Customer Experience Specialist

The Team:

The Home Lending Operations team at Upstart is building a borrower experience that is clear accessible and humanfrom the very first interaction through to loan funding. While most of the loan lifecycle is handled by pod-based specialists the Customer Experience (CX) team plays a pivotal role in guiding potential borrowers and early-stage applicants through the process. This team is instrumental in reducing reliance on traditional call centers by providing proactive personalized support via phone email and chat.

As a Customer Experience Specialist youll be the first point of contact for individuals exploring or applying for a home lending product. Youll answer questions resolve concerns and ensure early-stage interactions reflect Upstarts mission of delivering an effortless credit experience. Youll also handle escalations from across the operation requiring empathy professionalism and sound judgment.

How youll make an impact

• Answer inbound calls from prospective borrowers and applicants whose files have not yet been assigned to a processing pod guiding them through next steps and answering product questions.
• Respond to inbound email inquiries and manage real-time chat support (in future-state implementation) providing accurate helpful and timely information.
• Take ownership of escalation calls from applicants requesting a supervisor resolving concerns professionally while adhering to compliance and policy guidelines.
• Support funnel conversion by proactively identifying and addressing common applicant questions or pain points.
• Maintain accurate notes of all borrower interactions in tools such as Salesforce and Vesta to ensure visibility and alignment across teams.
• Identify opportunities to improve CX processes documentation or messaging based on recurring feedback or support trends.
• Collaborate with Pods Training and Quality teams to ensure consistency across all borrower touchpoints.

Minimum Qualifications

• 12 years of experience in customer service call center or borrower support within a financial services or fintech environment.
• Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills including the ability to explain complex information clearly and professionally.
• Proven ability to handle sensitive or escalated customer conversations with empathy and professionalism.
• Comfortable navigating multiple systems and tools simultaneously (e.g. Salesforce Vesta telephony and chat platforms).
• Ability to work standard hours (9 AM 5:30 PM EST) and occasional weekends as business needs evolve.
• Reside within 60 miles of Columbus OH and able to work from the office at least two days per week.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in mortgage home equity or consumer lending operations.
• Familiarity with front-line customer support tools and knowledge management platforms.
• Experience in early-stage applicant engagement or lead nurturing.
• Comfort working in high-growth change-oriented environments where feedback loops are fast and frequent.

Position location This role is available in the following locations: Columbus OH

Time zone requirements The team operates on the East/West coast time zones

In-Office requirements. You will be required to work from the Columbus Ohio office 2 days per week (must be within a 60 mile radius). Depending on business needs agents may be asked to work from the office more often.

Travel requirements As a digital first company the majority of your work can be accomplished remotely. The majority of our employees can live and work anywhere in the U.S but are encouraged to to still spend high quality time in-person collaborating via regular onsites. The in-person sessions cadence varies depending on the team and role; most teams meet once or twice per quarter for 2-4 consecutive days at a time.

What youll love:

• Competitive Compensation (base bonus & equity)
• Comprehensive medical dental and vision coverage with Health Savings Account contributions from Upstart
• 401(k) with 100% company match up to $4500 and immediate vesting and after-tax savings
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP)
• Life and disability insurance
• Generous holiday vacation sick and safety leave
• Supportive parental family care and military leave programs
• Annual wellness technology & ergonomic reimbursement programs
• Social activities including team events and onsites all-company updates employee resource groups (ERGs) and other interest groups such as book clubs fitness investing and volunteering
• Catered lunches snacks & drinks when working in offices

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