Officer Debt Review (Everyday Banking) - JHB at Absa Group Limited (Absa)

Job Summary

• To achieve operational excellence and superior client experience throughout the execution function related to the Distress Customer Solutions Business Unit.

Job Description

Key Accountabilities 

• Within the Distress Customer Solutions Business unit, the roles will span across the following regulatory functions:
• Achieving and maintaining the high level of accuracy and quality across the functions fulfilled by the Distress Customer Solutions BU.
• Adhere to the relevant policies and procedures for the Distress Customer Solutions BU and Absa
• Adherence to the rules and regulations in line with the National Credit Act and Task Team Agreements
• Functions include fulfilled by the Distress Customer Solutions Officer span across the following tasks:
• Debt Admin
• Administration
• Written and Verbal Customer Services
• Debt Review
• Debt Intervention
• The Distress Customer Solutions Officer can fulfil any of these below indicated tasks or a combination of the tasks at any time during his/her employment as Distress Customer Solutions Officer.

Indexing (Inflows) 

• To index all documents received from ODP correctly, create a profile for all customers on DRMS and ensure that the workflow is triggered to all functional areas within Debt Review workflow system within the agreed upon internal SLA

COB 

• To access the host and collection systems across all collections products system and generate a certificate of balance, accurately updating the regulated specified fields with the customers financial information within the regulated 5-day turnaround time at 100% quality.
• This includes flagging the customer under debt review and ensuring all related systems are correctly aligned and where applicable the correct hold codes are applied.
• Debit order cancellations
• Debt Review placement of holds

Proposals 

• To evaluate the risk of the proposed repayments of accounts across all products (DCRS and Non-DCRS), considering affordability and the bank’s risk appetite and negotiate the best proposal where clients’ needs, and business needs are met.
• To always ensure that the debt counsellors are kept informed of the bank`s decision on whether the proposal is acceptable or declined.
• All requests must be actioned within 10 day regulated turnaround time.

Restructures 

• To execute the restructuring process across all the ABSA products currently under Debt Review as per an accepted proposal or a court order.
• To ensure that all restructuring functions are completed accurately and timeously and in accordance to all ABSA product specific work instructions.
• This includes all remediation processes (induplum, negative amortisation and fees and charges) on products under debt review

​Terminations / Reinstatements / Clearances 

• To terminate accounts in accordance with the terminations criteria as per Industry and in line with the terminations criteria per product where customer has not complied with the agreement to make payments in accordance with an accepted proposal - s86 (10) or a court order - s88(3). , across all S products in Debt Review.
• To complete the full verification process prior to terminating. To ensure that all required notifications sent to the customer; Debt Counsellor and the National Credit Regulator (NCR) are received from Brooks & Luyt (Css) before terminating accounts.
• To reinstate accounts, post terminations according to the Debt review Strategy and in line with NCR regulations

Service 

• To receive and action queries and complaints from:
• External Customers – National Credit Regulator; Debt Counsellors; Payment Distribution Agencies (PDA); Customer
• Internal – Complaints Resolution Centre; Credit Rehabilitation and Recoveries;
• To provide customer service excellence, accurate and timeous information, resolve both internal and external stakeholder queries and complaints and exceed our customer expectation, minimizing reputational, regulatory and financial risk to the bank.
• To escalate queries to the team leader where decision is outside of the levels of authority as per your credit and operational mandate

​Payment Management (PDA) 

• To monitor and review payments in accordance with the payment management strategy and handle payment related queries received from Debt Counsellors, Payment Distribution Agents, Product Business Units and Customers.
• To verify schedules from Payment Distribution Agents to ensure customers payments reflect accurately on the collections product systems.
• To ensure that the payment allocation is accurate to mitigate the risk of terminating an account from debt review and prevent the bank from being exposed to reputational and regulatory risks associated with incorrect terminations.
• To conduct annual reviews of the accounts in debt review to increase the paying portfolio

​Inbound Call Centre duties 

• Obtains client information by answering telephone calls; interviewing clients; verifying information. Determines eligibility by comparing client information to requirements.
• Handling all inbound customer and debt counsellor enquiries and queries accurately and with the required professionalism

Document Follow-up 

• Assist in all debt review book clean up projects
• Provide feedback to debt counsellors regarding Reckless Lending
• Action all listing that are part of your process within the agreed SLA

​Legal 

• Evaluation of Court applications and Court Orders received from Debt Counsellors or any other interested party for opposition on non-opposition
• Sending out legal instructions to our panel of attorneys for opposition of Court applications and Court orders
• Management of the unopposed court applications with Debt Counsellors until finalization
• Management and support of our panel of attorneys on all matters instructed until finalization
• Active reporting on the legal portfolio

​Stakeholder Engagement 

• To assume responsibility of building and maintaining professional relationships with identified Debt Counsellors & arranging and co-ordinating regular engagements with identified debt counsellors which will entail educating and ensuring process adherence in line with the Bank’s processes and policies. Further to identify gaps in our debt review processes, address such gaps with the relevant manager and suggest possible solutions to close such gaps.
•  To assist with projects that will take place in Debt Review.
• Communications
• To regularly communicate any internal and external process changes or industry developments with both internal and external stakeholders.

Education and requirements

• Key performance measures are aligned to the Key Result Areas (KRA’s) from business scorecard as well as the business architecture measurement framework, as follows:
• Key performance measures are aligned to the Key Result Areas (KRA’s) from business scorecard as well as the business architecture measurement framework, as follows:
• Efficiency and effectiveness metrics (Volumes handled; turnaround time; acceptance rate; payment allocations made)
• Quality of the work
• Customer satisfaction
• Processing efficiency
• All required Compliance training needs to be completed 100%
• Diploma or equivalent NQF level 5 qualification
• Training Courses: Debt Review Role Based Accreditation / Advanced Debt Review Programme /
• Paralegal
• A good knowledge of banking and business operations across all products and all the bank’s systems.
• Credit and Legal Knowledge
• Good knowledge of Code of Banking Practice, NCA, CPA, and other governing legislature.

Education

• Further Education and Training Certificate (FETC): Business, Commerce and Management Studies (Required)