Customer Services Agent

Sage; Johannesburg; Hybrid; ZAR 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Work away scheme

Life Insurance

Income Protection

Critical Illness cover

Funeral Assistance

Provident fund

Medical aid subsidy

Sage Academy leave

Annual leave

Volunteer days

Employee Assistance Program

Flexible work patterns and hybrid

Job summary

Sage is seeking a Customer Services Agent to deliver expert support for SBCA/Pastel Payroll customers. The role involves guiding customers through complex product queries, troubleshooting, and collaborating with partners to minimize business disruption.

Location: Johannesburg office, with three days on-site per week, and hybrid work options. The successful candidate will deepen product expertise, drive customer success, and contribute to digital transformation through proactive support and

Qualifications

• Matric required.
• BCom degree preferred.
• SBCA/Pastel Payroll certification required.
• 1–2 years in customer support/call centre environment.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert-level support for SBCA/Pastel Payroll customers.
• Identify root causes and resolve complex issues.
• Log and track software defects and enhancements.
• Collaborate with internal teams to improve processes and knowledge sharing.
• Maintain accurate customer interactions in CRM.

Skills

Customer focus

Analytical thinking

Troubleshooting

Communication

Time management

Education

Matric

BCom Degree

SBCA/Pastel Payroll certification

Tools

SBCA/Pastel Payroll

CRM platforms

Job description

Job Description

Are you passionate about solving problems, helping customers succeed, and becoming a trusted product expert? As a Customer Services Agent, you will play a critical role in delivering exceptional support to our SBCA/Pastel Payroll customers by providing expert guidance on complex product-related queries and technical challenges.

You will engage with customers, advisors, partners, and alliances to understand their unique requirements, identify root causes, and deliver effective solutions that minimize disruption to their business operations. Through analytical thinking, strong troubleshooting skills, and a customer-first mindset, you will help customers maximize the value of our solutions while contributing to continuous improvements across our support environment.

This role offers an exciting opportunity to deepen your product expertise, influence customer experience, and contribute to digital transformation initiatives that drive efficiency, innovation, and customer success.

Location - 3 days per week out of our Johannesburg office.

Key Responsibilities

• Deliver timeous communication to the Customer Support teams relating to product updates, software releases, bug fixes
• Identifies the root cause of the customers software or system issues and uses system analysis and testing techniques to solve highly complex application or system issues
• Monitors trending customer issues to develop proactive communication and customer education
• Contributes to the overall Digital Transformation objectives through improving efficiencies and quality across online platforms
• Manages the logging process of software bugs or product enhancements and ensures timeous resolution
• Works collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders
• Continuously finding ways to enable all our customers to be self-sufficient in minimizing time to solve complex application support queries
• Prioritizes workload when resources change, managing time and resources effectively to ensure the best possible outcome for the customer, employee, and organization
• Remains relevant on the latest technical and business knowledge in all assigned applications, as well as support processes and procedures.
• Actively participate in internal projects such as product enhancements processes, training development, capturing, and maintaining knowledge capital, improving overall support skills, and improving customer service in the department as assigned.
• Identify knowledge gaps related to product support and collaborate with line managers and training facilitators to close the gap
• Flexibility in supporting/moving to other products within customer support (demand driven)
• Ensuring that you have a good understanding of clients' requirements
• Apply yourself to Investigate queries by narrowing down the cause of the issue.
• Prepare response that's articulate how fixes should be applied sequentially and methodically.
• Accurately log events of each customer query on our internal CRM.
• Customer Support & Problem Resolution
• Provide expert-level support and resolve complex product escalations for Customer Support teams and key stakeholders.
• Investigate, diagnose, and troubleshoot software and system-related issues by identifying root causes and implementing effective solutions.
• Analyze customer requirements and issues thoroughly to ensure accurate and timely resolutions.
• Deliver clear, professional, and easy-to-follow guidance that enables customers to resolve issues efficiently.
• Handle challenging customer interactions with professionalism, empathy, and confidence.
• Product Expertise & Knowledge Sharing
• Maintain expert knowledge of SBCA/Pastel Payroll products, support processes, and industry best practices.
• Communicate product updates, software releases, enhancements, and bug fixes effectively to Customer Support teams.
• Identify knowledge gaps and collaborate with managers and training teams to strengthen product capability across the business.
• Actively contribute to training initiatives, knowledge management, and documentation to enhance overall support effectiveness.
• Continuous Improvement & Innovation
• Monitor customer trends and recurring issues to identify opportunities for proactive communication and customer education.
• Drive continuous improvement by contributing to digital transformation initiatives that enhance customer experience, quality, and operational efficiency.
• Support the logging, tracking, and resolution of software defects and product enhancement requests.
• Continuously identify opportunities to empower customers through self-service and knowledge-sharing initiatives.
• Stakeholder Collaboration
• Build strong working relationships with internal teams, customers, advisors, partners, and alliances.
• Collaborate across departments to ensure timely resolution of customer issues and continuous improvement of support processes.
• Demonstrate flexibility by supporting additional products and business requirements as operational needs evolve.
• Operational Excellence
• Accurately capture and maintain customer interactions within internal CRM systems.
• Manage workload effectively, balancing priorities to achieve the best outcomes for customers and the business.
• Adhere to escalation procedures, service standards, and performance benchmarks.
• Encourage customer feedback through post-interaction surveys to support ongoing service improvements.
• Take ownership of personal development by continuously expanding product, technical, and customer service knowledge.

Skills, Knowledge & Experience

• Certified in SBCA/Pastel Payroll products.
• Strong understanding of customer support environments and customer experience principles.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong analytical, troubleshooting, and problem-solving abilities.
• Ability to actively listen, ask probing questions, and simplify complex business processes.
• Ability to investigate, diagnose, and resolve technical queries effectively.
• Comfortable working independently while managing uncertainty and changing priorities.
• Strong organizational and time-management skills with the ability to work within structured processes and service level requirements.
• Ability to learn and apply technical knowledge while adhering to policies, procedures, and support standards.
• Resilient and professional when handling challenging customer interactions.
• Commitment to following established escalation and support protocols.

Technical Competencies

• Product and application troubleshooting.
• Customer support and service excellence.
• Technical problem analysis and resolution.
• Effective verbal and written communication.
• CRM and support platform proficiency.
• Industry experience within payroll, software, or technology environments would be advantageous.

Behavioural Competencies

• Customer Focus
• Action Orientation
• Resilience
• Resourcefulness
• Accountability
• Effective Communication
• Adaptability and Agility
• Self-Awareness
• Growth Mindset
• Innovation
• Building Trust
• Valuing Diversity and Inclusion

Qualifications & Experience

Matric (essential).

• BCom Degree or equivalent NQF Level 6 qualification (preferred).
• Relevant SBCA/Pastel Payroll product certification.
• 1-2 years' experience in a customer support or call centre environment.
• Ability to identify and adapt to different customer communication styles.

What's in it for you:

• Work away scheme for up to 10 weeks a year.
• Life Insurance: 2x annual salary covered with the option to flex up cover at own cost up to a maximum of 6X annual salary.
• Income Protection: 75% of the monthly risk salary is paid to the colleague in the event of long-term sickness, provided they are unable to perform their duties.
• Critical Illness cover: Provides colleague with lump sum payment at critical illness diagnosis.
• Funeral Assistance: A benefit payable upon the death of a colleague's spouse or children, or to a colleague's dependents in the event of the colleague's death.
• Provident fund: a retirement fund where colleagues have an option to increase contributions of 5% minimum to a maximum of 15% in 2.5% increments.
• Medical aid subsidy: Discovery and Bonitas are offered on selected plans, colleagues receive R2,760 pm.
• Sage Academy leave: On-going training and professional development + 5 paid days per year to engage in learning opportunities.
• 15 days annual leave for fixed term colleagues and 20 annual leave days for permanent colleagues. The annual leave entitlement for permanent colleagues will increases with seniority. 30 days sick leave in a 3 year cycle, 6 days of Family responsibility leave and Religious leave combined, and 5 or 10 days of sports leave based on representation.
• Paid 5 days yearly to volunteer through our Sage Foundation.
• Employee Assistance Program: free, 24/7 short-term counselling, practical support and coaching for you and your family.
• Flexible work patterns and hybrid working.