Prodigy Finance is Hiring Customer Service Agent in South Africa | Hybrid Cape Town Job (Night Shift 15:30 – 00:00 SAST)

Founded in 2007, Prodigy Finance is an international student lender that has helped over 45,000+ international master’s students attend the world’s top universities. To date, Prodigy has disbursed over $2.3 billion in funding to students from more than 150 countries.

Prodigy Finance is fueled by impact investors and other privately qualified entities who invest in tomorrow’s leaders while earning a financial and social return. Prodigy’s borderless lending model enables students to apply for a loan based on their future earning potential and not just their current circumstances and credit history.

What is the purpose of the Role?

We are seeking a Customer Service Agent to join our Front Office Team based in Cape Town, working the night shift. The successful candidate will be responsible for delivering exceptional service to our customers throughout their loan application journey. You will be an integral part of a high-performing team committed to supporting our customers via various communication channels while ensuring a seamless and professional experience.

Key Accountabilities and Associated Activities:

• Responding to customer queries in a timely and accurate manner across multiple channels (calls, chats, emails) with a customer-first mindset.
• Guiding prospective borrowers through the loan application process and educating them on our self-service features.
• Managing customer interactions from initial enquiry to fund disbursement.
• Collaborating with subject matter experts and analysts to improve and streamline the originations workflow.
• Promoting and equipping customers with tools to support self-service and informed decision-making.
• Liaising with internal departments to ensure a consistent and referable customer experience.
• Meeting service targets in a dynamic, high-volume customer service environment.
• Ensuring adherence to service level agreements (SLAs) and internal quality standards.
• Supporting front-line associates in a collaborative omni-channel environment.

Qualifications Required:

• Minimum of 3 years’ experience in a customer support role within financial services.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Familiarity with inbound and outbound customer service environments.
• Proven ability to communicate and negotiate with both internal and external stakeholders, particularly in an international setting.
• Experience dealing with customers under Treating Customers Fairly (TCF) principles.

Experience Required:

• Demonstrated excellence in delivering customer service that prioritises resolution and quality.
• Ability to thrive under pressure in a busy, fast-paced environment.
• Proven experience working collaboratively within teams.
• Exposure to customer service within fintech or regulated environments (desirable).
• Degree qualification (advantageous).
• Previous experience working in a company regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) (advantageous).
• Experience in high-growth or rapidly evolving companies is a plus.

Knowledge, Technical Competency, and Skills:

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to work with culturally diverse individuals.
• High attention to detail and strong administrative discipline.
• Ability to troubleshoot and problem-solve effectively.
• Sound understanding of financial products and operations.
• Strong organisational and multitasking capabilities.
• Process-oriented mindset with an understanding of upstream and downstream impacts.
• Confident, self-aware, and able to operate both independently and within a team (remotely or in-office).

Behavioural Competencies

• Agile and adaptable in a dynamic fintech environment.
• Empathetic yet assertive when engaging with customers.
• Calm under pressure, with a positive and professional attitude.
• Open to feedback and committed to continuous improvement.
• Comfortable debating ideas and challenging the status quo constructively.
• Consistently demonstrates accountability and ownership.

Performance Drivers:

• Quality of customer engagement and resolution.
• Meeting or exceeding service targets and SLA metrics.
• Contribution to team collaboration and knowledge sharing.
• Ability to manage complexity and deliver customer satisfaction.
• Upholding Prodigy Finance’s values in all interactions.

Why join Prodigy Finance?

• Be a part of a pioneering global growth company.
• Experience the excitement and learn from being part of an incredibly fast-growing young company.
• Be pivotal in scaling the business by identifying smart solutions and partnering with tech at the heart of it.
• Enjoy the agility and flexibility offered by a startup culture. A sociable, relaxed and friendly work environment.
• We will help you make your mark. Make a real impact on the business and experience a steep learning curve with huge opportunities to grow and develop.
• Gain an inside perspective on the functioning of a venture-backed Fintech startup, backed by top VCs, learn day-to-day management and build functional expertise.
• Build a platform that helps to make a very real difference in the world.

The purpose, values and behaviours that drive our culture:

Our Purpose: 

• To provide equal access to life-changing education globally

Our Values: 

• We are doing something big here: We are doing something life-changing in the world. Something that changes the status quo. 
• Bigger than us: Our work here is bigger than us as individuals and our own egos. It’s about doing the best work of our lives in service of the greater good. 
• Grow bravely together: We have a relentless desire to continuously improve and work together to evolve our business and ourselves. We are open to the new and always stay curious. 
• Keep pushing forward: What we are doing is not always easy. We embrace the challenge. We never give up at the first hurdle. We always keep moving forward. 

Our Behaviours:

• Judgement: Applying sound judgement to solve problems and prioritise opportunities leads to the best outcomes. We identify key issues, compare data, and choose effective solutions based on facts, constraints, and consequences. We focus on fewer, high-impact actions.
• Accountability: At Prodigy, accountability is personal. We take responsibility for our actions, decisions, and outcomes—both positive and negative. We own mistakes, refocus when needed, and hold ourselves and others accountable for achieving goals.
• Collaboration: We work effectively across teams, fostering learning and cooperation to achieve exceptional results. We listen actively, maintain strong relationships, and align personal contributions with team goals. Collaboration does not mean consensus-building.
• Leadership: Leadership exists at all levels. We influence our thoughts and behaviours to achieve both personal and company goals. We take collective responsibility, act as role models, and embody Prodigy’s values.
• Biased to Focus Action: We prioritise doing the right things with urgency and decisiveness. Data and customer focus guide our actions. We embrace uncertainty, accelerate decision-making, and drive execution, learning, and momentum.
• Communication: Clear, effective communication is key. We proactively share relevant information, focus on desired outcomes, and use data to support our message. We articulate ideas well and listen actively.
• Continuous Improvement: We believe in constant progress. Every employee seeks ways to improve themselves, our product, and our processes. We favour rapid, incremental improvements over perfect design.
• Learning and Experimentation: Openness, curiosity, and a learning mindset drive success. Experimentation fuels discovery, helping us learn, adapt, and prepare for future challenges.