Welcome back to our Life at LetsGetChecked series, a sequence of features that offer insight into what it’s really like to work at LetsGetChecked.

This week, we speak with Carol O’ Sullivan, our Customer Solutions Training Manager.

Carol was on a career break to spend time with family when she came across LetsGetChecked online. Carol wasn’t actively seeking a job at the time but was blown away by the company’s mission.

How long have you been working with LetsGetChecked? What is your current role?

I have been working in LetsGetChecked for nearly two years now. I am the Customer Support Training Lead. I started at a Customer Support Executive, developed to Customer Support Team Lead and then expanded out to a training role.

There are so many new people starting at LetsGetChecked, I ensure that new members of the team are trained to a high standard and that guidelines are being followed. I offer continuous training to all of our care team staff, especially new starters.

This role was recently developed as the team has expanded so much in the last year and will continue to grow into 2020. My role is to ensure that new starters have someone to go to at all times and are looked after throughout their career development.

What attracted you to your current role at LetsGetChecked?

When I started reading about the company, I just thought “Wow!” honestly, I did, I thought it was amazing.

As a mother with two small kids, who never goes to the doctor, I thought to myself, “I need to do all of these tests and now I can get them sent to my home!” I thought it was a brilliant idea and I know that there are so many people who are in a similar situation to me when it comes to going to the doctor.

I was on a five year career break for my kids when I saw the role advertised online. I had worked in marketing before that, but I wanted a change. I was ready to go back to work, and I’ll be honest, it was the only job I applied for, I didn’t want to give up spending time with my kids on a whim, I knew deep down that it was going to go really well for LetsGetChecked.

The company has rocketed in the last few years, I have loved seeing it grow and develop.

How has your career progressed since you started?

In line with the company progression, we’ve seen new openings for more roles and more areas, and there was an opportunity for me to move into a training role which I have really enjoyed so far.

I would say that there is a good opportunity for career progression in all departments. We always encourage people who have an interest in another area in the company to make it known to us. The customer support team are experts in what our customers want, that is really helpful if you were to transition into another department.

We look at every member of the team and we meet with them regularly to see what direction they see for themselves and to identify if we can help them on their way.

What does your day to day look like?

Day to day, I am working very closely with the Customer Support team, making sure that everything is running smoothly, if someone needs assistance, I am there to help.

At the moment, we are going through the recruitment process and we’re expanding the team so I am involved with that. In the background, I am putting together the final touches to a four week training programme for the new starters at LetsGetChecked.

The new training programme I am working on is really going to help people who are starting. There are so many different tests and so many different scenarios, so learning takes time but in the end it is worth it.

A customer support role at LetsGetChecked is not the typical customer support role, it’s so involved and so interesting. There are big differences between the type of support someone needs if they’re dealing with their sexual health or if they’re dealing with thyroid issues or bowel cancer screening.

You have to put on different hats at different times, somebody might get in contact and they’re very anxious, so you need to show empathy and warmth and show that you’re not a robot at the end of the phone.

Every person is different and every call is different, so it’s learning and training people in how to deal with all of these different scenarios.

What is your favourite memory of working at LetsGetChecked?

Well, one of my favourite personal memories of working at LetsGetChecked is diagnosing my own thyroid condition.

About a year ago, I was doing the staff monthly test and there was something in the back of my mind that was saying, “do the thyroid test, do the thyroid test.”

I kept putting it off and putting it off and sure enough, when I received my results, I was told that all of my thyroid hormones were out of whack, only for this test I would have never known!

At the time I was feeling tired but I just thought it was because I am a mum who is working full time. The doctor said to me when I went for a follow up appointment “You’re so lucky that we caught it at this stage.” I know that lots of people don’t go to the doctor until symptoms are much worse. I started treatment straight away, it’s just one tablet a day and my thyroid hormones are back in normal range.

I feel back to myself because I took the test and because of my diagnosis. When you’re younger, in your 20s and 30s, you think you’re invincible, when something like this happens, it wakes you up a little bit, you think, right I need to look after my health now, you realize then that you have to look after your cholesterol and your blood pressure and so on. It is an awakening, having access to these tests ensures that you don’t put it off until it’s too late.

I emailed our CEO Peter at the time to say thank you, because I was so thrilled that I have discovered this.

What is your favourite thing about working at LetsGetChecked?

It’s such an interesting job, it’s very varied and very rewarding in the sense that you know that you are helping people. For instance, in the last two weeks we have helped two customers receive an early diagnosis, they are now both in treatment.

Within our roles, we have a degree of flexibility, I am grateful for that. As we are open 24 hours, we have flexibility around our hours. It’s not your average 9-5, and I am grateful for that.

My favourite thing about working LetsGetChecked is the people. I am very much a people person, the team that I work with are such a lovely bunch of people. I look forward to coming in and seeing everyone everyday. I love working with both our customers and the team at LetsGetChecked.

Overall, I am blown away by how much the company has exploded in just a year. The whole experience has been a pleasure, especially watching it grow.

Every day is rewarding in itself but I have enjoyed every victory and milestone that the company has achieved.

What advice would you have for someone who would like to work to work with the Customer Support team?

My advice would be to just come in and be yourself. If you have an enthusiasm for health and LetsGetChecked as a company, then you should apply for a job.

When I saw the ad for the role, I just thought, “Wow, I really need to get a job there”. If you have that feeling, then come and just be yourself.

Show us the real you, that is important in a customer orientated role. In interviews, people can get nervous and they might not totally be themselves but we just want to see the real you, because you are the person who is going to be on the phone to our customers. You have to be the right fit, you need to have a real interest in people, the company, health and an enthusiasm for it.

We are looking for people who are genuinely passionate about this growing company, what we’re doing and what we’re doing for people.

What three skills does someone need to thrive on the customer support team?

  • Empathy
  • Listening skills
  • Problem solving skills

Thinking about your next career move? We are hiring!