Head of Customer Operations

**Details**:
**Reference number**:

- 435674

**Salary**:

- £57,515
- A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

GBP

**Job grade**:

- Grade 7

** Contract type**:

- Permanent

** Business area**:

- MCA - UK Customer Maritime Services

** Type of role**:

- Business Management and Improvement
Operational Delivery

** Working pattern**:

- Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time

** Number of jobs available**:

- 1

**Contents**:

- Location
- About the job
- Benefits
- Things you need to know

** Location**:

- Cardiff, Southampton

** About the job**:
** Job summary**:

- Can you lead a high-performing customer service team to deliver exceptional support across complex, fast-paced operational environments?
- Do you thrive in driving digital transformation and continuous improvement to enhance customer experience and operational efficiency?
- Have you successfully managed teams to meet and exceed KPIs and SLAs in customer-facing roles, while fostering a culture of collaboration and quality service?
- If so, we’d love to hear from you
- We are seeking a Head of Customer Operations to join the UK Customer Maritime Services Directorate which plays a vital role in supporting the UK’s maritime safety and industry. It oversees the UK Ship Register, and Seafarer Certification Branch. The Customer Operations Branch, led by the Head of Operations, manages front-line services provided by the Seafarer Operations team in Southampton and the Registry of Shipping and Seafarers (RSS) in Cardiff. Together, they deliver high-quality support to seafarers and vessel owners, ensuring compliance with relevant regulations and driving digital transformation and service excellence within the UK maritime sector.
- Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

- Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
- 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays and a privilege day for the King’s birthday
- Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.- Read more in the Benefits section below
- Find out more about what it's like working at: Maritime and Coastguard Agency - Department for Transport Careers

** Job description**:

- As the Head of Customer Operations, you will lead the front-line service delivery across Seafarer Operations and the Registry of Shipping and Seafarers. Responsible for managing teams in Southampton and Cardiff, the role ensures high-quality customer support, drives digital transformation, and delivers continuous improvement. Reporting to the Assistant Director (Business Operations), you will play a key part in meeting statutory obligations, enhancing customer experience, and supporting the UK maritime industry through effective leadership and operational excellence.
- Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:

- Leading Seafarer Operations and RSS to deliver efficient, high-quality services that meet KPIs and SLAs.
- Championing a customer-focused culture across contact centres and digital channels, supporting UK maritime safety.
- Driving digital transformation and implement consistent, tech-enabled service delivery across teams.
- Identifying and embed improvements through process optimisation, automation, and innovation.
- Acting as Information Asset Manager, ensuring systems are secure, effective, and fit for purpose.
- Collaborating with the Chief Examiner to align certification processes with evolving industry standards.
- Working with peers to develop innovative solutions that enhance safety, service, and efficiency.
- Leading financial and HR management, fostering a high-performing, well-supported team culture.- Great line management is important to us as an organisation, and we will equip and support line managers to develop the skills they need. We aim to empower line managers to create teams where people can flourish and deliver excellent outcomes for the public.
- For further information on the role, please read the role profile_. _Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

** Person specification**:

- Required experience:

- To be successful in this role you will need to have the following experience:

- Demonstrable knowledge and experience of leading operational customer service and/or contact centre teams supported by compelling evidence of success in leadership roles.
- Experience of managing teams that successfully deliver against Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs), achieving and exceeding targets in either Business to Business (B2B) or Business to Customer (B2C) environments.
- Demonstrable experience of deliverin