Customer Care Specialist

AgWest Farm Credit•Spokane, WA

16h•Hybrid

About The Position

AgWest Farm Credit is a member-owned financial cooperative that provides financing and related services to farmers, ranchers, agribusinesses, commercial fishermen, timber producers, rural homeowners and crop insurance customers in a seven-state territory in the Western United States. AgWest is part of the 100+ year-old Farm Credit System – the leading provider of credit to American agriculture. AgWest champions the growth and advancement of agriculture, the value of rural communities, and the vital contribution our customers make to the economy and society. We serve customers in 59 locations throughout the West. We are in search of a Customer Care Specialist I or Customer Care Specialist II to join our Customer Care department in Spokane, Washington (Headquarters). This full-time position reports to the Manager, Customer Care and provides support to AgWest customers and employees following company standards and toolsets. The Customer Care Specialist integrates business and technological expertise to routinely resolve issues related to customer-facing digital platforms and general inquiries, providing timely, accurate solutions to such interactions.

Requirements

Proven ability to work both independently and collaboratively
Ability to learn and effectively work in a wide variety of systems
Effective written and verbal communication skills
Ability to effectively build rapport with individuals seeking technical assistance
Prior success in a customer service/support capacity
Analytical and problem-solving skills with a desire to continually learn new skills
High school diploma
Generally, requires less than one year’s experience in a related field

Nice To Haves

Associate’s degree in business, information systems, computer science or related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience
Related work experience, ideally in commercial lending, banking, or related field
General knowledge of credit and legal terminology
Experience using or supporting business software applications (online banking, mobile banking apps, Salesforce, CRM software, O365, Microsoft Teams)

Responsibilities

Provide first-contact technical support to customers via phone, case management system, chat, and email, ensuring courteous, timely, and effective resolution of reported issues and requests.
Establish rapport with customers and internal partners; ask effective questions and gather complete information to diagnose issues (symptoms, steps to reproduce, environment, error messages, and impact).
Troubleshoot customer-facing digital platforms and related applications using structured problem-solving techniques, available tools, and system logs as appropriate.
Resolve incidents and service requests according to defined processes to meet established service level agreements (SLAs) and quality standards.
Research and apply solutions using internal and external knowledge bases; identify gaps and recommend updates to improve future resolution rates.
Document, in detail all troubleshooting steps, analysis and correspondence throughout the issue resolution process, providing proactive status updates to customers and staff.
Escalate complex or high-impact issues to appropriate teams (e.g., product, engineering, infrastructure, security) with clear reproduction steps, evidence, and customer impact; track progress through to resolution.
Collaborate with team members (locally, regionally, and cross-functionally) and support learning for colleagues by sharing knowledge, coaching on processes/tools, and communicating lessons learned.
Formulate reusable solutions to new or unique issues and enhance existing solutions by following solution-centered support methodologies; document supporting discussion and analysis.
Support customer account access and authentication issues by following verification procedures and established security/privacy practices.
Identify, record, and communicate emerging incident trends and recurring defects; share insights with leadership and product teams to improve reliability and customer experience.
Maintain a strong working knowledge of business practices, products, and key systems; stay current on platform changes, known issues, and support procedures.
Provide suggestions for continual improvement to processes, documentation, customer communications, and toolsets to increase efficiency and customer satisfaction.
Perform all duties and maintain all standards in accordance with company policies, procedures, and internal controls.
Other duties as assigned.