Customer Service Practitioner Apprenticeship - Sales Department

COLUMBUS MCKINNON CORPORATION LIMITED

CHESTER (CH1 4NZ)

Closes in 15 days (Wednesday 10 December 2025 at 11:59pm)

Posted on 24 November 2025

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Summary

To assist the sales team by providing a committed, proactive support function in all aspects of everyday sales activity, ensuring the customer’s experience of doing business with our organisation is a positive and memorable one.

Wage

£18,000 a year

Check minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)

£18,000 - £20,000 based on transferable experience and age of candidate.

Training course
Customer service practitioner (level 2)
Hours
Monday to Thursday 08:30 – 17:00 with 30m unpaid lunch break and Friday 08:30 – 13:30 without a break.

37 hours a week

Start date

Thursday 11 December 2025

Duration

1 year 2 months

Positions available

1

Work

Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.

What you'll do at work

  • Responding to customer requests for product information, price and/or availability via e-mail, phone, chat applications
  • Providing support to Sales in completing customer enquiries arriving into CRM and/or e-mail inbox
  • Working towards becoming a competent member of the UK sales team for inbound sales
  • Providing follow-up/tracking on quotation requests, receipt of goods, paperwork and service ratings
  • Accurately capturing and comprehending customer requirements and creating quotations, customer orders and overseeing the sales lifecycle
  • Pivoting data from CRM to identify opportunities to improve, identify customer needs and/or to maintain positive customer experiences
  • Adheres to all local legal, health and safety and compliance requirements, policies and procedures
  • Reporting to Sales Team Manager/ET Business Development Manager
  • Close interaction with all UK sites through sales activity
  • Role to expand over time
  • No direct reports

Where you'll work

KNUTSFORD WAY
SEALAND INDUSTRIAL ESTATE
CHESTER
CH1 4NZ

Training

Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.

Training provider

JUNIPER TRAINING LIMITED

Training course

Customer service practitioner (level 2)

Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)

What you'll learn

Course contents
  • Use a range of questioning skills, including listening and responding in a way that builds rapport, determines customer needs and expectations and achieves positive engagement and delivery.
  • Depending on your job role and work environment: Use appropriate verbal and non-verbal communication skills, along with summarising language during face-to-face communications; and/or
  • Depending on your job role and work environment: Use appropriate communication skills, along with reinforcement techniques (to confirm understanding) during non-facing customer interactions.
  • Depending on your job role and work environment: Use an appropriate ‘tone of voice’ in all communications, including written and digital, that reflect the organisation’s brand.
  • Provide clear explanations and offer options in order to help customers make choices that are mutually beneficial to both the customer and your organisation.
  • Be able to organise yourself, prioritise your own workload/activity and work to meet deadlines.
  • Demonstrate patience and calmness.
  • Show you understand the customer’s point of view.
  • Use appropriate sign-posting or resolution to meet your customers needs and manage expectations.
  • Maintain informative communication during service recovery.

Training schedule

Customer Service Practitioner Level 2.

Requirements

Essential qualifications

GCSE in:

English & maths (grade 4 - 9)

Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.

Skills

  • Communication skills
  • Attention to detail
  • Organisation skills
  • Problem solving skills
  • Number skills
  • Logical
  • Team working
  • Initiative
  • Patience
  • Physical fitness

Other requirements

5 GCSE’s including Maths and English Good written and spoken English language skills Strong communication skills with the ability build rapport MS Office, particularly Excel and Outlook Ability to manage a busy and varied workload effectively Willingness to support the wider team when needed Previous experience in a customer service role and/or experience using a CRM system would be advantageous This role will appeal to candidates interested in developing their technical knowledge, their sales skills and who enjoy fact-finding and problem-solving

About this employer

With a history spanning 150 years, Columbus McKinnon is a global leader in intelligent motion solutions for material handling. Our high-quality brands, such as STAHL CraneSystems, Yale, Pfaff-silberblau, Dorner, Magnetek, CM and Duff-Norton, work together to move the world forward and improve lives. Whether it’s increasing safety or improving productivity, our intelligent motion technology is hard at work worldwide.

https://www.cmco.com/en-gb/ (opens in new tab)

Company benefits

Matched pension contributions Life cover 37 hours per week Early finish Fridays Shutdown over Christmas/NY 25 days holiday plus public hols Bi-annual performance review process Onsite parking Development plan

After this apprenticeship

Full-time permanent employment will be offered to the right candidate.

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

JUNIPER TRAINING LIMITED

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000002136.

Apply now

Closes in 15 days (Wednesday 10 December 2025 at 11:59pm)

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