customer experience advisor

customer service representative

analyst

personal banker

manager

Santander

Don’t do it unless you are very desperate, need the money and have a very strong will. 

If you work in the bootle contact centre you will probably be taken on first as a card  Alerts advisor and everything is lovely for the first couple of months but all that is happening is your being broken in for what’s to come. After a few months you will then be told that because of your hard work you will be progressing through the company to the role of fraud advisor and will get a pay rise of an extra £500 a year and better opportunities.....don’t be fooled everyone gets told that and you will be in for a shock. 

Your hours will change and will be working 3 out of 4 weekends, bank holidays, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and new year and you can’t change them and if you try to book them off they will be conveniently fully booked and Christmas time just can’t be booked off for holiday full stop! 

General Booking holiday is a no go. You have better chances winning the lottery then getting time off. Your social life will become none existent and you won’t be able to plan a life.

The hours a horrible you could be on any shift from 7am - 8pm Monday to Sunday. 

Job Progression stops unless your are married/family member or best friend of a manager. 

If you are a sensitive person or don’t suffer fools then you won’t last. The mental and verbal abuse you receive from customers is disgusting! and management don’t want to know at all - they tell you to push the call over to complaints so the customer can get a nice complaint pay out for verbal and mentally abusing you on calls. 

I have seen members of staff in tears over the level of abuse they have received from fraud customers and also staff just walk out as they have had enough. 

The turn over of staff is high as Santander don’t care and are 100% on the “customer is always right” train - Even if their staff are being abused or the customer is a fraudster and is angry off for being caught. 

If you desperate to put food on the table and pay your rent/mortgage then apply but be warned your mental health will suffer and you will regret your choice down the line and will be begging to get out. 

I have seen a lot of people sit while taking calls looking through the job sites trying to get out. People just walk out as they have had enough and people go on the sick and never coming back. 

They make the job sound like a dream and you will be awarded for it but your not. Ever the union that has an office based at the site have said on many occasions that the rewards don’t match what staff put up with from customers and management, working hours are awful and it is the worse underpaid job in the banking industry and that is coming from the head union rep at Santander bootle.

Working as a collections agent on personal bank accounts you will be required to chase debts with customers who have exceeded their overdrafts, sometimes by an eye watering amount. The biggest problem is the complexity of this job. You must know how overdrafts work, the different types of bank accounts, charges and fees attached to them as well as the numerous different solutions depending on what the customer can afford. The accounts fall into a seemingly endless number of categories and strategies based on how much the customer has paid back, when they’ve paid back and how long they’ve been in debt for. 

The biggest problem is the training material, it feels like terabytes upon terabytes of information you simply can’t absorb and they keep adding new things into it.There is always something additional you need to know but if you saw the sheer volume of the training modules you would understand how heavy this is. You then also need to operate numerous different computer systems and coordinate all of this during the call. Once you completed the initial training they team you up with mentors but you simply can’t absorb the level of information they expect you to know. The call exposure you get at this part of the training is minimal but they also expect you to be competent enough to go solo on the phone just two weeks after. The calls are long and stressful and every single thing has to be done correctly and precisely so the pressure not only comes from the calls but also from the management. Everything you say and do is assessed, graded and monitored at all times. Even one word in a call will fail you in the quality assessment. For example answering a call with “how can I help you” will result in a negative assessment. And when you get on the phones you are told to carry out certain procedures differently from how you were first trained. I cannot stress enough the sheer volume of information dumped on you. So if you have anxiety or suffer stress then I’d advise you steer clear of this role. Do not apply! 

It gets to the point very quickly where the trainers and mentors stop helping you and begin applying pressure. They can be slow to respond to your questions, will say you should already know it or will leave you hanging by asking what you think you need to do. 

Ultimately I’m having 2nd thoughts about having accepted this job

Also you will be sent a laptop to work from home, they they expect you to use your own mobile to take calls and buy your own headphones 



Other than the benefit package, it really is a poorly run operation. 

Very much a place where if you've been there 20+ years and a manager you are set for life.

Business Managers are incredibly two-faced and argumentative, very bad at listening to opposing views and allowing others to voice their frustrations. They are very good at gossiping whilst sharing their screens in meetings - so not the most technologically gifted. They hide behind team leaders who end up doing above and beyond their normal work but then get berated for individual points which would probably destroy even the strongest of people.

Culture is non-existent, they think pizza once in a quarter and a pointless chat with a senior manager 3 levels above them is a reward. Yet they don't realise everyones just waiting for him to say 'right' for the 50th time in a sentence. Bradford site is like a graveyard and managers prowl the floor ready to pick a fight if you sit in the wrong desk. Heaven forbid you sit with people you get along with or work with, unless of course you are paid £50k+ and get a car allowance in which case sit with your pals and complain about everyone.

Job security is like the actual security on site - pretty useless. Google will tell you all you need to know, but going from 25,000 people to 12,000 people by 2026 is the headlines really. Similarly you'll get secret phone calls to try pay you off to leave, but if you try hint at speaking the union they'll scurry off and try use scare tactics to accept.

Weird fetish to get everyone into the office three days a week but can't be flexible on timings or actually hold themselves accountable to attend. Some Team Leads are also useless, turning up at 11am and clocking out to go home within the hour. One has also been on a team call whilst having a shower... yet gets doted upon because they pander to the business managers more than anyone else and actively find ways to try get rid of people.

Analysts are mismatched on pay grades so you can do the same role but be paid £5k less than someone else. But if you raise this as a repeat point you are told that you are paid sufficiently for the job you do and to drop it because they don't want to hear it anymore. 

Processes are a mess, Systems are shocking, If there was a charge for every excel spreadsheet used Microsoft would probably be trillionaires just from Santander alone. TCF non existent, no real training plan and what exists is not fit for a bank the size of Santander.

Honestly, don't do it, its not worth it

A typical day at work for my self would start with me doing my ATM duties, taking yesterdays deposits out, clearing the balances, and checking the stationery. Once we open I then have a diary of appointments to see, usually 5 per day. The appointments can be for many different reasons, it could be existing customers who have had problems, or would like a review of their accounts. Or it can be for new customers looking to join Santander. Whilst not seeing my appointments, it is my job to create appointments for the next week, and also help with queries from walk-ins.
I have learned many things at Santander, but the main one for myself is a basic one, just how to be a professional, how to give the best image of the company through my behaviour and choice of words. I have learned all about retail banking, the different products available, and how best to sell them to customers.
The management at Santander is a fairly relaxed one, we have targets, both individual and team, and if we are exceeding them, then the management just let you get on with it. However, if for what ever reason, you have had a bad day in terms of selling they do require an explanation, and what is being done to rectify it.
The relaxed management style rubs off on the employees, which means that generally everyone get's on, and their is a good rapport. If there is ever anytime that help is required, in terms of knowledge, or with dealing with a customer, then it is always available.
The hardest part of my job is seeing people who are struggling financially, and being unable to help. Santander is a business at the end of the day, and has to make a profit for their shareholders, this is sometimes at the detriment of the customers.
Without doubt the most enjoyable part of my job is building relationships with my customers. I now have many customers who request to see me, and I have done this by explaining how a Santander product can benefit them, and there have been many occasions, where I have helped customers increase their earnings, and save money in other ways.

Like any place of work there is a mix of positives and negatives. Luckily the positives outweighs the negative. I worked various roles over 5 years in a contact centre setting from a customer service agent and floorwalker/mentor, a customer service team leader and a peer group deliverer (staff trainer) and this is what I found:

Positives:

Shifts are known in advance

Holidays are usually honoured if given enough notice

Staff holiday booking system

Able to swap shifts with someone else from a different site (certain departments)

Varied hours so you generally don’t do the latest shifts two weeks in row

Two weekends off a month (this may have changed) otherwise one weekend day and a day in the week

Promotion opportunities and chance to change department

Lots of ways to get involved with the various unions and charity events
Pensions plan

Yearly performance based bonus (extra money for doing your job) usually paid every March.

Negatives:

Managers only care about their team unless you have built up a relationship with them

Managers always claim to busy when it comes to taking escalated calls leaving you to walk around the call centre looking guilty for a manager willing to take a call

Work life balance is okay but not great.

Promotion opportunities do exist but it can be a case of who you know more than how well you work, if you are quiet you have to find ways to make yourself stand out even more.

Favourites tend to get more off the phone time than others, even when they are not good at their job but are friends with their manager, it should be shared equally among staff.

Performance related bonus is great but can be harsh. You could be 1 mark off of a particular bonus and it could see a dip in bonus of a few hundred pounds.

Favourites get recommended for higher bonuses even though they don’t put the effort in for it

Overall Santander contact centres are a good place to work and I did enjoy my time there. It is definitely a job where you get more out of it the more you put in to it. However that being said if I ever returned I would look to fix the above issues.

As a Personal Banker before the branch opens I help out with the day to day housekeeping by servicing the ATM machines.  During opening hours I provide outstanding customer service dealing with all types of financial queries and problems.  I am an expert in building rapport and quickly identifying what each customer needs, so I can help every customer out as quickly as possible.  I manage my diary to ensure that I regularly see 5 appointments a day, and make sure that I have plenty of opportunity to sell a variety of products.  These can be current accounts, credit cards, loans, savings, and home insurance.  I also make referrals to specialists for mortgage business, business banking, protection and investments.  I have excellent interpersonal communication skills, and telephone customers to book appointments.  I am also a keen team player and am always willing to help colleagues, which shows with the way they help to fill my diary with quality appointments.  I regularly pass my observations with grade A rating meaning I am always 100% fully authorised at all times.  I very much enjoy the fact I deal with different people on a daily basis and help them with their financial goals.  Examples include customers who switch current accounts, then look to having everything with Santander like their mortgage, home insurance, credit cards etc.  I don't like it when I cannot help a customer if certain processes and timescales prevent me from helping them when they genuinely need our help, this can be tough especially if a customer has passed away for example.  I am now looking to progress to a Mortgage Adviser role and have already passed my CeMAP examinations.  After the branch closes I make pre-calls to confirm my appointments for the next day, and help out with end-of-day duties.

Good place to work for a single not as much if you have a family. 9 to 5 but in reality 8 to 5.30. Expected to be early. At least half an hour if I was at work 8:35 I was given a look you give to someone stomping on the thin line. Never left work on time as we had to wait for everyone to finish they task. Extra hours weren't extra paid. Would be ok if that would made you look better in the manager eyes as they promised and gives you options to promote but in the end nobody cared and you just had to work for free. Probably just this branch and maybe bad timing but left with no manager on site for a few months when pregnant. People expect you to give everything from you when no pay back. I had family problems and I was pregnant but couldn't find anyone to talk to or talked with bunch of different managers from different brunches (when send an official mail as nobody in the branch could help me with my situation) were they had no idea about the future or knew if they would like to continue my employment after I come back. Could not stand feeling there is no place for me really. Promised something different from the advertise and all motivation films about life work balance. My morale went down pretty quick and all I wanted is to quit. Only coworkers made me stay as they did not provide anyone on my place till the moment I left and even then I do not think they had as there was no one on the training. They probably send someone from different branch to cover till they decide what to do. Disturbing, making you feel guilty for going on your maternity, making you feel guilty for not coming to work if you ever feel bad or needed to do extra ultra sound because they could not get anyone to help. Quite stressful for an average payed cashier job.
On the other hand while the manager was on site it was really good so I guess my bad luck.

Very busy, however, the job is fairly straight forward once you know what you are doing. Santander are unreceptive to feedback if you haven't earned your stripes (even when you are in the right) If you have worked in banks before you will find it challenging to adapt as processes are different or non-existant. There are channels for giving feedback and suggestions but it seems to take months for anyone to notice or agree or make changes.

Difficult to get to know others outside your team as there is a lack of atmosphere unless certain figures are on the floor or small events happening, however this is not necessarily a negative. You make the best of it and moving team after a while helps grow your own network which I personally enjoy and there are fairly regular team/department nights out which are subsidised which is great and a good way to talk to people you would only maybe say hello to.

Recent management changes have been positive, colleagues are all friendly and approachable and although partially clique, solid work ethic and consistency is the best way forward.

I feel that the salary structure is unfair and at the time of application was misleading as it offered some wiggle room however, there was no negotiating this and as such please expect the lowest figure quoted. You will find some staff have been there a long time and have a higher salary and do less work for the same job and thats frustrating but just at the same time unfortunate.

Santander offer a lot of secondments, so there is no real room for career progression.

Overall, its not a bad place to work and certainly better than some previous call centres I have worked in. Room for improvement but does offer job security.

Management aren't always helpful. Some of them shouldn't be managers at all as they possess so little knowledge. Some of the staff are lovely but it doesn't matter because we are all segregated and cannot even talk to each other. The covid rules have made it ten times worse in the office, everyone feels isolated and is unable to do much as see a physical human sat around them because of screens that are up. It is extremely depressing. Many of the people I began with quit long ago. The only reason I am still there is due to job security in these uncertain times. I am afraid if I leave for another job, the company may have issues and I could be made redundant or not kept on etc, and I have bills to pay. It's a bit of a predicament. 

Back to Santander though, there is zero opportunity for job progression which was a deciding factor in me moving to this company in the first place. They have actually removed all supervisory/"floorwalker" positions and thus there seems to be no way to progress now and we were told recently we cannot apply for any internal vacancies to even change department. Shocking. 

The nature of the job itself is a con but anyone would know that going in, to be fair. I actually regret leaving retail work to come to the call center. The slight salary boost softens the blow alongside the 1.5 hours of breaks for a fulltime shift, but I constantly question if it was worth it. 

This is related to business banking department. This department is incredibly unreasonable and soul destroying to be a part of. From daily stats like Average Handling Time, Aftercall Work and Hold being pressurised to hit, but also calls being listened to for quality that you and everyone else will fail and have managers always on your case to fix. To risk on calls for security. Trying to get so many of our so called "businesses" through security can be extremely hard due to trying to protect your job, and the same people that are supposed to be managing you, are coming down hard on the times that you fail this by not asking a small obscure question, or accepting information that had been fed subtely in conversation with the customer we fail and will have all eyes on you every day. Also the same risk that we get punished for can be bent to help customer service and quality all the same to save face and risk the money of the bank.
On top of this, working until 9, working saturday mornings at 8am, starting at 7:30 for a job that does not care about you, and cannot understand that with call after call, a scripted opening, middle and end of a call, asking questions to ask more questions, the vast amount of work to do for the amount of mistakes this company makes on a daily basis, you will also then have to contend with dealing with customers constantly questioning the security that you are being forced to do, the processes and why the take so long to get a simple cheque book out(7-10 days), and always defend your job to the customers and also the management. All of this, is on a good week!

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Customer experience advisor 2 salaries reported	£26,401 per year
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