Contact Center Advocate

Position Summary:
The Contact Center Advocate provides the first, and often only, contact that many people experiencing intimate partner and sexual violence (IPSV) have with House of Ruth Maryland (HRM). HRM is proud to offer 24/7 survivor and community access to live support, education, safety planning and connection to services through phone and chat, as well as in person. The Contact Center Advocate is part of this team, and is responsible for ensuring that every contact – both victims and community members supporting victims - are offered the support, information, referral, crisis intervention counseling, and safety planning consistent with HRM standards. When individuals contact HRM, they present as scared, hopeful, worried, angry, concerned, and hurt. The Contact Center Advocate assesses each victim’s situation relative to lethality and service needs to provide appropriate referrals. The Contact Center Advocate is a creative, energetic problem solver who exercises initiative to help each contact, and is a skilled professional with excellent crisis intervention and customer services skills. The Advocate is responsible for developing an excellent working relationship with other HRM programs and its staff, to ensure the timely, effective and seamless provision of services.

This position is a full time member of the Contact Center team and is considered an essential staff position, required to work in weather emergencies and holidays as needed. Contact Center staff are expected to be flexible, with up to 25% adjustment from regular work schedules at times to cover essential crisis services. The standard schedule for this position Monday-Wednesday 11am-7pm, Friday 4pm-12am, Saturday 2pm-10pm. Primary worksite is the Administration Building in Baltimore City, but this position may work through remote technology based on program need. The Contact Center Advocate is a sedentary position primarily working independently and in front of a screen.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
- Primarily responsible for live responses to hotline calls during designated shifts, taking the majority of incoming calls, and providing excellent customer service and trauma-informed support.
- Shares responsibility with other Contact Center staff members for live response to hotline calls, chat contacts, and triage of walk-in contacts during designated shifts.
- Interfaces with victims, survivors, and community members to provide trauma-informed crisis intervention, safety planning, resource referral, and advocacy services to remedy domestic violence, sexual assault, and other social problems unique to victims within Baltimore and the surrounding area
- Maintains departmental quality assurance standards and trauma-informed principles during live responses to incoming calls, chats, and walk-in contacts during designated shifts
- Attends department-specific training and meetings to maintain knowledge of advocacy best practices, internal and external resources for clients, and community resources and trends
- Demonstrates inclusiveness during interactions with differently-abled persons and individuals with varied sexual, gender, racial, ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds
- Provides resources and facilitates a “warm handoff” during referrals to other agencies on behalf of callers seeking access to external recovery services
- Advocates on behalf of high-risk clients to internal stakeholders across programs to facilitate emergency housing options, including emergency shelter and hotel stays
- Performs daily data entry to document each contact and other administrative tasks as needed for essential Contact Center or site functions. This may include filing call reports, organizing call center spaces, responding to voicemails, etc.
- Nothing in this job description restricts management’s right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time.
Experience, Education, Certifications/Licenses
- High School Diploma/GED
- One year of paid or voluntary experience in either call center, customer service, retail, hospitality, or work with vulnerable populations required. Phone or chat-based experience is highly preferred.
- Demonstrated ability to work quickly and calmly in a crisis required
- Demonstrated ability to make decisions that de-escalate conflict and resolve a crisis effectively required
- Excellent oral and written interpersonal skills with a solid ability to relate to various individuals, including victims, children, donors, business leaders, and human service providers. Particular emphasis on communication over the telephone and computer
- Demonstrated ability to work independently and juggle multiple competing tasks and timelines required.
- Must pass Criminal Background Check
- Highly Preferred Qualities:
  - Knowledge and understanding of intimate partner violence
  - Knowledge of local human services programs/ agencies and housing resources
  - Knowledge or ability to learn database management systems
  - Demonstrates personal traits consistent with victim advocates, including active communication, empathy, trauma-informed care practices, and service-coordination
House of Ruth Maryland offers a comprehensive Total Rewards Package that will include but is not limited to medical insurance, prescription plan, dental insurance, vision insurance, paid time off, life insurance, 403(b) retirement savings plan, and Employee Assistance Program.
House of Ruth Maryland upholds the mission of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission by being an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. All applicants will be considered for employment and will not be excluded because of color, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, disability status or age.