Operations Manager

Let's Write Africa's Story Together!

Old Mutual is a firm believer in the African opportunity and our diverse talent reflects this.

Job Description

You will form part of the Mass Foundation Cluster which is one of the largest customer-facing business segments in Old Mutual. Our vision is to be our customers' most trusted financial partner, passionate about helping them achieve their lifetime goals. Our mission is to enable positive futures for our customers, by bridging the gap between their resources and their financial service’s needs. Our primary goal is to facilitate access to financial solutions for our customers and to keep pace with their changing needs. Our target market is the low and emerging-middle income segment.
The Operations Manager is responsible for leading a high-performing outbound contact centre operation through a team of Team Leaders and support specialists. The role is accountable for delivering exceptional customer outcomes, achieving commercial and operational objectives, and creating a culture where employees understand the impact of their contribution to the broader business strategy.
The successful incumbent will provide leadership that balances people, performance, customer experience, operational efficiency and innovation. They will drive accountability through leadership teams, leverage insights and data to make informed decisions, and continuously seek opportunities to enhance operational effectiveness, employee engagement and customer outcomes.
This role requires a strategic and forward-thinking leader who can navigate complexity, inspire high performance and position the contact centre as a key enabler of business growth and customer value.

Strategic Leadership

• Translate business strategy into clear operational plans and measurable outcomes.
• Ensure alignment between contact centre objectives and broader organisational goals.
• Drive a culture where employees understand the value of their contribution to customers, the business and overall organisational success.
• Anticipate future business needs and develop proactive operational strategies to support growth and sustainability.
• Act as a trusted advisor to senior stakeholders on operational performance, risks and opportunities.

Operational Excellence

• Lead the day-to-day performance of the outbound contact centre to achieve service, productivity and quality objectives.
• Drive delivery against key business metrics including conversion, productivity, customer experience, quality assurance, compliance and retention.
• Ensure efficient workforce planning and resource optimisation.
• Identify operational risks and implement mitigation strategies.
• Champion continuous improvement initiatives to enhance efficiency, effectiveness and customer outcomes.

Leadership & People Management

• Lead, coach and develop Team Leaders to achieve exceptional team performance.
• Build a high-performance culture characterised by accountability, collaboration, recognition and continuous learning.
• Foster employee engagement through meaningful communication, visibility and leadership.
• Create succession pipelines and capability development plans to build future leaders.
• Drive performance management processes, ensuring clear expectations and accountability at all levels.

Customer & Employee Experience

• Embed a customer-centric culture across all levels of the operation.
• Drive initiatives that improve both customer satisfaction and employee engagement.
• Create an environment where employees understand the direct link between their role, customer outcomes and business success.
• Leverage customer and employee feedback to drive operational enhancements.

Data, Insights & Decision Making

• Use operational data, business intelligence and customer insights to identify trends, risks and opportunities.
• Develop and monitor meaningful performance dashboards and reporting frameworks.
• Drive informed decision making through analysis of workforce, performance and customer metrics.
• Translate operational data into actionable business recommendations.

Continuous Improvement & Innovation

• Lead process improvement initiatives that enhance efficiency, productivity and customer experience.
• Foster a mindset of innovation and problem-solving within leadership teams.
• Identify opportunities to leverage technology, automation and digital solutions.
• Drive operational transformation initiatives where appropriate.

Stakeholder Management

• Build strong partnerships with key business stakeholders across functions.
• Collaborate with support areas including Human Capital, Learning & Development, Workforce Management, Quality Assurance and Business Intelligence teams.
• Influence and engage stakeholders to achieve shared business outcomes.
• Represent the contact centre as a strategic business partner within the organisation.

Qualifications & Experience

Essential

• Relevant Degree or Diploma in Business, Operations Management, Commerce or related field.
• Minimum 5-8 years' experience in a contact centre environment.
• Minimum 3-5 years' experience leading leaders within a contact centre operation.
• Proven experience managing large operational teams through Team Leaders.
• Demonstrated success in achieving operational and commercial targets.
• Experience in workforce planning, performance management and stakeholder engagement.

Advantageous

• Financial Services experience.
• Experience driving digital transformation or operational excellence initiatives.
• Coaching, leadership development or change management certification.

Key Success Measures

The successful incumbent will demonstrate:

• Achievement of operational performance targets.
• Strong employee engagement and retention outcomes.
• Development of high-performing Team Leaders and future leaders.
• Continuous improvement and innovation initiatives successfully implemented.
• Improved customer outcomes and service delivery metrics.
• Effective management of operational risks and compliance requirements.
• Positive contribution to business growth and strategic objectives.

Competencies:

Leadership: Strategic Thinking, Leading Through Others, Influencing & Impact, Decision Making, Courageous Leadership

Operational: Operational Excellence, Commercial Acumen, Customer Centricity, Performance Management, Risk & Compliance Awareness

Personal: Resilience, Adaptability, Innovation Mindset, Results Driven, Relationship Building

Skills

Contact Center Management, Contact Center Operations, Continuous Improvement, Customer Experience (CX), Data Insights, Decision Making, Employee Experience, People Management, Relationship Building, Stakeholder Management, Strategic Leadership

Competencies

Builds Effective TeamsCommunicates EffectivelyCustomer FocusDirects WorkDrives EngagementDrives ResultsEnsures AccountabilityFinancial Acumen

Education

NQF Level 6 - Diploma, Advance or Occupational Certificate or equivalent (Required)

Closing Date

29 October 2026 , 23:59

The appointment will be made from the designated group in line with the Employment Equity Plan of Old Mutual South Africa and the specific business unit in question.

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