A shortage of German bilingual customer service employees is hindering the growth of UK SME Bathrooms.com into European markets. Over ten months, 20 recruitment services were used and over 50 CVs were reviewed, however only 14 interviews took place, resulting in one hire.
Following the launch of Bathrooms.com in Germany and France, the UK based e-commerce company faced difficulties in bridging the brand overseas after searches for German and English-speaking customer service candidates proved unsuccessful.
Bathrooms.com used multiple recruitment agencies, including specialist recruiters dealing with German only candidates, to find a German multi-lingual candidate. After little progress was made, a walk-in agency found 14 candidates for interview.
UK job site reed.co.uk reported that of the total number jobseekers that have signed up in 2014, 397,260 of them are multilingual. Of these, 37,830 are German/English bilingual. However, the customer service skills Bathrooms.com were recruiting for were lacking amongst candidates.
After the stretched out recruitment search, candidate Hans-Joerg Dreier was offered a role with Bathrooms.com, and they are now looking to grow their customer service team, and recruit a Gretel.
Hans, who was finally offered the role earlier this year, is a German Customer Service Executive who currently leads the German customer service team at Bathrooms.com. Natively from Paderborn in Germany, his experience crosses over twenty years in Accounts and Sales Management.
Philip Ellis, COO of Bathrooms.com talks about the process that started in last year:
“The main stumbling block was finding enough candidates that fitted the brief. We made one offer to a candidate who decided at the last minute she wanted to stay in Germany, which also slowed the process. It’s surprising how difficult it is to find suitable employees with proficient German and English language skills. Eventually, Hans arrived and we’re now on the hunt to find a Gretel.”
Hans commented on joining Bathrooms.com:
“I’m really excited to join Bathrooms.com and looking forward to working in the B2C sector. It was great to hear that Bathrooms.com were impressed with my language skills and willingness to learn as well as sharing like-minded business qualities. I wanted to utilise my knowledge in a leading e-commerce company like Bathrooms.com and I felt this was an ideal career choice. I hope we can find a Gretel to do the same.”
Could you be Hans’ Gretel? Key requirements for the role include experience in a client facing sales position with a dynamic focus supporting the entry of Bathrooms.com’s brand in Germany. The candidate will also assist the Phillip Ellis in translating the website, analysing product pricing and engaging support services. The person will further develop channel management skills and gain responsibilities for German Sales and Customer Service.
The role would be ideal for someone who responds well to a high demand e-commerce environment and has a good understanding of customer interaction. An interest in sales and marketing is also a desirable asset - with a tenacious attitude and problem solving abilities as an addition. The ‘Hans seeks Gretel’ search continues and applicants can apply online on the Bathrooms.com Jobs page here bathrooms.com/careers.
