Avanti - OnBoard Customer Service Assistant

[glitterkat]

Have you heard anything about a face to face?

Hiya
Not yet, but sooner expect too with bank holiday etc, how soon did you hear that you had passed your digital? How did you get on at your AD? Hope it went well x

 

[Hrav1656]

I passed the tests and had my digital interview back in April, I’ve now been asked to attend a face to face interview in September, could you tell me if the face to face is a formality discussing the role or is it an in depth interview asking questions ie why do you want to work for Avanti etc?

Thank you for any help in advance

 

[Scotty06]

Its a bit of both, you should get to meet the station manager and also answer appropriately 5 questions.

 

[Hrav1656]

Its a bit of both, you should get to meet the station manager and also answer appropriately 5 questions.

Thank you the reply

 

[glitterkat]

Its a bit of both, you should get to meet the station manager and also answer appropriately 5 questions.

Congratulations on your ad, have you heard back?

 

[railfan99]

Hello,

I notice your location is Glasgow, I assume that's the depot you've applied for?
I'm a new CSA at Glasgow, so far my experience with the company has been good. Training started with a two week course in Crewe and was followed by a few weeks of shadowing experienced CSAs before going out on my own.

If your service to passengers is as good as your summary of the position, you'll be a star. Your words will be a huge help to many applicants.

 

[Hrav1656]

I haven’t been successful never mind start again

 

[43OO4]

I haven’t been successful never mind start again

EBW route roles are remarkably sought after. Don't take it as discouragement, you managed to get as far as a face-to-face which is remarkably good going as far as railway jobs are concerned.

 

[Hrav1656]

EBW route roles are remarkably sought after. Don't take it as discouragement, you managed to get as far as a face-to-face which is remarkably good going as far as railway jobs are concerned

Im proud to have the opportunity to get the face to face I’ve tried four other positions and failed to get this far, I let myself down massively in the interview i didn't preform or act myself at all, which is a massive shame, onwards and upwards i will reapply when i can and hope I can get to that stage again at some point.

 

[micycle]

If your service to passengers is as good as your summary of the position, you'll be a star. Your words will be a huge help to many applicants.

Thanks very much for that comment, I hope that's the case!

 

[PGL]

Hello,

I notice your location is Glasgow, I assume that's the depot you've applied for?
I'm a new CSA at Glasgow, so far my experience with the company has been good. Training started with a two week course in Crewe and was followed by a few weeks of shadowing experienced CSAs before going out on my own.

The job itself involves working in either the onboard shop or the first class carriages. When working in the shop you're responsible for setting up the shop for departure and also maintaining stock levels through your journey by placing orders when needed. You're also expected to do announcements throughout the journey letting passengers know when the shop is opening/closing and promoting meal deals etc.

In first class during the week, you work alongside a service manager and chef to provide an at seat service from the onboard kitchen. You're also required to greet passengers who're boarding first class at each station on the route. During the week there are either 2 or 3 carriages of first class depending on which shift you're on and of course passenger numbers vary train to train.

If you're working first class at the weekend you work alone, however, there is only one coach of first class, coach K, which has a maximum capacity of 18 passengers and is rarely that busy at the weekend. As there is no chef at the weekend, you're required to prepare some meals using the oven/microwave. The weekend menu is reduced so you're not doing anything challenging and there are clear guidelines for you to refer to so it's not difficult at all.

Regarding shifts, it depends what contract you're on, there are different rosters based on your contracted hours. I'm on the 41hr roster. All of the rosters are rolling rosters, meaning that each week of the roster is pre-set, you start at a specific point and move down one position each week and eventually end up back at your starting point (I hope that makes sense) So that means you can see what you're working way in advance.

You do different journeys on each shift. For example, you may do Glasgow to London and back one day, which would be around 11.5hrs and the following day may be Glasgow to Preston and back, which might be around 6.5hrs, so shift lengths vary. The earliest possible start is 0358 and the latest finish is 0023, so you working anywhere between those times.

In terms of days off, or rest days (RD) as the railway calls them, they vary week to week. The week starts on a Sunday. This week I'm off today (Sunday), I'm working Mon to Wed, off on Thursday, working Friday and off Saturday. So sometimes the days off are split up across the week but sometimes they're together.

As I said, I'm new so have limited experience with the company but I hope that answers some questions. If you have any more, I'm happy to help!

Hi, I have a face - to face interview coming up. I've tried to find the original job advertisement for this and the salary. I'm I right in thinking it's £36k or just over. Also do you get commission from the on board shop.

 

[micycle]

Hi, I have a face - to face interview coming up. I've tried to find the original job advertisement for this and the salary. I'm I right in thinking it's £36k or just over. Also do you get commission from the on board shop.

Hi,

I started in February, the salary when I started was £27,718 for a 35hr contract and £32,211 for a 41hr contract.
We've been offered a pay rise of 4.75% for 2023/24 and a further increase of 4.5% for 2024/25, this is pending a vote by RMT members.
We get commission on shop sales only at the weekend.

 

[Neon321]

Hey all,

I have recently applied for the role of Onboard Customer Service Assistant for Avanti West Coast and I have passed both the assessment and the online interview. I now have a final interview in person coming up and I was wondering if those here have also went through the same process. If you did, could you give me advice and what exactly I should expect for the interview? E.G. Would they ask me the same questions they asked me during the online interview or would it just be discussing the role and what they expect of me?

Many Thanks

 

[Hrav1656]

You’ll be given details regarding the role you applied for and asked around 5 questions

 

[Neon321]

Thanks very much for your answer, if you could answer would those 5 questions be similar to the online interview or are they more competency based? Are the questions also STAR-related?

 

[Hrav1656]

I don’t know what your questions will be I’m not the hire manager, my best advice to you is to remain calm.

 

[AG78UK]

I would assume that the interview questions would be competency based questions, “tell me about a time you provided excellent customer service” / “about a time you dealt with a difficult customer”

Railway is always about Safety First and then Customer Service.

STAR technique is used in every interview I have ever been involved in. Like Hrav1656 says, remain calm throughout your interview and take your time.

 

[Neon321]

Thanks guys, just done my interview and I’d say I’ve done pretty well! Interviewers were pleased with my answers and gave me further details regarding the role

 

[PGL]

Hi,

I started in February, the salary when I started was £27,718 for a 35hr contract and £32,211 for a 41hr contract.
We've been offered a pay rise of 4.75% for 2023/24 and a further increase of 4.5% for 2024/25, this is pending a vote by RMT members.
We get commission on shop sales only at the weekend.

Thanks so much, that's great. I was offered the job, I'm now in a talent bank waiting for a training course.
Thanks again

 

[micycle]

Thanks so much, that's great. I was offered the job, I'm now in a talent bank waiting for a training course.
Thanks again

Aw brilliant, well done! You're welcome, hopefully you get on a course soon!

 

[dc96]

Hello,

I notice your location is Glasgow, I assume that's the depot you've applied for?
I'm a new CSA at Glasgow, so far my experience with the company has been good. Training started with a two week course in Crewe and was followed by a few weeks of shadowing experienced CSAs before going out on my own.

The job itself involves working in either the onboard shop or the first class carriages. When working in the shop you're responsible for setting up the shop for departure and also maintaining stock levels through your journey by placing orders when needed. You're also expected to do announcements throughout the journey letting passengers know when the shop is opening/closing and promoting meal deals etc.

In first class during the week, you work alongside a service manager and chef to provide an at seat service from the onboard kitchen. You're also required to greet passengers who're boarding first class at each station on the route. During the week there are either 2 or 3 carriages of first class depending on which shift you're on and of course passenger numbers vary train to train.

If you're working first class at the weekend you work alone, however, there is only one coach of first class, coach K, which has a maximum capacity of 18 passengers and is rarely that busy at the weekend. As there is no chef at the weekend, you're required to prepare some meals using the oven/microwave. The weekend menu is reduced so you're not doing anything challenging and there are clear guidelines for you to refer to so it's not difficult at all.

Regarding shifts, it depends what contract you're on, there are different rosters based on your contracted hours. I'm on the 41hr roster. All of the rosters are rolling rosters, meaning that each week of the roster is pre-set, you start at a specific point and move down one position each week and eventually end up back at your starting point (I hope that makes sense) So that means you can see what you're working way in advance.

You do different journeys on each shift. For example, you may do Glasgow to London and back one day, which would be around 11.5hrs and the following day may be Glasgow to Preston and back, which might be around 6.5hrs, so shift lengths vary. The earliest possible start is 0358 and the latest finish is 0023, so you working anywhere between those times.

In terms of days off, or rest days (RD) as the railway calls them, they vary week to week. The week starts on a Sunday. This week I'm off today (Sunday), I'm working Mon to Wed, off on Thursday, working Friday and off Saturday. So sometimes the days off are split up across the week but sometimes they're together.

As I said, I'm new so have limited experience with the company but I hope that answers some questions. If you have any more, I'm happy to help!

Hello, i just came across this post as I received an email inviting me to do the digital interview. (CSA onboard Avanti West Coast)

I want to work my way up to become a train driver in the future, so I'm looking to get my "foot in the door", as there haven't been any trainee train driver opportunities near enough to where I live.

So if i was successful in getting the job as an CSA onboard for Avanti West Coast, will I be able to apply for a trainee train driver role or something very similar internally, so I can train to become a driver? Or is that not at all possible? Or would you recommend working for the company to gain experience? What would you advise?

Also, do you have any advice and how I should prepare for the digital interview please?

Thank you so much.

Kind regards,

Dennis.

 

[glitterkat]

Thanks so much, that's great. I was offered the job, I'm now in a talent bank waiting for a training course.
Thanks again

Congratulations! I am also in the same position! What station have you applied for? Did they give you any timescale of upcoming courses?

 

[dc96]

Hey all,

I have recently applied for the role of Onboard Customer Service Assistant for Avanti West Coast and I have passed both the assessment and the online interview. I now have a final interview in person coming up and I was wondering if those here have also went through the same process. If you did, could you give me advice and what exactly I should expect for the interview? E.G. Would they ask me the same questions they asked me during the online interview or would it just be discussing the role and what they expect of me?

Many Thanks

After you completed your online interview, how soon did you hear back to see if you were successful or not?

 

[glitterkat]

I heard back 4 weeks after digital interview.

 

[dc96]

I heard back 4 weeks after digital interview.

Thanks!

 

[micycle]

Hello, i just came across this post as I received an email inviting me to do the digital interview. (CSA onboard Avanti West Coast)

I want to work my way up to become a train driver in the future, so I'm looking to get my "foot in the door", as there haven't been any trainee train driver opportunities near enough to where I live.

So if i was successful in getting the job as an CSA onboard for Avanti West Coast, will I be able to apply for a trainee train driver role or something very similar internally, so I can train to become a driver? Or is that not at all possible? Or would you recommend working for the company to gain experience? What would you advise?

Also, do you have any advice and how I should prepare for the digital interview please?

Thank you so much.

Kind regards,

Dennis.

You would be able to apply for any internal vacancies after 6 months of employment. Have you had your digital interview now? I don't really any specific advice on about a digital interview, I didn't do one, just an application, online testing and a face-to-face interview.

 

[Neon321]

After you completed your online interview, how soon did you hear back to see if you were successful or not?

I was given a face to face interview date about 2-3 weeks later, then after that interview I was told I was successful the next day then gotten a contract offer the following day.

 

[dc96]

I was given a face to face interview date about 2-3 weeks later, then after that interview I was told I was successful the next day then gotten a contract offer the following day.

Thanks!

I received an email today telling me that I am through to the next stage of a face to face interview!

Do you have any tips/advice for the interview please? Is the questions going to be the similar as the digital or is it discussing the role? Just so that I have a better idea of what to expect and I can prepare appropriate.

Thank you!

 

[Vespa]

*Following this informative thread, I'm also interested in working for Avanti as a first choice with Northern as second, depending on roles available.

 

[Hrav1656]

Thanks!

I received an email today telling me that I am through to the next stage of a face to face interview!

Do you have any tips/advice for the interview please? Is the questions going to be the similar as the digital or is it discussing the role? Just so that I have a better idea of what to expect and I can prepare appropriate.

Thank you!

Congratulations, my face to face questions was similar to the online interview ie why should we employ you?
My best advice would be to remain calm something I failed terribly at!

Good luck