Balsam Brands is a multi-brand eCommerce retailer with roots in holiday and home décor. Based in Silicon Valley, the company operates market-leading website such as www.BalsamHill.com. We strive for excellence in everything we do and have been honored to receive the following awards as a result:

• Forbes: America’s Best Small Companies (2016)
• Inc. 5000: America’s Fastest Growing Private Companies (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015)
• San Francisco Business Times: Fast 100 – Fastest Growing Bay Area Companies (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015)
• Silicon Valley Business Journal: 75 Fastest Growing Private Companies (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015)

The company’s outward focus on building trusted consumer brands along with its internal focus on excellence and being a great place to work have propelled it to consistent, rapid growth.

Balsam International is our Regional Operating Headquarters in the Philippines functioning remotely with a team of hard-working, passionate professionals who contribute significantly to the company’s success. The team in the Philippines enjoy full employee benefits including mandatories (SSS, PAG-IBIG, PhilHealth), 13th month pay, healthcare coverage +2 dependents, internet subsidy (after regularization), continuous learning benefits, access to counseling sessions, paid time off including volunteer days and holiday breaks. The meal subsidies, company trips and other perks are just cherry on top of the work-from-home setup.

Balsam Brands is looking for a multi-lingual Customer Loyalty Associate (CLA) fluent in written German to join our seasonal Customer Success Team in the Philippines. You will work closely with the Customer Success International Team to deliver excellent customer service through email and/or live chat support. You will be responsible for ensuring that customers concerns are processed, addressed, and resolved across different brands in a timely and delightful manner. Our ideal candidate must have excellent written German and English skills, strong customer service orientation, exemplary problem-solving skills, and a fast, proactive learner’s attitude. You will report to the International Brands’ Customer Success Lead. 

Responsibilities:

•    Deliver excellent and delightful customer service through email and/or live chat support for our German customers by meeting various Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). 
•    Effectively handle German live chats, cases and case tasks while representing the brand and its values without the use of translation tools.
•    Build company’s online reputation via our social media accounts and review sites.
•    Ensure that all social and review cases are updated in a timely manner as required.
•    Identify crisis situations or any posts that are potentially harmful to the company and follow policy and procedure. Alert Team Leader, as appropriate, to potential escalated situations.
•    Communicate with various colleagues and supervisor across geographies to ensure customer issues are resolved appropriately.
•    Understand company policies and procedures and know when to escalate and de-escalate customer service related issues. 
•    Ensure that all cases are updated in a timely manner as required. 
•    Provide feedback in brand localization initiatives. 
•    Deliver tasks and projects assigned by the Team Leader and/or Supervisor.

Qualifications:  

•    College level or Graduate of Senior High School.  
•    At least (1) one year of experience (Customer Service, business correspondence, corporate communications or writing) is a plus, but not required. 
•    Experience working remotely is a plus. 
•    Excellent English communication skills with strong analytical, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills. 
•    Fluent in written German language and has business email writing experience
•    Passionate to provide delightful customer service. 
•    Strong attention to detail to ensure all responses (online content) include correct and consistent information reflective of the brand.  
•    Comfortable in working remotely using CRM and online communication tools.  
•    Strong analytical, problem solving and critical thinking skills. 
•    Passionate to provide delightful customer service.  
•    Team player, proactive and professional communication with team members.  
•    Ability to quickly learn new information, work with minimal supervision, and able to prioritize daily work in a fast-paced environment. 
•    Ability to accept feedback constructively and incorporate it into his/her work.  
•    Basic knowledge in MS Office programs, particularly in MS Excel. Must be able to present and understand information in various documents and spreadsheets.  

Our must-haves: 

•    Must be residing within the Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Pampanga, and Rizal areas only.  
•    Applications of the past seasonal hires who have relocated outside of our allowed areas will be evaluated based on their current location and performance during their time in Balsam. 
•    Must be willing to attend virtual training starting on October 2021. 
•    Must be willing to attend occasional in-person meetings depending on the status of the pandemic. For 2021, all in-person gatherings in Balsam are suspended until further notice. 
•    Must have a dedicated, functional laptop/desktop that meets the following specifications: 

For Windows users: 

•    OS Windows 7 – 64 bit or higher 
•    Processor: Intel or AMD Dual Core with up to 2.0 GHz, Intel Core i3 or better 
•    Working MS Office 365 or any version 
•    RAM/Memory: 4GB or higher 
•    Storage: 128 SSD or 250GB HDD or higher 

For MAC users: 

•    Processor: Intel Core i3/i5/M series 
•    Updated Mac OS 
•    Working MS Office 365 or Apple built-in apps 
•    Memory: 4GB or higher 
•    Storage: 128GB or higher for SSD, 250GB+ for HDD 

•    Must have a back-up laptop or desktop for use if the primary laptop or desktop encounters issues. 
•    Must have a fast, reliable DSL, Fiber or Broadband connection (not a mobile or broadband stick) as the primary internet connection with a minimum actual speed of 10MBPS. Proof of subscription will be required.  
•    Must have a back-up internet connection at the same speed if the primary connection becomes spotty. - Pocket Wi-Fi and Mobile hotspot with at least 5 Mbps) 
•    Must have contingency plans in the event of any power outages or related circumstances. 
•    Must be willing and able to work mostly on graveyard shifts, shifting or a fixed schedule and amenable to changes in work schedules depending on business needs. Shift adjustment requests will not be accommodated. 
•    Must not have any planned trips or long vacations between October 2021 to January 2022, especially during the holidays. 

Note: Online assessments will also be part of the recruitment process.  

Status: This is a contractual, home-based job that requires a scheduled eight (8) hours of full-time, dedicated work daily, five days a week. Paid overtime may be required. If performance is up to standard, the contract will be effective from October 2021 to December 31, 2021. Note that there could be contract extensions depending on the needs of the business.