurance on a scheduled basis according to desired performance.


Required Qualifications:


• High School Diploma or equivalent.

• Must be a U.S. citizen.

• Must submit to and pass a federal government background screening (eQIP)

• Minimum 1 year customer service or Help Desk/call center experience.

• Must be able to work full-time (40 hours per week) between the hours of 8:00am - 5:30pm to start and later between the hours of 8:00am - 8:00pm.

• Must exhibit professional courtesy and proper phone etiquette when speaking with callers.

• Must have good communication skills

• Must be able to communicate technical documentation clearly to users who may be unfamiliar with computers or related systems.

• Must type with accurate spelling, good sentence composition skills with professional electronic communications etiquette and the ability to answer questions in a grammatically correct non-technical style, concentrating on brief questions and answers. Minimum 30 WPM.

• Strong problem-solving skills, adept at tackling a wide variety of issues.

• Must be able to work in a fast paced environment and quickly adapt to workloads with increasing complexity.

• Must show aptitude with using browser-based software on a Windows 10 computer and basic familiarity with computer navigation on modern browsers including Google Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Internet Explorer.


Preferred Qualifications and skills:


• 2 years Associate's degree or higher in an IT related or customer service field.

• 2 years' experience in technical troubleshooting with customer support and familiarity across multiple computer platforms and operating systems. Entry level CompTIA A+ IT Certification is a plus.

• Experience with Microsoft Excel, Word, Outlook and Office 365 up to an intermediate level is a plus.

• Experience with Windows 10 operating system up to an intermediate level. Entry level Microsoft MTA/MCP Certification is a plus.

• Experience with an electronic ticketing system with integrated telephony is a plus.