Customer Relationship Manager (Crm)

Overview
Do you want to help enrich the lives of learners worldwide?
At RM, we've been pioneers of education technology since 1973. We provide technology and resources to the education sector supporting over 10 million students around the world. We work with 28,000 schools, nurseries, and education trusts in 115 countries to deliver customer-centric solutions that improve education outcomes worldwide.
What we do helps learners at all stages of their lives, from preschool to higher education and professional qualification. We partner with schools, examination boards, central governments, and other professional institutions to enrich the lives of learners.
RM offers a range of services to our customers from a full managed service to hosting, licensing, and support services. The RM vision is to continue the strong growth RM has established in the last 16 years in the Assessment market by developing relationships with our existing customers as well as bringing on board new business.
The customer relationship manager is responsible for ensuring client delivery meets the contract commitments for their customer and is executed within the expectations of the contract and customer. The job holder is empowered to take the action necessary to deliver on contract and service commitments and should support the delivery of profitable, longstanding relationships with these organisations. The job holder will work with senior customer stakeholders within the customer's operational teams and RM functional teams to ensure that an excellent service is delivered and a firm basis is developed upon which to retain and grow the business.
The customer relationship manager is a service management and delivery role within the operations organisational structure. The job holder will be part of a virtual account team comprising of an account director, solution architect, and delivery teams from within operations (Helpdesk, Session Management & Delivery). From time to time, the role holder may work with a project manager assigned to deliver a specific change or deliverable or contribute to bid activity by sharing knowledge of their customer and operational delivery.
The job holder will need to have solid commercial and financial acumen, excellent customer focus, commitment to service delivery and operations, and a drive for service improvement and quality. They need the ability to effectively manage a range of stakeholders, internally and externally. They will be used to and comfortable working in a matrix-managed service environment.
Responsibilities Service and Operational Delivery
Lead the delivery of the service in accordance with contracted service levels and other contractual obligations that may be in place, including software delivery and financial risk management. Be accountable for the customer's service delivery, including planning software release cycles (including change, new deployments, and defect fixing), exam session readiness, and ensuring that internal teams and the customer deliver to the agreed obligations and contractual commitments. Manage all changes to the scope of contract as contract changes adhering to all relevant governance procedures (sizing, scoping, pricing, and approval). Be the primary operational escalation point for the customer and RM management. Ensure the contracted service budget is maintained and targets are met. Manage SLA reports and hold service performance reviews with the customer (lead operational boards, participate in strategic boards, other meetings as required). Develop and maintain a service delivery plan, aligning activities and governance which will include but are not limited to: contract commitment register (customer and RM obligations); contract risk register (clearly defines reputational, delivery, and financial impact to the contract), continuous service improvement plan (aligned to lessons learned, risk and problem management) and financial management and reporting (Profit & Loss, monthly finance reviews). Financial Management
Deliver the contract revenue and cost forecasts, working with the Account Director to understand variances, opportunities, and risks. Deliver the volume and service change revenue as per the contract forecast; where there is a shortfall in revenue, identify a plan with the Account Director to mitigate the impact to the account P&L. Build relationships with the customer to ensure invoices are paid to contract credit terms with zero aged debts or late payments. Manage a financial service penalty risk register as part of the service delivery plan. Manage the service cost forecasting for the Account Director in the contract P&L - understand and review all actual costs on a monthly basis and challenge where costs are unexpected or variant to forecast. Contribute to the monthly account P&L reports and reviews where overall account and service financial "health" is presented to the Business Unit Director and Finance Director. Responsible for all contract finance queries relating to the service delivery of the contract P&L and forecast. Customer Relationship Management
Develop and maintain strong customer relationships with accountable job holders within customer organisations. Deliver existing services to the customer's satisfaction, ensuring they are aware of all added value provided. Own and resolve issues and escalations from customer or internal teams - single point of contact. Analyse multiple customer listening posts (CSAST scores, Net Promoter surveys, complaint tracking, operational metrics) and work with RM, customer, and vendor teams to drive service improvements. Own and manage escalations and complaints from customers. Own action plans arising from major customer issues or satisfaction surveys. Be seen as the single point of contact and expert for each of the assigned customer contracts. Contract Growth
Support the Account Director to increase the contract size through supportable and sustainable contract changes and recognising or creating growth opportunities. Support the Account Director to maintain customer information required for regular reporting. Support the Account Director during contract renewals/extension negotiations using knowledge of the assigned customer contracts. Experience Experience
Between 3 and 10 years' experience in business to business, service delivery and/or operational roles. Experienced delivering contract commitments and KPIs within service management functions for large-scale, time-critical and complex software services. Experienced working with senior client representatives, and liaising with multiple customer stakeholders. Experienced in managing internal stakeholders up to, and including C-Suite. Track record of managing within a line or matrix team structure balancing priorities and keeping focus on quality and timely delivery. Experienced in the management of Profit & Loss budgets with a focus on cost management and achievement of invoiced revenue. Behaviours / Skills
Able to demonstrate the capability to manage effectively within a highly complex, operational environment. Customer focused with ability to form close professional relationships with senior customer stakeholders. Excellent communication, influencing, and negotiation skills at all levels with customers, suppliers, and colleagues. Strong listening skills and the ability to adapt complex messages according to the audience. High level emotional intelligence. Excellent judgement and decision-making, delegation and planning skills. Demonstrable ability to deliver results meeting service level, commercial and customer satisfaction levels. Demonstrable drive, energy, and passion for understanding and meeting customer needs. Able to motivate the RM delivery teams to continually improve the service. By personal example, encourage all RM departments to see Customer Relationship Management as integral to achieving their targets and use CRM to its full capability. Exceptional interpersonal skills; a highly personable, engaging approach. The ability to work at a high pace while maintaining quality of output and be flexible in response to meeting challenging deadlines is essential. Knowledge
Business to business service delivery, operational and relationship management. Practical understanding and application of service management or project management methodologies (e.g. ITIL, PRINCE, ITSM). An understanding of contracts (e.g. definitions, clauses, schedules, commitment registers). An understanding of how software and service organisations operate is key to the role. Knowledge of modern IT infrastructures would be an advantage. Knowledge of e-assessment and/or e-testing would be an advantage. What's in it for you?
At RM we have "My Work Blend @RM" which provides office-based colleagues with multi-location and hybrid working options to suit them. As well as your office base, you can spend a proportion of your time working at other locations that suit your role and your life, including home, other offices, customer sites, distribution centres, or on the move. We encourage you to discuss arrangements for this role with your potential line manager during the recruitment process. We expect how we make best use of hybrid working may continue to adapt as we adjust to our new ways of working.
As well as a competitive salary and our core benefits package which includes private medical healthcare, life assurance, and a Group Personal Pension Plan with higher contribution levels available, some roles are also eligible for a performance-related bonus. There are lots of voluntary benefits too. You could buy additional annual leave, join our dental plan, sign for a health assessment, or take part in our cycle to work scheme. You could even earn yourself an extra bonus for successfully recommending a friend or family member for a position within RM.
To better reflect the society that we serve, we're committed to building a diverse workforce and creating an inclusive and welcoming environment for all. To achieve this, we create teams of talented people from different backgrounds and experiences and strive to be a business where our people can bring their whole selves to work. We also want to make the recruitment process as inclusive as possible for everyone. Should you require additional support with your application or through the interview process, please contact us at .
Unfortunately, we are unable to offer sponsorship for this role.
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