Description

We have an exciting new role as Head of Customer First Response to lead the UK & Ireland contact centres, delivering excellent levels of customer advocacy across multiple product lines including home emergency, motor breakdown, car excess, travel claims and assistance . The Head of Customer First Response is accountable for delivering the local FNOL operations within the UK and the full contact centre activity in IRE, whilst ensuring excellent standards of employee and customer outcomes via a cost effective operation, which meets regulatory requirements. This role will be a critical contributor to the UK&IRE transformation projects. The role is responsible for ensuring local operations are aligning with the Commercial ambition acting as a reference point between the two areas. It is essential for this role to keep commercially up to date with the local market context.

This role will be based in Redhill, on a hybrid basis (remote & office based contract) with occasional travel to Ireland

You will be responsible for the two contact centres, UK and Ireland

The Contact Centre for Travel assistance and UK H&M operates 7 days a week, with overnight activity covered by AXA Partners Ireland operations within Athlone.

Responsible for the management of all out of hour’s activity, including on call responsibility. This role requires flexibility throughout peak times and consistent visibility to weekend staff.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Manage the UK & IRE Call Centre

• Work effectively with associated stakeholders including the Networks, Sales & distribution and support function teams to deliver a great customer experience and responding to the changing needs of our customers. Embrace the evolution of our products and services ensuring that the operational response is positive, supportive and engaging.
• Ensure customer queries are logged and answered promptly using the CRM , looking always for opportunities to optimise and continuously improve tools and processes
• Ensuring the Operation and Team Managers are skilled, equipped and enabled to manage their teams building an empowering culture which supports and encourages employees to speak up
• Evolve the call centre in line with the system changes, incorporating the new multi- channel functionality.
• Working closely with the WFM team to ensure that the First Response teams are at all times appropriately staffed
• Anticipate and monitor customer trends and changes, thinking strategical ways to mitigate and continuously improve the customer outcomes.
• Driving digital adoption working with the digital Asset PM
• In collaboration with the Head of Operational Excellence influence and support the change management agenda
• Responsible for building and agreeing the methodology and approach for monitoring and communicating agreed KPI’s and timescales, ensuring they are ‘fit for purpose’ to address the strategic ambition and SLA expectations. Also that information is fed into relevant reporting pipelines, as appropriate in a timely and accurate manner
• Taking personal responsibility to be the point of contact for customers to ensure a professional standard communication.
• Ensure accuracy of information and data, regarding customer queries and responses
• Identification and first line management of all expression of dissatisfaction EOD ‘s and adherence to local policy and regulatory standards incorporating Customer duty , Vulnerable customers , in line with regulatory timescales
• Oversight the local Ireland call centre activity currently managed by the Head of Ireland, Operations

Leading a high performance team

• Motivate and develop team members to deliver a high level of performance using company performance management practice (tools/process/behaviour) including goal setting, monitoring performance through regular check-ins, performance reviews and development plans.
• Coach team members to unlock their potential, supporting them with access to appropriate training and development opportunities. . Understand their career aspirations and actively plan careers by supporting them to identify future roles within the organisation
• Identify training needs and arrange relevant training, which allows the team to enhance their performance and deliver customer, business and regulatory needs. You are required to adhere at all times to all and any regulatory requirements that apply to AXA Assistance UK.
• Putting our agents and customers at the heart of what we do , demonstrating a culture of empowerment , development and speak out
• Create and enable an environment, which is considered a ‘great place to work’, actively seek and encourage high levels of employee engagement through regular dialogue and feedback.
• Oversee the Employee Pulse surveys and support, build and implement improvement plans
• Cost effective operational management, ongoing efficiency planning and ensuring that all operational areas (Customer Experience and Quality, Claims and Contact Centres) have the correct resource and capability to meet the needs of our customers and clients.
• Work on driving a continuous improvement culture, with effective root cause analysis and applied action plans.
• Deliver costs against agreed budgets, ensuring the correct level and control of authorisation levels within the team.
• Create the right balance between delivery of a great customer experience, with the standards expected by AXA and the regulator and the costs associated with delivering the service. Supported by robust data that is tracked in regular governance and can be evidenced and shared in Conduct risk and SMCR
• Commercial acumen; Ensure a deep understanding of the local commercial environment and market. A key contributor to new business deals / renewals, and therefore deal implementation ensuring a deep understanding of our operational contract commitments and ensuring alignment to local and global strategy.
• Achieving our core SLA’s , ENP and NPS targets as per your yearly objectives
• In the course of your duties, you are required to always consider the needs of the customer and how best you can serve them, for example always having regard to our requirements to treat our customers fairly

Effective communication & relationship management

• Ensure that KPIs are measured, monitored and shared with members of the team, to assist with performance management and engagement in company performance
• Develop open channels of communication to enable constructive debate and collaboration, eliciting the ideas and opinions of the team
• Build and maintain effective cross-department relationships

Business Management

• Understand the company’s strategy / vision and what it means for your role / team
• Manage financial / budgeting procedures as required according to the local market
• Ensure that the appropriate risk and controls procedures are in place to ensure compliance with the local regulatory requirements
• Participate in activities to support business development and client centricity, according to the requirements of the local market

Qualifications

Technical/ Functional Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Demonstrable commercial acumen and experience, mainly within a B2B environment
• Exemplary stakeholder management skills, dealing with and influencing senior executive level managers at a global level in a matrix organisation
• Evidence of strategic planning, analytical and execution skills with an ability to assess and communicate priorities and drive actions and delivery through others
• Proven ability /experience in Operational resilience , regulatory controls and Risk management
• Excellent understanding of Financial services and the full regulatory environment
• Ability to quickly assimilate information from disparate topics/functions and connect together to bring business conclusions or highlight risks
• Skilled at bringing structure and rigour to ambiguous situations and leading teams (both direct and in-direct) to deliver
• Ability to challenge the status quo and apply a forward-thinking approach to deliver sustainable change
• Proven ability to collaborate across multi-disciplinary teams
• Ability to master multiple complex topics, make quick decisions and remain a clear thinker and communicator under pressure
• Successful experience in developing and retaining critical talent and building an effective team
• Ideally experience of managing and working in Risk/compliance or operational resilience
• Understanding the motivation levers for key stakeholders based on benefits to be realized

What we offer

By joining AXA Partners, you will work in a responsible company, which offers a real culture of expertise & diversity. Our focus is on accelerating the development of everyone’s skills, whilst offering attractive and competitive compensation and opportunities for professional development and growth.

Additionally, at AXA, we work to make a real difference to people - when amazing things happen and when we create opportunities for a better life, the feeling of pride is extraordinary.

About AXA

AXA Group is the world leader in insurance and asset management. We protect and advise our clients at every step in their lives, by offering products and services which satisfy their needs in the areas of insurance, personal protection, saving and asset management. AXA is the leading insurance brand worldwide, with over 100 million clients. We are transforming from payer to partner for our client, with a strong focus on risk prevention.

Our mission: Empower people to live a better life. Our values: Customer First, Courage, Integrity and One AXA.

AXA Partners is an AXA transversal business unit offering a wide range of solutions in assistance services, travel insurance and credit protection. AXA Partners’ role is also to implement innovative solutions emerging from the AXA Innovation unit. Combining passion with advanced expertise, we design and deliver worldwide solutions for partners and communities. We protect what matters, when it matters.