Head of Customer Experience, Pension Risk Transfer (PRT) Operations

We’re looking for a Head of Customer Experience – PRT Operations to join our Customer Operations team within the RS&AM function. If you’re looking for a new challenge with an organisation committed to putting customers first, aiming high and working together, you’ll thrive here.

Job Type: Permanent 
Location: This role will be based from our London office with time spent working from home and from the office.
Flexible working: All roles are open to part-time, job-share and other types of flexibility. We will discuss what is important to you and balancing this with business requirements during the recruitment process. You can read more about flexible working here.
Salary and benefits: c.£100,000+ depending on experience), plus bonus, private medical cover, 38 days annual leave, excellent pension, 12x salary life assurance, career breaks, income protection, 3x volunteering days and much more.

Who are we? 

We’re Standard Life, a retirement specialist focused entirely on retirement savings and income. We champion the belief that everyone’s journey to and through retirement can be better, and for more than 200 years, we’ve been helping our customers plan and prepare for their financial futures.

Life today is increasingly complicated, uncertain and unpredictable. People move through different careers, face unexpected moments and navigate important choices. We offer our colleagues flexibility, trust and benefits that work for whatever life brings. In return we expect curiosity, connection, accountability and high standards. We make room for what matters - so you can bring your best, every day.

The role  

The Head of Customer Experience is responsible for defining, delivering and continuously improving the end-to-end customer experience across the BPA and Retirement Solutions business. The role ensures members, Trustees, EBCs, advisers and other key stakeholders receive a high-quality, consistent and well-governed service throughout their relationship with the organisation.

Acting as the voice of the customer within Operations, the role is accountable for embedding customer needs, Trustee expectations and BPA service commitments into operational delivery, proposition design, member communications, digital services and third-party oversight.

The role holder will leverage their expertise in Defined Benefit pensions, Pension Risk Transfer arrangements and relevant pension legislation to ensure customer journeys, communications, service propositions and operational processes remain aligned with regulatory requirements, Trustee expectations and customer needs.

Working closely with Business Development & Origination (BD&O), Operations, Technology and Third-Party Administrators (TPAs), the role helps protect and enhance the organisation's reputation in the BPA market, ensuring service excellence, positive customer outcomes and alignment between commercial commitments and operational delivery.

The role leads Customer Outcomes, Complaints, Proposition Development, Member Communications, TPA Management and Digital Customer Experience.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the end-to-end customer experience across members, Trustees, EBCs, advisers and other stakeholders throughout the BPA customer lifecycle, from onboarding through to ongoing service delivery. 

• Define and deliver the customer experience strategy, ensuring customer needs, Trustee expectations, regulatory requirements and commercial commitments are embedded across operations, propositions and service delivery. 

• Act as the voice of the customer, shaping customer journeys, service propositions, communications and digital experiences to drive positive customer outcomes and support BPA growth. 

• Build and maintain trusted relationships with Trustees, EBCs and external stakeholders, acting as a senior escalation point and ambassador for the business. 

• Lead Customer Outcomes, complaints management, member communications and proposition development, ensuring fair, compliant and customer-focused outcomes. 

• Oversee the performance, governance and customer experience delivered through Third-Party Administrators and service partners. 

• Use customer insight, feedback, complaints and operational data to drive continuous improvement, inform strategic decision-making and enhance service performance. 

• Partner closely with Business Development & Origination, Operations and Technology to support new business activity, successful onboarding and delivery of customer commitments. 

• Lead and develop high-performing teams whilst influencing senior stakeholders across the organisation to foster a culture of customer focus, accountability and continuous improvement. 

• Represent the Customer Experience function at governance forums, customer meetings and senior leadership committees, helping to protect and enhance the organisation's reputation in the BPA market.

What are we looking for?

Essential

• Significant leadership experience in customer experience, client services, customer outcomes or operational service delivery within a regulated financial services environment.
• Proven ability to build and lead high-performing customer-focused teams.
• Experience managing senior external stakeholder relationships, including institutional clients, Trustees, advisers or equivalent.
• Significant understanding of pension legislation and defined benefit knowledge
• Strong track record of delivering customer experience improvements and service transformation initiatives.
• Experience overseeing outsourced service providers and third-party relationships.
• Strong understanding of customer outcomes, complaints, service quality and operational governance.
• Demonstrated experience using customer insight, MI and performance data to drive decision-making and improvement.
• Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and operate effectively across operational and commercial teams.

Desirable

• Experience within BPA, pensions, retirement, insurance or long-term savings.
• Knowledge of the BPA lifecycle, including onboarding, transition and BAU administration.
• Experience in digital customer experience, self-service solutions and customer proposition development.
• Relevant professional qualifications in Financial Services, Customer Experience, Operations or Pensions.

We want to hire the whole version of you.

We are committed to ensuring that everyone feels accepted and welcome applicants from all backgrounds. If your experience looks different from what we’ve advertised and you believe that you can bring value to the role, we’d love to hear from you. 

 If you require any adjustments to the recruitment process, please let us know so we can help you to be at your best. 

We’re reviewing applications as they come in, so apply early to avoid missing out.

Find out more about working at Standard Life

• Guide for Candidates: standardlifeplc.pagetiger.com/guideforcandidates
• Find or get answers from our colleagues: www.standardlifeplc.com/careers/talk-to-us #LI-SC1