SWR Customer Ambassador CO3 description

[heyhococo]

Hi all,

I'm due to start a new career soon as a CO3 customer ambassador with South Western Railway in the Southampton area, moving from retail onto the railway. I'm just wondering if anyone may know what the role might entail?

The job description on the careers site appears to be almost identical to that of CO1/2 roles in terms of being in the ticket office, helping customers around the station etc. so I'm wondering if there might be any additional duties that a CO3 would be expecting to do and if anyone currently in a customer ambassador role may have any advice for someone brand new to the railway.

Appreciate anyone's knowledge and advice.

 

[Bedwyn32]

A CO3 job is the ticket office supervisor/team leader.

 

[Horizon22]

Hi all,

I'm due to start a new career soon as a CO3 customer ambassador with South Western Railway in the Southampton area, moving from retail onto the railway. I'm just wondering if anyone may know what the role might entail?

The job description on the careers site appears to be almost identical to that of CO1/2 roles in terms of being in the ticket office, helping customers around the station etc. so I'm wondering if there might be any additional duties that a CO3 would be expecting to do and if anyone currently in a customer ambassador role may have any advice for someone brand new to the railway.

Appreciate anyone's knowledge and advice.

You've been offered the job already ("start a career soon")? I am bit surprised you've progressed through all the aspects including an interview and not clarified these details or know what it involves.

Or are you just trying to check what the difference between CO3 and CO1/CO2 is in terms of extra responsibilities for the higher grade?

 

[heyhococo]

You've been offered the job already ("start a career soon")? I am bit surprised you've progressed through all the aspects including an interview and not clarified these details or know what it involves.

Or are you just trying to check what the difference between CO3 and CO1/CO2 is in terms of extra responsibilities for the higher grade?

Sorry yes I'm just trying to research the difference between the grades in terms of extra responsibilities. I applied originally for both a CO1/2 position and a CO3 position, but I was only given an interview and offer for the CO1/2 position, then I expect I drew a bit of luck and was later offered the CO3 position by recruitment, about a week after the first offer for CO1/2. They said the hiring managers seemed to like me at the interview (I assume they were the same for both vacancies I applied for) so like say possibly just bit of luck on my side as it's an industry I've been wanting to get in to for a long time.

Hence I wasn't able to ask anything about the role during the interview, since that was for the CO1/2 position. We discussed the CO1/2 position in detail in terms of manning the ticket office, assisting with enquiries, presentation of the station in terms of cleanliness and litter picking, general maintenance of the TVM, opening and closing ticket office (this CO1/2 job was for Woolston, so only part time single manned ticket office). So just was wondering the extra responsibilities for the CO3 position as opposed to the original offer I was given.

 

[heyhococo]

A CO3 job is the ticket office supervisor/team leader.

Thank you, having found another advert with the full "job description" document it seems very similar to the CO1/2 role with some extra team leader bits about maintaining stock levels, reporting and escalating any faults etc.

Would you happen to know what the induction and training in Basingstoke involves at all? I've seen it starts as a corporate induction, uniform ordering during the first week, then in my case ticket office training, but most of the threads I've seen are for drivers/guards and they then say about going onto PTS training and route learning, which sounds like it would go outside my role.

I also wonder if there's chance to become what I'd call "multi skilled" and complete training across other station areas, like say dispatch training, gateline training (although my station doesn't have gatelines). This was something I forgot to ask during the interview.

I appreciate your advice, I'm just very much out of the know having now left my retail job of 7 years and starting with SWR in mid October.

 

[Bedwyn32]

Thank you, having found another advert with the full "job description" document it seems very similar to the CO1/2 role with some extra team leader bits about maintaining stock levels, reporting and escalating any faults etc.

Would you happen to know what the induction and training in Basingstoke involves at all? I've seen it starts as a corporate induction, uniform ordering during the first week, then in my case ticket office training, but most of the threads I've seen are for drivers/guards and they then say about going onto PTS training and route learning, which sounds like it would go outside my role.

I also wonder if there's chance to become what I'd call "multi skilled" and complete training across other station areas, like say dispatch training, gateline training (although my station doesn't have gatelines). This was something I forgot to ask during the interview.

I appreciate your advice, I'm just very much out of the know having now left my retail job of 7 years and starting with SWR in mid October.

You wouldn't do pts or dispatch training. You would only do ticket office and tvm (ticket vending machine). Depending on if you are going to be and a single manned station ie just you. They might give you ramp/passenger assistance training.