1. SNAPSHOT:
CUSTOMER
SERVICE
U.S. Job Candidates
Brought to you by Monster Intelligence
October 2011

2. Customer Service | Market Conditions
Customer Service Employment Trends CUSTOMER SERVICE FOOTPRINT:
More than 1.1 million job seekers have
MONSTER EMPLOYMENT INDEX
public resumes for employers to view
(Source: Monster Employment Index (MEI):
http://www.about-monster.com/employment/index/15) on Monster
Index YoY Change Call Center 29%
115 15% Retail 20%
Finance/Banking 19%
110 10%
Technical 10%
105 5%
Other CS Related 22%
100 0%
95 -5% EVERY MONTH in the U.S.:
(Source: Monster Internal Data, 12-month average,
90 -10% Oct ‘10 – Sep ‘11)
J-11
J-11
J-11
O-10
N-10
D-10
S-11
S-10
A-11
A-11
F-11
M-11
M-11
Candidates viewed Customer Service
jobs 2.9 million times on Monster.com
The Office and Administrative MEI, which tracks
U.S. online recruitment activity for administrative Candidates responded to Customer
occupations including customer service reps, had Service jobs nearly 576,400 times on
a weak start to 2011 but recovered in March and Monster.com
has since been positive.
37,100 new Customer Service
resumes are added to Monster.com
Customer Service Employment Forecasts
(Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Outlook Top Keywords/Titles Searched*
Handbook, 2010-2011)
There are 2.3 million customer service 1. CS 6. Customer Relations
representatives in the U.S.; they are 2. CS Representative 7. CS Operations
forecasted to grow a strong 18% and add 3. Call Center 8. Healthcare CS
nearly 400,000 roles in the 2008-18 decade.
4. CS Manager 9. CS Management
This makes customer service representatives
the third fastest growing U.S. occupation in 5. Customer Support 10. CS Operations
terms of the number of new jobs. *The following words were abbreviated from Customer Service
to CS
The strong growth in customer service
representatives is partly due to the increased
emphasis on building strong customer Top Skills and Certificates
relationships, as well as the typically high 1. Microsoft Products 6. Bilingual – Spanish
percentage of turnovers. 2. Customer Service 7. Bilingual
Bilingual candidates should find excellent 3. Typing 8. 10-Key
opportunities in this occupation.
4. Data Entry 9. Word Perfect
Representatives are especially concentrated in 5. Lotus Notes 10. Management
the finance and insurance industry.
Copyright © 2011 by Monster, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, 2
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of
Monster, Inc.

3. Customer Service | Seeker Demographics
Education Level Career Level
Post
Grad Exec
4 Year Student 1%
3%
High Degree 13%
School 17% Manager
29% 26%
Entry-
Level
14%
Cert/Voc
Training 2 Year
7% Degree/
Some
Mid-
College
Career
44%
46%
Experience Level Monster’s Customer Service
Candidates…
15+ Years 16%
• 44% have a two-year
10+ to 15 Years 14% degree or some college
experience
7+ to 10 Years 12%
5+ to 7 Years 17%
• 46% are Mid-Career
2+ to 5 Years 25% • Only 30% have 10 or
more years of experience
1+ to 2 Years 10%
• Expect to earn a median
Less than 1 year 6% of $45,000 per year
Copyright © 2011 by Monster, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, 3
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of
Monster, Inc.

4. Customer Service | Geography
The highest volume of Customer Service resumes are found in California, Texas and
Florida. Reviewing the available talent on Monster per workforce volumes shows the
states with the most active Customer Service resumes; these states included California,
Ohio, New Jersey, Washington, Nevada and Maryland. Opportunities to obtain Customer
Service candidates may be less competitive in these areas.
Highest Volume of Available Customer Service Resumes
Top 10 US States Top 10 US Markets
California 13% Los Angeles 7%
Texas 11% New York 7%
Florida 8% Dallas 5%
New York 5% Atlanta 4%
Ohio 5% Chicago 4%
Georgia 5% Philadelphia 3%
Illinois 4% Houston 3%
Pennsylvania 4% Boston 2%
New Jersey 3% Tampa 2%
North Carolina 3% San Francisco 2%
Copyright © 2011 by Monster, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, 4
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of
Monster, Inc.

5. Customer Service | Best Practices
In a recent Monster survey of more than 210 Customer Service professionals, respondents
were asked several questions about how they evaluate a potential job opportunity.
The responses reveal the importance of writing a concise and accurate job description. A
well-written job posting will ideally lead to a more relevant pool of candidates.
Respondents evaluated the structure of Customer Service professionals were asked
online job postings in order of importance: about their biggest frustrations, if any, with
advertised Customer Service jobs. The
1. Job Description/About the Job greatest frustrations included:
2. Responsibilities
3. Qualifications 1. Lack of response from employers
4. Compensation 2. Vague job descriptions
5. Company Description 3. Omission of key criteria
6. Benefit Summary
7. Job Title  Create and maintain communication
8. Company Name/Logo channels to help foster a positive image
and attract more applicants in the future.
 To make the highest impact, establish  Eliminate potential recruiting barriers
consistent procedures to include content that job seekers/candidates’ indicate are
most important to job seekers. their biggest frustrations.
Respondents were asked about facets Customer Service respondents assessed
most important to job satisfaction. factors most important for success in today’s
Customer Service professionals noted the workforce. Qualifications most important
essential features included: included:
1. Job Security 1. Adaptability
2. Salary 2. Enthusiasm
3. Benefits 3. Skills and Expertise
4. Feeling Safe 4. Work Experience
5. Teamwork 5. Career Development
 Include criteria which are viewed as  Include information and attributes that
essential to job seekers within a job job seekers deem important so that they
posting in order to attract the most can fairly evaluate opportunities.
preferred candidates.
Copyright © 2011 by Monster, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of
5
Monster, Inc.

6. Customer Service | Want to Learn More?
Monster Intelligence offers a number of free reports and webinars that
provide relevant insights into the vital issues organizations face today
The information included in this snapshot is a fraction of the information
Monster collects. Monster partners with thousands of companies around
the globe that use Monster Intelligence data and insights to help with
strategic HR decision-making from Talent Availability to Site Selection.
Please see our Job Conditions Reports for a more in-depth look at:
> Market Conditions:
An analysis of the industry, recruiting trends, and hiring conditions
> Hiring Talent:
A look at talent, including their desired occupations; skills, career, education and
experience level; national concentration; and current job search conditions
> Supply and Demand Analysis:
A comparison of talent supply and talent demand across numerous elements,
helping recruiters to identify opportunity and challenge areas; analysis includes
occupations, job/resume requirements, qualifications, and compensation
To access a full line of research visit the Monster Resource Center at:
http://hiring.monster.com/hr/hr-best-practices/market-intelligence.aspx
To find out more about
Monster Intelligence, contact your
Monster Representative at
Monster is the primary source of information for this report; 1-800-MONSTER ext. 6333 or
it should only be interpreted as a definitive activity report on
Monster and its subsidiaries. email: intelligence@monster.com
6

7. Monster, the premier global digital employment solution for more
than a decade, inspires people to improve their lives. With a global
presence, Monster works for everyone by connecting employers with
quality job seekers at all levels and providing personalized career
advice to consumers globally.
Monster For more information visit
www.monster.com or call your
5 Clock Tower Place local Monster Representative.
Suite 500 1-800-MONSTER (666-7837)
Maynard, MA 01754