Head of Sales at Absa

Job Description

• Strategic Planning and Implementation: Achieve operational excellence by effectively applying knowledge of the Supplier Management strategy and its implementation by planning and managing the workload of self and others, including specifying initiatives, scheduling projects and preparing operating plans with a define area of activity | Supplier Relationship Development: Recognised internally as a Subject Matter Expert in Supplier Relationship Development and drives the greatest value out of complex, strategic relationships. Shapes, leads and coaches others in securing investment and resources both internally and from suppliers and establishes mutually beneficial business relationships. | Supplier Performance Management: Builds and implements independently end to end supplier performance evaluation reports, Supplier Risk Assessments, Benefits Trackers, Financial Stability report, and Value Management and Measurement documents. | Contract / Service Management: Achieves operational excellence by simultaneously using their detailed understanding of an individual, medium complexity, product / service agreement, and its legal language along with the proactive and effective application of their contract value delivery / service management knowledge 

Qualifications

Accountability: People Management

• Work with managers in the team to achieve excellent business results through continuous people development and mentoring activities.
• Ensure the development of a high-performing team through embedding formal Performance Development and informal coaching.
• Coach the Sales Management team on how to conduct meaningful Performance Development discussions with their direct reports and ensure that they conduct the process effectively.
• Determine and analyze training and development needs for managers and ensure they do the same for their teams. Ensure that identified training is budgeted for and executed
•  Establish and maintain a succession plan for the management team in the area using the formal Talent Management process for identified talent and an informal  process for remaining roles.
•  With the support from the HR Business Partner, interview and recruit direct reports and provide support to them during the recruitment of their teams on request.
• Ensure that managers create effective workforce plans and recruitment demand plans for their areas.
• Review requests from managers in the team for headcount changes. Recommend approve or decline of the request to the Managing Director
• Approve leave requests for direct reports and ensure that they manage the leave planning for their teams effectively.
•  Act as second level escalation point for all grievances raised in the business unit.
•  Ensure that all poor performance is addressed through the Absa Performance Accelerator Programme (PAP) and that continued poor performance is adequately dealt with. Review APA reports to determine effectiveness of interventions.
•  Motivate employees in the department and ensure that their efforts are recognized.
•  Develop appropriate Employee Opinion Survey (EOS) action items together with the management team of the business unit and ensure that items are executed

Accountability: Business Management

• Coordinate the efforts of the different operational areas under management to ensure minimal duplication of efforts, maximum efficiency and to maximize value for money.
• Rebalance resources between different areas e.g. reallocating headcount or budgets, but within overall approved resources for the year.
•  Contribute to the development of business unit strategy for the next 2-3 years by providing a view on potential improvements for products or services and an assessment of the existing situation and anticipated changes in the external environment.
•  Agree targets and take accountability for the overall achievement of performance objectives in the business area in terms of employee satisfaction, customer experience, cost performance, return on investments, risk, compliance and governance requirements.
• Manage departmental budgets including signing off of invoices and quotes within Mandate. Escalate out of budgets items to the Managing Executive for approval.
• Sign off capital expenditure within budget. This includes approving purchase or sell decisions for desktop computers, laptops, departmental equipment etc.
• Provide clear direction to team members on the Sales strategic plan and key focus areas and ensure their understanding and buy-in.
•  Analyze effectiveness of processes and systems in use in the department and make recommendations for improvements.
•  Review performance against balanced scorecard components as prescribed by the Executive, discuss gaps and agree action plans to close gaps.
•  Benchmark productivity of the department against industry standards and create measures to improve productivity.
• Agreed and manage service offerings and SLAs with internal customers (agree annually and measure on a monthly basis.

Accountability: Risk Management

• Ensure that processes, control requirements and risk management frameworks that impact the area are documented and understood by all members of the team.
•  Work with Absa Internal Audit and Management Assurance during the scoping of audits to ensure fair coverage
• Own and agree corrective action items with Internal Audit and Management Assurance for findings related to the functional area under management.
•  Arrange issue assurance for closed audit findings.
•  Complete required compliance and SOX attestations and ensure that impacted team members complete their attestations.
• Ensure that the team understands all compliance requirements and call for the area's Compliance Officer to conduct briefing sessions if gaps are identified.
•  Ensure that all regulatory requirements are adhered to.  Ensure that the Business Continuity Tool is updated regularly and signed off annually in consultation with the BCM Co-coordinator. Ensure that the BCM Plan for the area is tested as required and corrective actions executed.
• Working with managers/professionals in the team, develop Risk and Control Assessments (RCA's) for the function and update at the required intervals (normally quarterly). Complete attestations to testify to the adequacy of controls on request.
•  Participate in the development of Key Risk Scenarios including the determination of likelihood of occurrence and potential impact. Actively work to minimize the amount of economic capital that has to be set aside for operational risk.
•  Ensure that managers in the team understand their responsibilities for physical and systems access control and information security requirements.
•  Ensure that the Sales area has a Health and Safety Rep, Fire Warden and Evacuation rep.

Accountability: Development of and embed Sales Strategy

• Develop the Strategy and Business plan for Sales in a call centre that will establish the business unit as a centre of excellence for sales and services to Insurance clients
• Monitor effectiveness of the call centre sales campaigns to ensure delivery thereof with the Sales Managers
•  Develop cross sell, retention and acquisition action plans in alignment with strategy set by customer and monitor progression thereof
•  Take full ownership for the sales performance as measured in Siebel and Websure
•  Lead and manage the sales business performance, measured against sales, acquisitions, retention and customer experience targets
•  Take ownership of key operational processes – monitor progress to maximize productivity and customer satisfaction
•  Ensure that all plans are carried out, in order to achieve the agreed objectives in the short term and to ensure that the business strategy is achieved in the Short Term Planning (STP) & Medium Term Planning (MTP)
•  Ensure Sales targets are met on an annual basis according to STP & MTP.

Accountability: Customer Service

• Develop a customer strategy that focuses on improved customer experience at all points of presence
• Ensure customer orientation and focus across all channels by continuously communicating the message of customer centricity
• Set customer Experience standards in line with customer strategy and monitor actual achievements and failures on an ongoing basis by reviewing the pertinent customer metrics (complaints, survey results etc.).
• Contract in-depth investigations where recurring issues are identified that relate to the sales process
•  Create a culture of customer centricity by continuously communicating the message of customer centricity and contracting the delivery of training and other interventions on a frequent basis. Work with the Customer Experience business partners, provide input on the design and implement improvement programmes.
•  Review a customer strategy that makes best use of available resources and develop improvement programmes together with customer experience business partners

Accountability: Stakeholder Management

Update the Managing Director and Managing Executive (ME) on quarterly basis, and provide operational input on the sales and service performance

• Engage with the Managing Director and ME with an aim of lobbying and conveying  the Sales strategic demands and changes
•  Serve as a leading operational insight feedback to the Customer, Product and People Councils
• Influence current and future sales and service strategies and customer value propositions
•  Serve as an innovation instigator and "operational conscience" to Call Centre in Respect of the Sales environment.
• Align all group applicable initiatives (Stretch Targets) to Sales and Service Delivery Strategy. Engage with product, channel and customer regarding maximizing sales and service effectiveness across AIC
•  Analyze and interpret balance scorecards received from the Sales Managers on a weekly basis and align the operations of the team to ensure that targets are achieved for the Managing Director, Agile ways of working (Exceeds the requirements), Analytical Thinking - Advanced (Meets all of the requirements), Bachelors Degree and Professional Qualifications - Business, Commerce and Management Studies, Commercial mindset - Senior (Meets all of the requirements), Customer Excellence - Service Management (Meets all of the requirements), Digital familiarity (Meets all of the requirements), Effective communication - Advanced (Meets all of the requirements), Experience in a similar environment at management level, Openness to change (Meets some of the requirements and would need further development), Product and/or Service Knowledge (Meets all of the requirements), Sales Management (Meets all of the requirements)