Customer Experience Manager

As a leader within the Commercial Sales department, you will manage a team of Account Co-ordinators that is responsible for the demand fulfillment of our export business partners, including the middle & far east and the Americas. Working closely with customers, our B2B sales team and internal supply chain contacts, you will strive to deliver excellent service level standards and an ongoing programme of continuous improvement and cost management. In a fast growing part of the Waitrose business, you will need to develop the capabilities of your team to further their development and enhance the value added to our business relationships.

In addition to your contractual pay, any time worked between 22:00 - 06:00 will attract Night Premium at a rate of £5.00 per hour. This will also apply to existing Partners who have enrolled onto Enhanced Hours Premium arrangements.

At a glance:

• Salary: £50,700.00 - 76,000.00 per annum based on skill and experience 

• Contract type: This is a permanent position

• Hours and location of the role:

  • 35 hours per week

  • Your home location will be our Bracknell Head Office

  • The Partnership has adopted a hybrid working approach meaning you'll be able to work a mixture between the office and home based upon your personal needs whilst balancing the needs of the business. You will need to be able to be present in the office 3 days a week to connect and attend key meetings

Key responsibilities:

• Leadership & People Management: Recruit, mentor, and lead the Operational Team, driving engagement and professional development to ensure high standards of performance

• Work closely with Business Leads and Business Managers and manage 3rd party relationships

• Operational Excellence: Oversee third-party operational interfaces and customer service delivery, maintaining adherence to agreed SLAs and KPIs

• Financial Management: Manage all financial invoicing for B2B transactions, including the accurate processing of credit and finance settlements

• Be responsible for financial integrity and ensure all finance processes and audits are delivered to Partnership requirements

• Continuous Improvement: Identify and present strategic recommendations to the B2B Operational Development team and wider business stakeholders to streamline project-reliant interfaces and processes

• Change Management: Negotiate and implement new ways of working. You will assess the impact of proposed changes and provide data-driven recommendations to mitigate risks

• Customer Success: Capture and analyse customer requirements to evolve service offerings. Act as an escalation point to successfully resolve complex customer complaints

• Be responsible for the reporting of sales numbers and leading the BTA process with the Account Management team as required

Key competencies:

• Stakeholder Management: Ability to influence and engage internal and external partners

• Identify who is impacted by or involved in your goals/objectives and therefore who is key to achieving the desired successful outcomes. Understands the motivations and priorities of these stakeholders and takes these into account in order to build and manage sustainable relationships. Can anticipate potential challenges stakeholders may bring and puts plans in place to achieve collaboration

• Financial Acumen: Proficiency in managing business transactions and settlements

• Analytical Thinking: Skills in identifying process inefficiencies and designing scalable solutions

• Developing Teams & Others: Builds high performing teams through integrating a diversity and blend of skills and personalities and supporting a trust based environment. Empowers the team to achieve success with a shared sense of purpose and clarity on team goals 

• Is a specialist in people, being fully inclusive in identifying potential and talent in others. Enables and empowers Partners to grow and develop in capability and knowledge to build their confidence, whilst making no assumptions about their capability. Supports Partners in their career aspirations to do more, do different, do better. Is adept at using their judgement confidently when it comes to holding regular performance conversations with Partners

• Empowering others: Shares own vision with others in a compelling way to enable an environment of stretch and challenge balanced with support so they can act and deliver success for you with freedom and without micromanagement 

• Relationship Centred Communication: Interacts with respect and friendliness to convey views with clarity and empathy. Faces into differences of opinion and surfaces these constructively and works collaboratively to agree a shared solution with lasting results

Essential skills and/or experience you’ll need: 

• Experienced people manager

• Analytical skills, data focused

• Google Suite (or equivalent)

• Track record of measuring performance and delivering continuous improvement initiatives 

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Desirable skills and/or experience you may have: 

• Export experience 

• Language skills

• Understanding of grocery industry  supply chains

• Project management and negotiation skills

• Previous experience in wholesale

• Knowledge of MS Office/Business Objects

#LI-HEADOFFICE

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We’re the largest employee owned business in the UK and home of our cherished brands, John Lewis and Waitrose. We’re not just employees, we’re Partners, driven by our purpose to build a happier world. As we look to our future, there’s never been a more exciting time to join us.  

We’re ruthlessly focused on being brilliant at retail. We continue to innovate, adapt and diversify. Never Knowingly Undersold on price, quality and service in John Lewis and passionately serving food-lovers in Waitrose.   

As Partners we all share the responsibility of ownership and in its rewards. We use our voices to contribute to our success, working together through the good and challenging times, holding true to our behaviours and treating everyone with kindness and respect. 

We all own making the Partnership somewhere we belong. Embracing our differences and creating an environment where we’re free to be ourselves and can THRIVE. Growing ourselves individually, and as a collective. 

As Partners, we make all the difference. And, we all own it.  

Important points to note:  

It’s important to note that some of our roles are subject to pre-employment vetting (which may include DBS checks for successful candidates). If required, you’ll be informed and provided with information about vetting during the recruitment process and we encourage you to complete any vetting documents quickly to avoid delays. Any DBS checks required will be carried out by a third-party registered body and financial probity checks may also be required for some of our roles.  

We occasionally close vacancies early in the event we receive a high volume of applications, and therefore, we recommend you apply early. If you require a reasonable adjustment due to a disability which means you may need longer to complete your application please contact us as soon as possible.

We want all of our Partners to have a good work-life balance and we support flexible working. This might mean flexible or compressed hours, job sharing or shorter hour contracts, where possible. Please discuss this further with the hiring manager during your interview.