The College
Lincoln College was founded in 1427 in the University of Oxford and is a self-governing institution in which the ultimate authority for all decisions rests with the Rector and Fellows. Lincoln has 600 students in residence of whom around half are graduates. The College is also a popular choice for
both undergraduates and graduate applicants to the University. Lincoln College is located on an attractive historic site in the centre of Oxford, with excellent access to university libraries and the university’s departments and faculty buildings. More information on the College can be found
on its website, www.lincoln.ox.ac.uk
The Lodge
The Lodge is the first point of contact for all guests and visitors to the College making this a key public-facing role providing a professional yet friendly welcome. The delivery of exemplary
customer service is paramount to creating a positive impression and to the successful operation of an efficient and effective lodge reception. The Lodge is open 24/7, all year round.
The Casual Lodge Receptionist will be responsible for assisting in the day-to-day operation of the Lodge and fulfilling the daily tasks as per departmental procedures; reporting to the Deputy Lodge Manager for day-to-day operational tasks as well as the Lodge Manager, for overall management of the Lodge.
Hours of Work
This is a casual post. Shift times will vary, with the earliest shift starting at 7:30am and the latest shift finishing at 10:00pm.
Key Duties
The Casual Lodge Receptionist role will include, but is not limited to, the following tasks and responsibilities:
Customer service:
- Provide a warm and professional welcome to the College, ensuring visitors are acknowledged quickly and helped in a timely fashion.
- Be sympathetic to the support and welfare needs of the student body;
providing a professional, approachable and safe environment for students
to get information or signposting to the appropriate support resources.
- Dealing with a wide and varied flow of people at different levels.
Professionalism, tact, diplomacy, discretion and a welcoming approach are
required at all times, as well as an awareness of the need for
confidentiality where circumstances dictate.
- To act as a point of information for college members during term time, to
conference & events guests and to visitors throughout the year. Able
to quickly provide, or know where to find information, and to be
knowledgeable about the College history, the local area and tourism
attractions.
- Handling telephone calls to the main switchboard, displaying a warm and
professional welcome by phone and able to competently handle enquiries,
deal with any requests yourself, where possible or, if unable to assist,
then to probe for further information and direct the caller to the
appropriate person. Taking and communicating messages where required.
- Ability to work proactively, to foresee any potential issues and to think
strategically about contingency plans and communicate them effectively;
able to comprehend the ‘bigger picture’ and how the activities and
interactions of a busy College operation relate to the Lodge operation.
- To deal with any unforeseen situations calmly and be able to use your own
initiative to resolve minor issues confidently, but be aware of
limitations and know when to escalate. To effectively communicate to the
guest, in the first instance, and also to relevant departments as
required;
- To be confident in handling complaints. Able to remain calm and composed to resolve complaints quickly and to ensure all relevant departments are made aware of both the issue and the action taken to resolve it.
Safety and Security
- Supporting the Lodge Management to ensure a continuous safe and secure environment, highlighting any potential risk and impact on the College to the Deputy and Lodge Manager.
- Be first aid trained, proficient in fire prevention and H & S regulations and act as first responder to incidents, and to coordinate with emergency services or University Security where required.
- Lodge staff are required to carry out security patrols and deal with any security or behavioural issues appropriately and professionally. Being vigilant at all times and able to confidently, but tactfully and politely challenge anyone who appears to needs assistance.
- The post holder should be fully conversant with the College Security systems and procedures. Able to deal with any emergencies in a swift and prompt manner following the College Fire and other emergency plans.
- Responsible for providing written incident reports in line with college policy.
General Operational Duties
- Ensuring the Lodge area is clean, tidy and organised and promotes a professional
and welcoming first impression of the college, sorting post, delivering
parcels and assisting with parcels and /or luggage.
- To be IT proficient, particularly in the use of MS Office and be able to use
the college booking system.
- To act as an information point and communicate relevant information across the appropriate departments, ensuring accurate and detailed handovers between shifts.
- Assisting tour party visitors within the College and ensuring the College is well presented for this purpose.
- The post holder should display a high standard of written and verbal communication, duties will include monitoring the Lodge email account and responding professionally and timely to incoming emails.
- As directed by the Lodge Manager assist the Dean, Domestic Bursar and Junior Deans in the enforcement of College Rules, ensuring that noise disruption is kept to a minimum and that procedures for managing noise or behavioural issues are complied with to minimise the impact on residents of the college.
- Ensure the Lodge issue keys/fobs accurately, complying with all procedures.
- To collect, cash-up and accurately record all monies paid by visitors or tour parties.
General Duties
- The post holder will be required to be familiar with, and work in accordance with, all College’s policies and procedures.
- To participate in training and development required by the College.
- To be vigilant and take responsibility for ensuring the Lodge and College property and equipment is kept safe at all times.
- To comply with any other reasonable request when required by the Lodge Management Team, Domestic Operations Manager or any other senior manager.
The above is not an exhaustive list of duties and you will be expected to perform different tasks as necessitated by your role within the College and the overall objectives.
Person Specification
The ideal Casual Lodge Receptionist will have the following attributes:
Essential:
- Previous experience working in a customer service focused role in a hotel or similar environment.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- IT literate – able to use Microsoft Office.
- Ability to prioritise when dealing with a wide and varied workload.
- Able to use initiative to solve day to day problems or to react appropriately in the case of emergencies. Able to remain polite and calm under pressure, be self-motivated and organised.
- Able to demonstrate compassion and support in a high-pressure environment.
- Ability to work collaboratively as part of a team, in a flexible, supportive and adaptable manner.
- High level of motivation and initiative and be able to work without direct supervision.
Desirable
- Experience using electronic booking systems.
- Experience working in an academic setting.
- Knowledge of emergency procedures and First Aid.
Equality, Diversity and Data Protection
Recruitment monitoring information is collected for equality purposes
only and does not form part of the selection process. Please note that any
personal data submitted to the College as part of the job application process
will be processed in accordance with the GDPR and related UK data protection
legislation. For further information, please see the Lincoln College’s Privacy
Policy: https://lincoln.ox.ac.uk/asset/Privacy-Policy.pdf
Lincoln College is committed to equality of opportunity and to providing
a working environment in which all individuals are treated with dignity and
respect.
Equality of Opportunity
Entry into employment with the University and progression within
employment will be determined only by personal merit and the application of
criteria which are related to the duties of each particular post and the
relevant salary structure. In all cases, ability to perform the job will be the
primary consideration. No applicant or member of staff shall be discriminated
against because of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil
partnership, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual
orientation.
Other Information
The appointment will be conditional on verification of the successful
candidate’s availability for employment in the UK. The successful candidate
will be required to complete a confidential medical questionnaire which will be
forwarded to our Occupational Health Department who will assess their fitness
to perform this role.
Any enquiries related to these further particulars should be directed to
hr@lincoln.ox.ac.uk
