Organisation: Transport Sydney Trains
Job Title: Customer and Information Team Leader
Word Limit: 4,000 characters max per criterion
Location: Sydney
Demonstrated knowledge and experience of Sydney Trains Customer Service, including station operation and the rail network
Having been employed by Transport Sydney Trains as a Station Duty Manager (Level 3) since 2013, I have demonstrated a thorough knowledge of station operations and the rail network, and have consistently led the delivery of high standards of customer service. Over this time, I have gained a comprehensive understanding of the day-to-day operations and the deployment outcomes and objectives of Sydney Trains, providing me with the ability to effectively manage a complex operational infrastructure and lead the provision of high-quality services and support. My strong capacity to lead customer service delivery has been recognised through several periods as acting Stations Customer Manager. During my tenure with Sydney Trains, I have witnessed the introduction of new priorities and strategies regarding customer service delivery, and have been a champion of the local implementation of the new ‘Customer Service Model’ which has been introduced to the organisation. In accordance with Sydney Trains’ current customer service model, I lead my team in demonstrating services which model the ‘SPACE’ values of Safety, Pride, Accountability, Collaboration and Excellence.
In my current role as Station Duty Manager at Town Hall Station, I ensure that staff and customers are kept informed about all relevant station matters. Leading up to 25 staff on a shift, I communicate to platform and customer service staff via two-way radio to keep them informed of delays, incidents and impacts on scheduled services. This information is then conveyed to customers to ensure that the up to 6,000 commuters passing through the station at any time are aware of service schedules and disruptions.
Working in the busy environment of Town Hall Station, which services up to 250,000 customers per day, I need to monitor and respond to occurrences on six platforms, each catering to trains every three to four minutes in peak periods. A key part of my role is the provision of information to customers regarding their travel on the rail network, for example how to reach their desired location or how to continue their journey in the face of disruptions to scheduled services. This requires me to maintain a thorough knowledge of the Sydney Trains and NSW Trains rail network, so that I can provide accurate and relevant information and lead other staff in doing the same. Where a major disruption or incident is affecting services to the station, I will place myself at the most crucial position within the station at that time, so that I can lead the provision of advice and service to customers and coordinate staff response activities. My knowledge of the rail network was particularly relied upon in my prior station Duty Manager roles at Hurstville and Sutherland, where I was responsible for the operations of 13 stations. As Station Duty Manager, I consistently ensure that station operations and activities are conducted in accordance with relevant Sydney Trains procedures, manuals and Safe Working rules.
Demonstrated ability to identify the actions required in incident management and ensure effective incident communications
During my time with Sydney Trains, I have demonstrated my capacity to respond to incidents and manage incident communications in accordance with organisational procedures and protocols. For example, one of the incidents to which I managed the response was the discovery of a deceased body on a train in the station. Upon being notified of this occurrence, I needed to manage the response to the incident and the associated communications in a way that complied with Sydney Trains procedural requirements. In this instance, I notified the Rail Management Centre, the Area Incident Commander and the Stations Customer Manager, and managed communications to customers and staff regarding the effect on services that arose out of this incident. In addition, I communicated with Emergency Services personnel to respond to the incident, and undertook post-incident reporting as required by Sydney Trains procedures. Through my effective management of this incident, all relevant parties were provided with the information required for them to perform their roles in a timely way, station staff were effectively coordinated in their duties, and disruption and distress to customers was minimised.
Within my previous position as Control Centre Officer with Ambulance Service of NSW, I demonstrated the capacity to respond effectively appropriately to critical incidents under severe time constraints. In that role, as well as being responsible for the coordination of emergency responses by paramedics, I ensured that effective incident communication systems were maintained to all relevant stakeholders. This included communicating directly with callers, to elicit valuable information regarding the incident, which I would then convey to the paramedics en route to the scene. In addition, I would channel communications to executive level personnel and front-facing staff as appropriate according to the impact and severity of the incident. Transcripts provided by me would also form the basis of media communications where these were required. During my four-year tenure as Control Centre Officer, I responded to numerous critical and high-risk incidents. One particular example of my capacity to ensure effective incident communications in this role was the successful deployment, backfilling and management of more than 100 Ambulance and Police resources in the rescue of a collapsing crane. This was a critical high-risk situation that drew on my ability to calmly and efficiently manage multiple channels of communication in order to resolve a complex situation in accordance with strict guidelines.
In a previous role as Operations Manager for a company that delivered music festivals and band events, I held primary responsibility for coordinating response to incidents occurring on site. For example, during one $17-million outdoor event, the stage area was struck by lightning. In this instance, my assessment of the risks was such that a decision was made to abandon the event, meaning that I needed to manage communications with 125,000 patrons, emergency services personnel, the local council, the electricity company and a range of artists and their management representatives. My capacity to appropriately manage this incident affecting such a large-scale event demonstrates my ability to make sound decisions and coordinate appropriate responses to critical incidents in high-risk environments.
Demonstrated staff supervision, coaching and senior decision-making, ensuring effective operation of a responsive team
With experience driving large high-performing teams across a wide range of business and geographical circumstances, I have demonstrated my proactive leadership and people management skills in senior operational roles throughout my career. Contributing at a senior leadership level, I have demonstrated my ability to identify, develop and implement best practice methodologies designed to increase performance and achieve quality outcomes for the business. My previous career experience has provided me with a solid foundation for success as a Station Duty Manager with Sydney Trains. In this role, I have demonstrated a leadership style focused on developing and empowering staff to best align with the vision of Sydney Trains for its organisational culture.
In my present role, I have worked closely with the senior leadership team to deliver strategic initiatives, including leading over 35 station staff through the introduction of the new customer service model and performance management policies. I have embraced the introduction of these processes, both formal and informal, and played an active role in attending performance management meetings to take corrective action for poor performance. In recognition of my capacities as a leader of staff, I have been recognised by Sydney Trains as the ‘Staff Champion and Peer Coach for Station Staff’ on the Illawarra line cluster of stations during my time as Station Duty Manager for that area. In my current role at Town Hall Station, I am responsible for the performance management of a team of 28 staff and, through implementation of the ‘My Success at Work’ program, provide opportunities for development of skills and capabilities amongst my team.
Prior to my commencement with Sydney Trains, my skills in staff supervision, development and coaching were demonstrated during my five-year tenure as Operations Manager with Century Venues. In that role I held overall responsibility for the management, planning, compliance and delivery of over 3,500 events attended by over three million customers. Events of this magnitude require high-level organisational and leadership capabilities to successfully manage large staff teams based at multiple locations. As Operations Manager, I led a culture of shared enthusiasm and accountability. Through effective communication and open dialogue, I implemented objectives designed to meet and exceed service delivery standards and drive revenue, using these results to identify areas for development and reduce performance gaps. During my tenure with Century Venues as Operations Manager, I created and drove numerous strategies that significantly improved the service delivery to customers. These improvements were a result of application of my understanding of customer needs. In this role, I created a customer-centric culture, as well as inspired and enabled my teams to deliver the business vision.
Having held senior management roles in my career, I have displayed the ability to make effective decisions in the leadership and development of high-performing teams. For example, as Operations Manager for Century Venues, I was responsible for determining staff budgets and allocations, ensuring licencing and safety compliance, and overseeing training of staff to deliver successful events.
Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of Safe Working Rules in the Railway Corridor and WHS legislation
As a certified Safe Working staff member for Sydney Trains ,I hold the qualifications of Station Staff Level 2 Rail Safety Worker and a Certificate IV in Station Services. I am trained as a Protection Officer and am currently the Officer in Charge for Town Hall Station. A component of my daily responsibilities is to ensure that station operations are conducted in accordance with Safe Working rules and workplace health and safety legislation and standards, in order to minimise the risk of harm to staff and customers. This involves supervising the activities of staff and providing guidance as needed. For example, when staff are using scrubbing machines to clean platform areas, I ensure that the prescribed Absolute Signal Blocking process is being followed prior to work commencing. As Station Duty Manager, I have encountered the issue of staff retrieving dropped items from tracks without using the proper lookout procedure. Where I observe of become aware of breaches of Safe Working rules and protocols, I provide coaching and retraining to staff and ensure that they are aware of the importance of following these rules. In the case of repeated or serious breaches of Safe Working rules, I follow Sydney Trains procedures for reporting breaches and commencing disciplinary action.
In my current role, I also ensure that contractors working within the station are complying with Safe Working rules and workplace health and safety requirements, for example by checking that they are working the appropriate distance from the track and from overhead wiring, or that barricades are being used around work being conducted in places of public access. Town Hall Station is currently undergoing significant renovation works, meaning that there is a large contractor presence in the work environment. Throughout these works, I have needed to monitor the activities of the contractors to ensure that these do not create risks to staff or customer safety. For example, at one stage the various works scheduled for different locations around the station meant that there would not be sufficient emergency exit pathways in the event of an incident requiring evacuation of the station. Upon becoming aware of this, I addressed the issue with the head contractor and negotiated an alternative schedule of works that would ensure that sufficient emergency exit routes were always available. Another example of a safety hazard that I have had to address during these renovation works has been the exposure of uneven and jagged areas of floor tiling during the retiling process. Observing that this presented an unacceptable risk of trips and falls for staff and customers, I liaised with the contractor company responsible to ensure that this hazard was immediately addressed.
In a previous role as Operations Manager for Century Venues, one of my responsibilities was to ensure that all staff were receiving the necessary health, safety and welfare information required to perform their jobs safely and to comply with legislation and licencing requirements. This required me to find methods of communicating complex health and safety information in a way that was simple and easy for the diverse staff group to understand, but which also complied with legislative requirements and met with the approval of compliance officers. In that Operations Manager role, I was held responsibility for the safety of full venue and event operations, including lighting, staging, audio, bar and food service. This broad area of responsibility required me to maintain and apply a thorough knowledge of health and safety legislation within the workplace.
Demonstrated broad computer skills, including the ability to manage a range of technological applications for railway specific communication
Over the course of my career, I have utilised a range of specialised computer systems and technologies in my work, as well as displaying competency in the use of Windows and Mac applications in order to effectively carry out my responsibilities. For example, to effectively perform complex planning and stakeholder management required by my position as Operations Manager with Century Venues, I gained extensive experience utilising Event Pro and multiple resource allocation programs. This allowed me to effectively record, monitor and retrieve information to support the successful delivery of multiple projects.
Throughout my working life and during completion of tertiary studies, I have demonstrated proficiency in the full Microsoft Office Suite of programs, including Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Access. Using my accurate typing skills and ability to design quality, user-friendly documents, I also develop, format and maintain Excel spreadsheet and Access databases. I have extensive experience creating and delivering training sessions and presentations in PowerPoint to stakeholders at all levels of the organisation. In order to manage my time effectively and schedule meetings and teleconferences, I utilise Outlook to prioritise my workload and keep track of daily, weekly and monthly routines.
In my current role as a Duty Manager with Sydney Trains, I am part of a team responsible for recording information in various systems to be used for reporting and analysis purposes. Each piece of data can range in nature from very straightforward to complex; they can take anywhere from a few minutes up to half an hour, dependent on the information or incident report. My skills in this area have been duly recognised on multiple occasions by my team leader for my accurate processing of information.
I am comfortable and confident with the use of technology, and quick to adapt to new processes and systems. This was demonstrated when Sydney Trains moved away from a paper system and began using SharePoint to move lost property tracking, rostering and forms into a centralised system. I was quick to understand and adapted to this new system, but with many staff requiring further development of their computer skills, some were very reluctant to adopt this change. In this situation I took on the role of training other staff in the use of the new system. Upon listening to staff concerns, I identified that the reason behind the resistance was due to a lack of confidence. As ‘change champion’, I was able to positively influence staff across multiple stations on the proven benefits of embracing the change by both knowledge sharing and training of staff.
In my current role, I use technologies such as two-way radios to communicate with staff and the TLS mobile application to track train movements. My knowledge of this technical equipment has allowed me to share my expertise with colleagues to ensure the effective use of equipment, time and company resources. Unique to Town Hall Station, one of the roles of staff located there is to perform manual updates of the indicator boards which provide information on train running times to customers. I confidently and competently use these various technologies to lead staff and provide a high standard of service to customers using Town Hall Station.
Demonstrated strong problem solving, research and analytical skills, with the capacity to present information in a logical and coherent manner
In my capacity as Operations Manager with Century Venues, I demonstrated high-level planning and organisational skills in a broad range of projects comprising over 3,500 annual events across Sydney. Responsible for the management of several projects at a time from inception to post deployment, I used my advanced analytical and problem solving skills to assess financial feasibility, interpret specifications and technical proposals, monitor timelines and recruit staff to ensure the successful delivery of complicated projects. Additionally, I provided strategic operational analysis to business owners regarding continual improvement, cost efficiency, resource planning, improvements to business operations and implementing agreed objectives, whilst confidently displaying my ability to deliver quality services in a high-pressure environment.
My problem solving skills were honed as a Control Centre Officer with the Ambulance Service of New South Wales (NSW), emphasising my competencies in this area, as well as the importance of making key decisions in a high-pressure environment. Whilst performing my responsibilities within this position, I executed the successful deployment, backfilling and management of more than 100 Ambulance and Police resources in the rescue of a collapsing crane. This was a critical high-risk situation that drew on my ability to remain calm and work within multiple contracts to resolve a complex situation in accordance with strict guidelines.
In my present role as Station Duty Manager at Town Hall Station, I observed that the station was performing poorly against the Key Performance Indicator (KPI) benchmark for cleanliness. In order to develop a solution for this problem, I first engaged in a process of research and analysis to uncover the root causes of the cleanliness issues. This included undertaking shifts where I performed the duties of the cleaning staff, in order to attain an accurate measure of the time taken to complete individual tasks and gain a full understanding of the equipment required, the impact of travel around the station, and the impact of health and safety requirements. After gathering this data, I compared the time required to complete the expected cleaning tasks against the number of cleaning staff allocated to the station and determined that the current cleaning schedule expectations could not realistically be met with the allocated resources. In order to overcome this problem, I developed a proposal of an alternative station cleaning schedule which would achieve the intended goal of meeting cleanliness KPIs while working within the allocated resource parameters.
Following this process of research, analysis and problem solving, I presented the information to the General Manager to obtain approval for the proposed solution. Having received the approval, I then needed to present both the information and new schedule to the relevant staff. In each of these instances, I was required to display the capacity to present information in a logical and coherent manner, tailoring my communications appropriately for the different needs and levels of my audiences. My new cleaning program was introduced to the station in March of 2016, and in the month since implementation has already delivered a 10% improvement to station cleanliness ratings against audit benchmarks. I anticipate that ongoing improvements will continue to be delivered as the cultural change aspects of this program become more entrenched.
Demonstrated ability to be flexible and to meet deadlines within short time frames, including managing changing priorities and working in a high-performing continuous improvement environment
Dedicated to ongoing continuous improvement, I strongly believe it is important to challenge procedures and ways of working on a regular basis to determine if there is a better, more efficient way of performing tasks, maximising organisation and productivity. With a wealth of experience providing support in customer service environments, I take full accountability and ownership for achieving outcomes, coaching and mentoring staff, leading by example and devising ways to improve workplace systems and procedures such as client service standards. The program to improve Town Hall Station cleanliness described above is one example of my commitment to driving continuous improvement in the workplace. In my role with Sydney Trains, I have also executed a development initiative that made a noticeable improvement to customer satisfaction. The methodology behind my approach was to personally coach and mentor staff, rather than just provide text-based training. This led to staff progression and development, manifested in the way in which they interacted with, and assisted customers.
Another example of my capacity to lead high performance in a deadline-driven environment has been in my recent introduction of communication codes for use in two-way radio communications in Town Hall Station. By introducing simple codes to identify common incidents and requests, I have improved the clarity of communications via radio, and freed up airtime to ensure that channels are clear for use in emergency and urgent communications.
As Customer Service Coordinator at LJ Hooker Real Estate, I provided another example of my ability to contribute to continuous improvement and capacity to identify, develop and implement continuous improvement initiatives. Upon commencement in this role, I observed that the company was operating in a paper-based environment, making it difficult to record or report on quality service data. As a result, I introduced and implemented a customer contact database that was able to be utilised by over 100 consultants in a call centre environment. This meant that I could successfully measure the increase in customer interactions and create a streamlined process for customer service personnel. This improvement further led to the implementation of a new initiative termed the ‘Art of Customer Service’ which improved the training and skill development provided to call centre staff.
As a former Control Centre Officer with the NSW Ambulance Service, I am adept at managing changing and competing priorities and working to short time frames. Within the contact centre environment, performance against allocated time limits is a strong focus, and it was part of my role to find ways of meeting required timeframes with whatever resources were available. This required the ability to be flexible and adaptable and to generate solutions to critical situations under intense time pressure.
Extensive verbal and written communication and interpersonal skills, including collaboration, negotiation and presentation skills
A confident and experienced communicator, I have developed the innate ability to tailor my communication to my audience in order to deliver relevant information to key stakeholders. Throughout my career, I have assumed a high level of responsibility that has demanded exceptional communication and negotiation skills, including managing and supervising staff, working closely with executive teams, facilitating staff training and handling customer enquiries and complaints. Throughout my career, I am pleased to say that I have achieved a great deal of success in building and maintaining productive working relationships with a wide range of stakeholders through appropriate social sensitivity and an informed understanding of cultural awareness. This is demonstrated by more than 20 years of career success in frontline management, customer service, senior coordinator, team leadership and emergency service roles. With strong interpersonal skills, I am able to engage others and influence outcomes in order to build relationships that are formed on trust and respect.
As Station Duty Manager, I use my presentation skills in delivering monthly safety briefings to my staff team, providing them with information and training on the safe performance of their roles. I also provide an opportunity for collaboration in these briefings, enabling staff to contribute experiences and ideas related to safety on shift. Additionally, I present information to staff at various levels of the organisation, for example presenting a proposal to management regarding the alteration of the station cleaning schedule and then presenting the new program of cleaning to the relevant staff members following approval.
Whilst answering 000 emergency calls for the Ambulance Service of New South Wales, I displayed highly developed communication skills due to the often highly stressful and emotional situations. In my role as a Control Centre Officer, I was required to engage with and build an immediate rapport, influence the caller to accurately provide the required information and confirm the emergency location in order to protect the safety of responding paramedics and activate the level of response required to provide the necessary care. This has provided me with the ability to effectively communicate in an empathetic manner, while continuing to focus on the results and facts, thus allowing me to interact with a diverse range of people and situations.
As Duty Manager with Sydney Trains, I regularly interact with upset or aggressive customers, as well as people with disabilities and diverse cultural backgrounds. Always entering these situations with a calm and conciliatory approach, I endeavour to provide clear and concise information in line with policy decisions and rulings. For example, in my current role as Duty Manager with Sydney Trains, I recently had the experience of interacting with an irate customer due to the delay of train services to a police operation. The customer was verbally abusive and offensive to staff and other customers and I immediately assessed the situation and communicated to the customer the reasons behind the delays and the unpredictable time that the services would recommence. The customer continued his aggression and I sought to defuse the atmosphere by apologising for the unexpected delay and offered a replacement ticket as compensation. My superior communication skills have also resulted in acknowledgement by my supervisors who have commended me on many occasions for my ability to listen, understand and adapt my style to suit the audience or situation.
