Director of Customer Service

Fixed Salary Banding: £65,427 – £70,731 plus pension contribution and flexible working conditions

The Organisation

Blackwood is a leading specialist housing and care provider across Scotland. Founded in 1972, the organisation is a charity and a registered housing association and is entirely focused on creating personalised and individual solutions to help people live independently.

Innovation and customer engagement are at the heart of everything Blackwood does. By investing in new technology, high quality services and accessible homes, it helps people live their life to the full. Co-designing with customers, it develops and delivers a truly personalised homes and care service across Scotland.

With over 550 employees, 1500 properties, 3 care homes and delivering over 10,000 care at home hours per week, Blackwood operates in 29 out of 32 local authorities. It provides homes, care and support for adults with disabilities and older people to enable them to live independently. It aims to be a great place to work, offering flexible conditions, a friendly culture, and job satisfaction across the wide range of its services.

Blackwood’s neighbourhood bases in Stirling, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Ayr, Dundee and Edinburgh facilitate a unique and streamlined housing and care service. Combined with its CleverCogs technology this ensures its teams are in the best position to support people at a personal level and enable them to live their life to the full.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Chief Executive, Blackwood seeks to appoint an ambitious customer service leader, to drive service performance and help people live life to the full in their neighbourhoods. Enabling customers to live independently is the primary strategic purpose and its values guide how it delivers that purpose.

The Director of Customer Service will lead the design and delivery of all services across Scotland as Blackwood embeds digital change to support customers’ priorities. Service quality and delivery are critically important for customers and the Director of Customer Service will ensure continual improvement plans are clear and implemented across the country.

Key priorities and responsibilities of the role will include;

• The development of processes and systems to drive further engagement with customers with a focus on enabling them to live independently
• The management and development of operational service delivery across Scotland including the coaching, training and development of people, ensuring values are embedded and behaviours underpin great customer service
• Leading the development of the service delivery culture, joining up housing and care services so that the outcome for customers is always positively focused with partners and contractors to solve problems and challenges
• Effective service planning, service delivery and quality assurance of all services to customers, ensuring transparency and accountability
• Collaborating on innovation, design and technology with regards to service development to ensure products and services are fit for the future
• Ensuring that all governance, regulatory and statutory obligations are met, and appropriate changes are reflected in strategy and operational policies and practices
• Working with the Chief Executive to advise and support Board and Committees to develop and fulfil overall strategic objectives.

Candidate requirements

The postholder will be an inspiring strategic leader with the gravitas to influence and make strong and informed business decisions. With a track record in operational delivery, excellent communication skills, and commitment to collaborative working, the Director will join an ambitious and innovative senior team.

They will also possess most of the following;

• Significant experience within a customer service operational position leading large teams within a regulated environment
• Experience of driving and delivering continual improvement programmes and an understanding of process improvement techniques
• Evidence of driving digital service improvement and innovation
• The gravitas and presence to influence external stakeholders
• Evidence of managing and influencing ‘soft issues’ (values, beliefs, attitudes) in a complex service environment
• An understanding of health, safety and quality requirements associated with the provision of housing or care services or other relevant services
• Excellent leadership and influencing skills with an ability to facilitate and coach those around them
• Ability to challenge the views of others in a constructive and convincing manner where it is required to bring about positive change
• A record of multi-tasking, identifying priorities and ‘trouble shooting’ as required.

Recruitment Process

Closing Date: Friday 27^th November 2020, 12noon.

Interviews: Interview arrangements can be made for Friday 11^th December or Monday 14^th December 2020. Interviews will take place online using Microsoft Teams.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme: Blackwood is committed to diversity and inclusion and as a Disability Confident Employer, will interview all disabled candidates who meet the minimum requirements for the post.

The full position profile can be found by clicking this link.

For further information please send a CV to jamie@fwbparkbrown.com to arrange a confidential discussion.