Customer Service & Sales Manager

We support peace and prosperity by building connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and countries worldwide. For over 90 years we have shaped brighter futures through education, arts, culture, language, and creativity. We work with people in over 150 countries and reach over 700 million people. We connect. We inspire. Role Description, Purpose and Accountabilities Join the British Council and lead a customer service team that plays a vital role in creating life-changing opportunities for learners and customers around the world. This is a maternity cover contract and provides an excellent opportunity for an experienced customer service leader to make an immediate impact within a high-performing and customer-focused environment. We are seeking a Customer Service and Sales Manager to lead a team of Customer Service Representatives in delivering exceptional customer experiences across multiple channels, including face-to-face, telephone, email, webchat and social media. As Customer Service and Sales Manager, you will create a positive and high-performing environment where colleagues are motivated, engaged and equipped to provide outstanding service. You will lead recruitment, onboarding and development activities, ensuring the team has the capability and capacity to meet business objectives. Through coaching, regular feedback and performance management, you will support individuals to achieve their full potential while addressing performance concerns effectively and constructively. Working within the Sales and Customer Service function, you will oversee daily operations, including workforce planning, roster management and workload allocation, ensuring appropriate coverage and business continuity during peak periods. You will monitor performance against key service indicators, including customer satisfaction, service levels, quality standards and complaint resolution, taking action to drive continuous improvement and operational efficiency. You will play an important role in supporting sales and retention objectives by ensuring team members identify opportunities to recommend suitable British Council courses and services that meet customer needs. You will drive a culture where customer engagement and commercial awareness go hand in hand, supporting enrolment, retention and revenue objectives. You will prepare and present performance reports, highlighting risks, trends and opportunities to support decision-making across local and regional stakeholders. Maintaining the highest standards of compliance will be a key part of the role. You will ensure adherence to safeguarding requirements, data protection regulations and financial processes, embedding a culture of accountability, accuracy and professionalism across the team. You will also gather and share customer insights, identifying service improvements and contributing to Voice of the Customer initiatives and broader continuous improvement programmes. The successful candidate will have significant experience leading customer service, sales support, contact centre or front-line service teams within a fast-paced, customer-focused environment. You will be an inspiring people manager with a proven ability to coach, develop and motivate individuals and teams to achieve ambitious performance and sales targets while maintaining high levels of engagement. You will possess excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to build effective relationships across Sales, Teaching and Marketing functions. Strong organisational, planning and problem-solving skills are essential, along with experience of workforce planning, resource management and performance reporting. You will be confident using customer data and service metrics to identify trends, improve operational performance and enhance customer satisfaction. Knowledge of safeguarding, data protection and financial compliance processes is highly desirable, as is experience working across multiple customer channels and using customer relationship management systems to support service delivery. Experience driving customer retention, promoting services and identifying sales opportunities would be a distinct advantage. If you are a customer-focused leader who is passionate about developing people, improving services and delivering outstanding customer experiences while supporting commercial success, we would be delighted to hear from you. Join the British Council on this maternity cover contract as Customer Service and Sales Manager and help support our mission of building trust and understanding worldwide through exceptional customer service and sales excellence. Qualifications & Experience Essential * English speaking and writing skills at C1 level at least * Relevant education and experience * Experience of leading a customer service team in a multi-channel environment (e.g. face to-face, phone, email, chat, social media). * Demonstrated ability to manage performance against KPIs, service standards, and quality frameworks. * Proven experience of coaching, developing, and motivating staff to deliver consistently high levels of service. * Excellent emotional intelligence, communication and interpersonal skills Desirable * Experience of managing customer services in the education or training sector. * Understanding of Voice of the Customer methodologies and continuous improvement processes. * Experience of handling escalated complaints and service recovery. * Strong cultural awareness and ability to champion equality, diversity, and inclusion, ensuring inclusive engagement with diverse teams and customers. * Knowledge of British Council products and services, particularly English teaching and exams. * Experience of working in an international or multi-cultural organisation. * Local language skills (if applicable) Important Information * Location: The position is hybrid, with main location in our Budapest office. * Contract Type: This is a Full-Time, Maternity Cover position (12-month Fixed Term Contract) * Salary: 610 200 - 747 360 HUF per month * Benefits include: home Internet reimbursement (up to HUF 5,000), Széchenyi Recreation (SZÉP) Card (monthly HUF 37,500 given 12 times a year), up-to 14 public holidays per year (HU and UK), sick days/s, learning and development opportunities, discount on company products (English, exams) etc. * Right to Work: The candidates must have legal, non-restricted right to live and work in Hungary/the EU and living in Hungary. Unfortunately, we cannot offer relocation package or visa sponsorship for this role. * Background Screening: all successful candidates are obliged to undergo comprehensive background screening * Closing Date: 11th November 2026 A connected and trusted UK in a more connected and trusted world. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Statement We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and we welcome applications from all sections of the community as we believe that a diverse workforce gives added depth to our work. The British Council is a Disability Confident Employer. The Disability Confident scheme helps challenge attitudes, increase understanding of disability, and ensure staff are drawn from the widest possible pool of talent and we guarantee an interview for disabled applicants who meet the minimum role requirements. We welcome discussions about specific requirements or adjustments to enable participation and engagement in our work and activities. Safeguarding Statement The British Council is committed to safeguarding children, young people, and adults who we work with. We believe that all children and adults everywhere in the world deserve to live in safe environments and have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse, maltreatment and exploitation as set out in article 19, UNCRC (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child) 1989. Appointment to positions where there is direct involvement with vulnerable groups will be dependent on thorough checks being completed in line with legal requirements and with the British Council’s Safeguarding policies for Adults and Children. If you experience any difficulties with submitting your application, please email askhr@britishcouncil.org