Director, Customers Concerns

Requisition ID: 194063
Join a purpose driven winning team, committed to results, in an inclusive and high-performing culture.

Leads and oversees the Escalated Customer Concerns Office (ECCO) ensuring business strategies, plans and initiatives are executed / delivered in compliance with governing regulations, internal policies and procedures. The Director is responsible for providing strategic leadership to a team of Senior Managers and Managers in the resolution of customer concerns enterprise wise. A high profile position which is required to regularly interact with senior executives throughout the bank and with media relations. To that effect, the exercise of sound judgment in escalating appropriately to senior executive for any specific concerns involving potential media exposure, reputational risk and/or excessive loss to the Bank is paramount.The Director is also responsible for liaising with International Locations for all International complaints directed to the Bank's President, Senior Executives or Board of Directors and ensuring these complaints are addressed appropriately with systemic issues identified and escalated for resolution as per Scotiabank's standards. The Director is expected to promote a performance oriented culture that is focused on our customers, enhancing our leadership depth diversity and deployment, better serving our customers while reducing structural costs, driving our digital transformation and aligning our business mix with deeper customer relationships.

Is This Role Right for You? In this role, you will:

• Leads and drives a customer focused culture throughout their team to deepen client relationships and leverage broader Bank relationships, systems and knowledge.
• Understand how the Bank's risk appetite and risk culture should be considered in day-to-day activities and decisions.
• Creates an environment in which their team pursues effective and efficient operations of their respective areas in accordance with Scotiabank's Values, its Code of Conduct and the Global Sales Principles, while ensuring the adequacy, adherence to and effectiveness of day-to-day business controls to meet obligations with respect to operational, compliance, AML/ATF/sanctions and conduct risk.
• Builds a high-performance environment and implements a people strategy that attracts, retains, develops and motivates their team by fostering an inclusive work environment and using a coaching mindset and behaviours; communicating vison/values/business strategy; and, managing succession and development planning for the team.
• Leadership - Provides strategic direction to the team by:
  • Promoting customer retention while protecting the long-term interests of Scotiabank through the effective management of the ECCO;
  • Creating and maintaining a best-in-class complaint-handling operation in the Escalated Customer Concerns Office, including approving the resolutions to high-profile complaints, especially those directed to Senior Executive and members of the Board of Directors;
  • Establishing and taking responsibility for meeting or surpassing goals for customer satisfaction / employee satisfaction and internal partner satisfaction for the ECCO as applicable;
  • Working with Enterprise Risk to establish appropriate Key Reputational Risk Indicator(s) (KRRI) to inform Senior Management of relevant statistics and potential concerns; and
  • Creating & maintaining a highly motivated team at the Escalated Customer Concerns Office.
• Business Plan Execution - Oversees the effective complaint management activities within Scotiabank by:
  • Ensuring that Scotiabank's complaint-handling process conforms to Bank Act requirements;
  • Providing advice & counsel to the President and Senior Executive on specific customer complaints and keeping Senior Executive aware of cases involving potential reputational damage to Scotiabank;
  • Ensuring the resolution of specific complaints at the ECCO includes coaching & training as appropriate to our partners in the frontline to assist them with future complaints;
  • Actively liaising with the Customer Complaints Appeal Office (CCAO), Compliance, Global Communications and Legal, to ensure responses to high-profile cases reflect the long-term interests of Scotiabank;
  • Working with Compliance who oversees the interactions with federal regulators (Financial Consumer Agency of Canada and Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada and Autorité des Marchés Financiers) concerning specific complaints to ensure the most effective process for the interactions with Scotiabank and these regulators.
  • Preparing & delivering presentations on effective complaint management;
  • Reviewing as applicable training/coaching materials related to complaint handling for frontline employees ensuring that standards and procedures are effectively communicated to front line employees; and
  • Participating as applicable in the design of an automated complaint-tracking system for all front-line units.
• Operational Management & Improvement - Lead the execution of ECCO strategies and plans designed to improve the client's experience by:
  • Setting & monitoring individual and team goals for the ECCO for identifying and recommending changes to our products, processes and policies through the complaints handled in the unit;
  • Working directly with the appropriate areas within the Bank to ensure necessary changes are effected;
  • Overseeing the design and production of reports for Executive via data gathered through the ECCO electronic complaint management system to identify trends and/or problems with our products, processes and services;
  • Reviewing staff organization and deployment to ensure effective as well as efficient operation of the department;
  • Ensuring that Managers and Senior Managers play a proactive coaching role in their dealings with front-line employees as well as Executive Offices and Operations;
  • Liaising with experts in the complaint management field to ensure that Scotiabank considers new techniques and strategies in complaint management and liaising with complaint management colleagues at other Canadian financial institutions to monitor Scotiabank's performance in relation to its competitors; and
  • Managing the efficient operation of the team that make up the ECCO, including direct involvement with complex or difficult cases and the writing of responses for high-profile or potentially damaging cases as well as coaching and developing the complaint-handling skills of the Managers and Senior Managers.
• Leadership- Management - Promote and foster a customer-focused approach within Scotiabank by:
  • Supervising assigned resources ensuring performance objectives are negotiated and reviewed; providing ongoing coaching and counselling;
  • Leading ongoing coaching sessions with direct reports and certifying the same is been conducted in their respective areas to maintain a high level of complaint management expertise, including researching and implementing new methods, to improve complaint-handling, within the ECCO and across Scotiabank
  • Ensuring a planned approach is taken to developing employees in all reporting departments;
  • Maintaining open lines of communication for employees and ensuring that there is a fair and equitable treatment of all employees within departments reporting and they are aware of the Pathways to Resolution Policy;
  • Ensuring that regular meetings are conducted with employees as well as ad hoc for the dissemination of information, updates on regulatory and project management trends, industry trends, best practices, and technology strategies;
  • Conducting performance assessments for direct employees along with recognizing performance and managing non-performance; and
  • Creating and reviewing succession plans for key positions and provide direction for the recruitment selection, development, and retention of high potential employees.
• Relationship Management - Develop strategic alliances and partnerships internally and externally to effectively meet the needs of our customers and business partners by;
  • Attending & speaking on behalf of Scotiabank at complaint management and service-delivery conferences; and
  • Providing customer-focused input to projects/initiatives undertaken by business partners - this includes vetting mass mailings sent to customers which may prevent complaints being made to the Scotiabank Group and reviewing proposed changes to our products, processes and services to anticipate potential customer concerns and suggesting appropriate alternatives to avoid such concerns.

Do you have the skills that will enable you to succeed in this role? We'd love to work with you if you have:

• Undergraduate degree in management, business or operations with minimum of 10 years of related experienced preferably in financial industry customer facing roles at a Senior or Executive level. In addition,
• Strong analytical, problem-solving and strategic influencing skills, as well as in-depth knowledge of customer touch points such as the branch and contact centres.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills along with the ability to effectively synthesize information into succinct and impactful messaging are pre-requisites for the position;
• Expert verbal and written communication, including the ability to interact effectively with executive & senior management, as well as regulators and industry peers;
• Expert manager and motivator to facilitate an effective team approach to meeting the various goals set for the ECCO;
• Expert ability to be an excellent coach in developing complaint-handling skills in the team members.
• Expert knowledge of best-in-class complaint management standards and procedures;
• Expert ability to be a conceptual and strategic thinker to ensure that the complaint-handling direction taken is long-term and competitive in nature;
• Expert ability to use creativity to develop consensus and to communicate win/win solutions to the members of the team; and
• Expert ability to set demanding yet reasonable goals and motivate team members to strive to achieve these goals.

Location(s): Canada : Ontario : Toronto
Scotiabank is a leading bank in the Americas. Guided by our purpose: "for every future", we help our customers, their families and their communities achieve success through a broad range of advice, products and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets.
At Scotiabank, we value the unique skills and experiences each individual brings to the Bank, and are committed to creating and maintaining an inclusive and accessible environment for everyone. If you require accommodation (including, but not limited to, an accessible interview site, alternate format documents, ASL Interpreter, or Assistive Technology) during the recruitment and selection process, please let our Recruitment team know. If you require technical assistance, please click here. Candidates must apply directly online to be considered for this role. We thank all applicants for their interest in a career at Scotiabank; however, only those candidates who are selected for an interview will be contacted.