The opportunity
As the Complaints Manager you will design and deliver the complaint handling strategy for The Openwork Partnership (including Owl Financial). You'll manage the team and ensure there are appropriate controls to professionally resolve customer complaints in accordance with FCA rules and the Treating Client’s fairly (TCF) principles. This is a key role within our Operations function, and requires the successful candidate to attend the Swindon office at least 2-3 days a week. What we offer:
1. Salary - up to £55,000
2. Bonus scheme - on target bonus - 10%
3. Pension scheme - contribute up to 5% of your salary and Openwork will match you and put in an extra 5%
4. Critical illness cover
5. Income protection - 1x salary
6. Death in service - 4x salary
7. 25 days holiday + bank holidays, with the opportunity to buy up to an additional 10 days
8. A range of other flexible benefits to include private medical insurance, dental insurance and much more.
What you'll be doing:
9. Using knowledge and experience of the regulatory complaint handling requirements to ensure the complaint handling framework continually evolves and remains robust and fit for purpose.
10. Working with and influencing senior management to take account of complaint trends / root cause analysis - e.g. through attendance at oversight committee meetings.
11. To be firm but fair with advisers that have transgressed ensuring that remedial action is put in place where required.
12. Resolve potentially complex issues using both commercial and business awareness.
13. Escalating sensitive issues to the appropriate level within the organisation, including to the Chief Risk Officer.
14. Ensuring the team provides appropriate MI / trend analysis for the relevant SMFs, the FCA and to feed into appropriate Governance Committees.
15. Representing the Complaints team in business development projects as needed.
16. Providing bespoke complaint data analysis /commentary for FCA regulatory data requests.
17. Ensuring there is an appropriate quality infrastructure in the complaints team to ensure complaints are handled to an appropriate quality and takes action if metrics worsen (e.g. QC).
18. Inspire, motivate, coach and develop the team; performance manage where needed to ensure that complaints are handled in a timely, fair and appropriate way.
19. Working closely with the adviser investigation team, where appropriate, to ensure that The Openwork Partnership’s requirements are considered through the investigation and disciplinary process.
20. Management of the complaints team budget.
What will you need to succeed?
21. Extensive experience in a financial services organisation in a relevant discipline (e.g. Complaints, Compliance, etc), with a high degree of knowledge of products, procedures and services.
22. Excellent knowledge of FCA legislation, particularly Complaint rules, TCF and Conduct of Business rules.
23. Excellent knowledge of Financial Crime and Data Protection.
24. Good market, risk and business awareness.
25. Good legal knowledge including contracts, negligence and damages.
26. Excellent knowledge of Ombudsman rules and precedents.
27. High-level client and distributor relationship skills.
28. Fully developed leadership skills.
29. Exceptional planning and organising skills, with experience of resource planning.
30. Problem-solving, decision-making and judgement skills.
31. Excellent communication and negotiation skills.
32. Ability to develop creative solutions.
33. Ability to identify opportunities for “win win” solutions but not afraid to say “no” when appropriate.
34. Can handle high levels of conflict and the associated pressure and responsibility this brings.
35. Ability to interview clients and advisers to obtain information and deliver decisions (which sometimes are not favourable).
Why us?
We're a dynamic, fast-paced and growing business with huge ambition. This is all made possible by the brilliant people who are part of The Openwork Partnership family. We're investing heavily in our colleagues, continuously striving to give them the platform to develop personally and professionally and reach their full potential.
We’re also very proud of our culture, as one of the Best 100 Large Companies to work for in 2022. The Openwork Partnership values and respects individuality and we are committed to building an inclusive culture and environment where you can balance a successful career with your commitments and interests outside of work. We believe that you will bring your best self to work if you are trusted to choose when, where and how you do it.
On top of offering a modern workplace with bags of development opportunities, we also offer a highly attractive benefits package to reward you for your hard work. This includes a competitive base salary, an industry-leading annual bonus, enhanced pension, critical illness cover, income protection and a range of other flexible benefits.