Customer Experience Manager

Volkswagen Financial Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Volkswagen Group, is the trusted key to mobility for its brand partners. We are committed to supporting the Audi, Ducati, and Volkswagen brands and their Dealers, specializing in providing accessible mobility solutions for its Customers. The company’s offerings include Retail Leasing, Retail Financing, Commercial Financing for new and used vehicles, and End-of-Term vehicle disposition.

The Manager of Customer Advocacy is a key enabler in the evolution to customer centricity and spans through the VCI customer service lifecycle supporting all customer-facing touchpoints from contact origination through contract satisfaction. This position has responsibility for executing day to day functions to directly serve VCI customers.

This role on the Customer Advocacy Leadership team oversees the Customer Transition Management, Customer Experience Management and Risk Mitigation Management activities for the Canadian Market. Responsible for ensuring harmonization and optimization of processes between US & Canadian markets. With a focus on enhancing and continuously improving processes and the quality of customer facing interactions through various channels, this role also ensures regulatory compliance while managing performance to meet department’s SLAs and maintaining sound Risk Management practices to control delinquency and minimize losses. This position closely collaborates with the Customer Engagement and Risk organizations to ensure teams are aligned on objectives and strategy. They also serve as an advocate for the Canada market and as a key contributor to strategic projects.

Scope: Includes responsibility and accountability for Experience Management (customer service) and Mitigation Management (collections) functions for VCI NAR including the United States and Canada. In addition, this role will be responsible for supporting the development, launch and execution of a new Transition function that will support the customer experience with onboarding and offboarding.

Responsibilities

Leadership

• Supports & creates a vibrant culture, philosophy, and strategy to promote excellent performance, continuous learning, employee engagement, and long-term business success in a remote work environment
• Develops effective plans for talent acquisition, employee development, and succession planning
• Works with Customer Engagement leadership to ensure all Customer Advocacy teams’ Supervisors are providing the appropriate level of coaching, training, development, and motivation for their team
• Responsible for leading the Collection / Recovery activities for the VCCI Retail & Lease portfolios, maintaining sound Risk Management practices aimed at controlling delinquency level and minimizing losses while optimizing the quality of service to consumers and dealers.Directly oversee the overall operations for the VCCI Customer Advocacy department, focusing on enhancing and continuously improving processes and the quality of service to Customers while ensuring regulatory compliance
• In partnership with the Vendor Management team, manage relationships with major vendors and service providers to ensure they cost-effectively meet the needs of the organization in a socially and compliant manner.
• Collaborates closely with the Sr. Mgr. Customer Advocacy and Customer Advocacy Managers to align functional objectives and focus with Customer Advocacy strategy.
• Implement action plans where necessary to improve Business Unit (employee/customer) satisfaction levels.
• Oversees activities related to the transition phases of the customer journey (onboarding & off boarding). Focused on anticipating customer needs, guiding customers through Onboarding / offboarding processes, identifying cross selling and loyalty building opportunities.

Strategic

• Work with Director of Customer Advocacy NAR, to develop business strategy and define outcomes
• Ensure customer centricity is at the core of operations at all contact points by maintaining oversight on the customer financing journey in Canada.
• Lead strategic effort to increase harmonization of Customer facing processes across NAR region and leveraging synergies across markets (US – Can).
• Identify & mitigate risk exposure by proactively adjusting strategies in response to the changing economic, business, technological and regulatory environments.
• Identify opportunities for improvement, recommend and implement changes in current policies and procedures while ensuring compliance with federal and provincial laws. Work with various stakeholders to develop and implement projects and program rules to improve quality and productivity.
• Serve as an advocate for the Canada market through leading and/or serving as a key contributor on strategic projects as assigned.

Operational Excellence

• Ensure customer centricity is at the core of operations at all contact points throughout the customer financing journey by leading the definition of a multi-channel customer interaction experience.
• Develop, implement, and communicate initiatives that support Customer Advocacy objectives and KPIs (key performance indicators) in order to align to global corporate strategy. Monitor results and adapt plans to meet objectives.
• Process ownership over area of responsibility: identify opportunities for improvement, recommend and implement changes in current policies and procedures while ensuring compliance with federal and provincial laws.
• Responsible for developing and executing on Customer Advocacy employee engagement initiatives and Stiba action plans.
• Responsible for being a VCCI Customer Ambassador and developing communications, engaging with business partners, and infusing processes with disciplined cadence supporting the voice of the customer to ensure proper structures are in place to enable our customer centricity strategy.
• Set and achieve team performance goals with key metrics driving customer’s satisfaction and loyalty levels and monitors teams’ performance for area of responsibility including analyzing and managing performance, utilizing appropriate escalation, and exception paths.
• Work with various stakeholders to develop and implement projects and program rules to improve quality and productivity.
• Ensure departments perform according to established Policies and Guidelines and maintain sound risk management practices.
• Review and approve exceptions and/or transactions related to consumer accounts falling under authority level and responsible for overseeing the outcome of legal files in order to protect company assets.
• Collaborate with supervisors to ensure execution of strategic guidelines and develop and maintain comprehensive strategy for sub-prime risk analysis, asset protection and recovery, appropriate for the risk tolerance of the organization.

Budget, Finance and Administration

• Develop and prepare Canada - Customer Advocacy department’s operating and headcount budgets for inclusion in VCCI’s annual planning round submission focusing on optimizing cost, efficiency and mitigating risk exposure
• Budget Accountability: Administrative budget (overhead, staffing); $3.5M Cdn, Operational budget (SG&A): $400K Cdn

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in business discipline (e.g. Finance, Accounting, Management, Math, etc.)
• MBA - relevant master’s degree is an asset

Experience

• 10+ years of related industry and or automotive experience
• 7+ years of experience leading a team responsible for customer servicing, staffing, employee development

Skills and Qualifications

• Communication skills – interpersonal, presentation and written (French & English)
• Problem solving
• Analytical skills – using logic and reason, creative and strategic thinking
• Computer savvy – skilled in the use of software
• Influencing and negotiation skills
• Resource/Team management - ensuring efficient use of available capacity (planning and assignment of tasks)
• Customer Focus - dedicated to build loyalty among customers
• Staff management skills – set goals, develop business plans, delegate tasks
• Creative / unconventional thinking
• Performance driven
• Leadership skills - coaching, developing and mentoring employees
• In-depth understanding of call center operations, performance indicators and knowledge of the overall workflow within the VW Credit organization
• Strategic thinking – ability to look 2-5 years out and develop plans to achieve business targets and overcome challenges
• Taking initiative and demonstrating commitment and ownership to accomplish goals
• Ability to partner with other business units to identify and execute on common goals and objectives
• Proven track record of business performance improvement
• Effective change management cadence and discipline
• Ability to represent VCI with customers, key stakeholders and board members
• Proficient in Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint & Word