Job Description

Job Title: Agency Relationship Manager

Reporting to: Service Manager – Repayment

Details
Job Purpose
  • To Support the Head of Repayments in delivering best in class performance and relationship management from the Debt Collection Agency (DCA) panel and other third party relationships including litigation and trace providers.
Organisational Position:
  • Immediate Line Manager: - Service Manager – Repay
Management responsibilities:
  • To comply with the Company’s standard management objective and meet the established targets identified herein
Responsibility for people:
  • Indirectly responsible through the outsource DMI/DCA agents for the effective management of all outsourced resource
Key Accountabilities
  • Responsible for the overall performance management of the Debt Management Integrator (DMI), Debt Collection Agencies (DCA’s), Litigation, Trace providers and other third party service providers.
  • Responsible for delivering financial results from DMI / DCA Panel.
  • Develop a DCA outsourcing strategy
  • Management of the overall contractual relationship with outsourced service providers
  • Point of contact and responsible for management of ICT integration with DMI and DCA panel
  • Implement, manage and monitor processes that ensure changes to processes or knowledge updates are communicated effectively and promptly to DMI / DCA staff
  • Identify all training requirements for the outsourcers and engage SLC L & D Business Partner to ensure comprehensive training plans are drawn up to train DMI / DCA panel trainers and monitor implementation of outsource staff training
  • Coordinate the provision of other support as required (i.e floor walkers) when required
  • Innovate by designing and tracking incentives to drive DMI / DCA and third party performance ensuring resource levels and skills are agreed and delivered in line with contractual scorecard and service targets
  • Work with Procurement to agree / negotiate contractual arrangements with DMI and/or any other agencies required to deliver Trace / Debt collection services
  • Monitor and report against the commercial contracts with the DMI to ensure performance baseline v’s actual performance continues to provide value for money and ensure competitive pricing
  • Be the SLC representative with the Cabinet Office Framework authority ensuring SLC are represented across all aspects of the Governance process .i.e. change control process which impacts SLC or others on the Framework, reviewing the baseline etc
  • Participate in the DMI audit process for each external agent
  • Ensure there is appropriate provision in place to mitigate against risks re security, reputation and compliance
  • Be responsible for validation of all invoices received prior to any payments being made to the DMI / External suppliers specifically confirmation of accuracy re performance related payments / refunds under the new framework contract
  • Initiate continual champion-challenger (test) strategies within DCAs and third party performance, and between Internal and external collections initiatives.
  • Setting Performance Objectives re SLA / Scorecard for the DMI / DCA operational performance and ongoing accountability for the agencies to the performance objectives
  • Work closely with the Insight and Performance team to provide performance updates and insight for use in client meetings
  • Accountability for ensuring the MI produced externally by the DMI and internally by the insight and Performance team is utilised weekly / monthly in performance meetings with the DMI / DCA’s to enable performance benefits to be monitored, measured and challenged
  • Responsible for managing to the agreed performance management schedule, including weekly performance calls and monthly face to face reviews plus business reviews.
  • Provide commentaries to monthly MI to explain recoveries performance from DCAs and third party performance, and assess against targets set.
  • Responsibility for the adherence of DMI / DCA’s and third party performance to relevant legislation.
  • Obtaining Ad-Hoc analysis to support variance explanation and provide information to the Repayments Management team.
Essential Skills / Experience / Qualifications
  • A proven track record in a relationship or supplier management role, preferably with exposure in either financial services or a collections and fraud environment
  • Ability to develop and maintain long term relationships with external suppliers
  • Exposure to commercial/contract discussions within a procurement environment
  • Must be able to demonstrate extensive experience of senior stakeholder management
Desirable Skills / Experience
  • Strong organisational skills with the ability to drive your own workload and work unsupervised
  • Strong excel and powerpoint skills
  • Job holder is expected to be highly numerate, computer literate and can be able to demonstrate excellent negotiation and communication skills
Communications
  • Internal: All Business Areas but specifically analytical/MI resources and L&D Business Partners
  • External: DMI/DCA’s, Regulatory & 3rd Party representatives
Key Challenge
  • Effective systems and processes in place to support the collections process
  • All statutory, regulatory and key stakeholder requirements met on time and of appropriate quality