Senior Partnership Manager – Customer Service

Job title: Senior Partnership Manager – Customer Service

Company: B&Q


Job description: Overview:PermanentFrom £80,000 + Pension + PMI + ShareSave + 6.6 weeks holiday + Hybrid Working (2 days per week in the office)Southampton, Store Support OfficeWe believe anyone can improve their home to make life better. From our Southampton Store Support office (SSO) we equip our stores, our people, and our whole business with everything it takes to help our millions of customers create a home they’ll love. Join us as a Senior Partnership Manager – Customer Service and you’ll be a big part of this.Role Purpose: As Senior Partnership Manager in Customer Services, you’ll be responsible for a complex Customer Service operation. You will ensure our Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) Partnership delivers services that provide effortless customer service every time across various customer interaction types, prioritising first-contact resolution and customer satisfaction. You will take ownership to drive a high-performance culture across the operation in line with B&Q behaviours, purpose and commitments. This role involves partnering with our inhouse teams and offshore provider to ensure the partnership can deliver exceptional operational performance, resolving issues and driving improvements in line with B&Q expectations, standards and goals. The role requires a thorough understanding of contact centres, BPO industry, contract management and commercial retail acumen, as it is responsible for ensuring both parties adhere to and deliver in line with the contracted stipulations. The Senior Partnership Manager understands and interprets available reporting and insight to effectively to drive continuous improvement and customer satisfaction. This position demands ability to foster effective working relationships at all levels, working cross-functionally across business functions and geographical locations
to ensure seamless delivery of services. A pivotal position in enhancing customer experiences, this role demands a broad customer service background, with experience in balancing strategic goals, leading large contact centre teams and ensuring strategy meets on-the-ground realities to maximise customer satisfaction. What’s the job?:Key Accountabilities / Responsibilities:

• Responsible for operational performance of our BPO partnership ensuring all our Customer Service teams achieve

defined customer metrics including Customer Satisfaction (CSAT), First Time Resolution (FTR), Quality and SLAs.

• Effectively manages relationships across business functions and with our BPO provider to develop a strategic roadmap

to ensure delivery of high-quality, consistent services in line with agreed-upon standards and KPIs that meets with on the-ground realities

• In conjunction with the Director of Customer Services, work cross functionally across multiple geographical locations to develop a centralised Customer Service strategy for B&Q
• Working with the Transformation Manager to connect our contact management processes
• Brief and utilise Data & Analytics resources across both B&Q and the outsourced partner to develop a suite of Customer Service dashboards for real-time insights and data that supports the transformation of Customer Service at B&Q.
• Analyse Data and MI to identify trends and performance opportunities, using actionable insight to influence business

strategy and decisions

• Act as Operations lead for Customer Services during key business events and peaks, ensuring all stakeholders are updated on operational performance, risks to plan and issue management.
• Ensure operational costs are optimized by conducting regular analysis of cross channel metrics and overall productivity. Identifying ways to optimise resource allocation and reduce operational overhead, whilst ensuring delivery customer satisfaction targets.
• Oversee and support the complaints team in effectively handling and resolving customer complaints to increase customer retention and satisfaction.
• Support the Director of Customer service in facilitating change across the business through knowledge-sharing and voice of customer sessions/workshops.
• Work with internal stakeholders to develop strategies for wider B&Q functions to leverage BPO services to achieve company goals and enhance overall customer experience.

• Keep abreast of external contact centre trends and developments in BPO industry, attending industry events where necessary and utilising this knowledge to inform the strategic development of B&Qs Customer Service strategy
• Foster a partnership of shared value and belonging with our BPO that supports delivery of the B&Q purpose “Better Homes. Better Lives. For Everyone”.
• Working closely with the Director of Customer Service and Procurement, review contracts, pricing models, SLAs, and manage vendor relationships through B&Q vendor management processes.
• Provide strong leadership through role modelling the B&Q behaviours, purpose and commitments
• Deputise for the Director of Customer Service where required What we need::

Required Skills & Experience:

• A strong leader and people manager, experienced in coaching and developing strong capable teams across multiple

geographics

• Experienced in managing contact centres, BPO and 3rd party relationships
• Experience managing matrix teams in an operational environment
• Experience working at a senior level in Customer Service with offshore BPO experience
• Excellent verbal/written communication, presentation and engagement abilities, being able to provide clear and concise operational updates (both verbally and written)
• Extensive experience in transforming Customer Service operations, with proven ability to navigate and deliver

complex change

• Ability to identify, analyse and share performance metrics and data to drive improvements, with familiarity with key

performance indicators (KPIs) for contact centres, such as average handle time (AHT), first contact resolution (FCR),
and customer satisfaction scores (CSAT).

• Strong attention to detail and accuracy.
• Excellent time management and multitasking abilities.
• Ability to plan, prioritize, and coordinate tasks efficiently to prioritise multiple requests and manage a wide variety of

stakeholders

• Experience in budgeting, P&L Management, cost control, and financial analysis.
• Ability to manage resources efficiently to achieve financial goals.
• Resilience in a fast paced change environment

Other Requirements:

• SSO/Hybrid with frequent travel to the outsourced location (Cape Town, South Africa)

What’s in it for me?:As part of a great team, you’ll be valued for who you are. We’re committed to making B&Q more diverse and representative of the communities we serve, where everyone can feel they belong and have equal opportunities. You will have access to a range of networks that represent our colleagues and allies and help us to continue to put diversity and inclusion at the heart of our business.We also recognise that wellness means different things to different people, and we want to help colleagues be at their best and feel well by offering a range of benefits to help you. As well as a competitive salary, our benefits package includes an award-winning pension scheme, bonus, ShareSave options, 6.6 weeks holiday, payroll giving, an Employee Assistance Programme, shopping discounts, colleague wellbeing benefits and lots more!So we can support you during the application or interview process, please contact recruitment@b-and-q.co.uk for any recruitment adjustments.

Expected salary: £80000 per year

Location: Eastleigh, Hampshire

Job date: Fri, 18 Jul 2025 07:53:07 GMT

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