Service Improvement Manager

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Service Improvement Manager

This key role will act as business owner for student enquiry and case management IT systems which contribute to the delivery of our professional student services. This will entail working in partnership with a very wide range of stakeholders in including staff, students and suppliers.

You will develop and maintain information systems, advise colleagues on options for enhancement across our student services thus contributing to a high-quality experience for our students and a fulfilling, evidence led approach for our staff.

The Student Life Division deliver student services online and at a range of locations. As our systems mature there may be potential for wider reach across the university where these systems can enhance the Cardiff University student experience more widely.

The post is full time (35 hours per week) and open ended.

Salary: £43,434 - £50,296 per annum (Grade 7)

Cardiff University offers many excellent benefits, including 37 days annual leave, plus bank holidays (pro rata for part time staff), local pension scheme, blended working (meaning you will be able to work from home for some of your time), a cycle to work scheme and other travel initiatives, annual increments up the pay scale, and more. It is an exciting and vibrant place to work, with many different challenges and is a proud Living Wage supporter.

Date advert posted: Wednesday, 27 April 2022

Closing date: Saturday, 14 May 2022

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds who have the ambition to create a University which seeks to fulfil our social, cultural and economic obligation to Cardiff, Wales, and the world.  In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working or job share arrangements.

Job Description

Key Duties

• To act as the systems owner for enquiry and case management solutions which support the delivery of student services.
• Deliver reporting and other information which informs and enables service improvement; working with the Student Life Senior Management Team, suppliers, and IT services as appropriate.
• Define and deliver reporting (qualitative and quantitative) to assess the performance of our services, enabling an evidence led approach to our work.
• Monitor performance of these systems and propose improvement and new ways of working, including via formal business cases if appropriate.
• Develop and deliver training on our enquiry and case management solutions to the Student Life department (and potentially wider as systems mature).
• Monitor how students use the system, advising colleagues to ensure students have access to FAQs/materials on how to use the system.
• Establish and maintain working relationships with key contacts, developing appropriate communication links across the University (Academic Schools, Colleges, Professional Services, students and the Students’ Union) and external stakeholders.
• Create specific working/project groups to achieve the Student Life division’s information systems requirements; potentially including matrix line management of colleagues across the University.
• Play a leading role in establishing and managing supplier user group/s to influence product development and share good practice with other institutions appropriately.
• Monitor and respond to relevant best practice development in systems and service improvement in our sector.

General Duties

• Ensure that an understanding of the importance of confidentiality is applied when undertaking all duties
• Abide by University policies on Health and Safety and Equality and Diversity
• Perform other duties occasionally which are not included above, but which will be consistent with the role

Person Specification

Important notice:

• It is the University’s policy to use the person specification as a key tool for short-listing. Candidates should evidence that they meet ALL of the essential criteria as well as, where relevant, the desirable.
• As part of the application process you will be asked to provide this evidence via a supporting statement.
• Please ensure that the evidence you are providing corresponds with the numbered criteria outlined below.
• Your application will be considered based on the information you provide under each element.

When attaching the supporting statement to your application profile, please ensure that you name it with the vacancy reference number, e.g. Supporting Statement for 12331BR

Essential Criteria

Qualifications and Education

Degree/NVQ 6 or equivalent professional membership/experience.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

Experience of guiding the development of systems, working with comparable student/client enquiry and/or case management systems, or equivalent. 

Professional knowledge of information systems management solutions (or equivalent) and an ability to define and configure reports.

Proven experience in leading the development of new client centred processes and procedures; and subsequent management of changes to systems.

Experience of pro-actively delivering advice and guidance with authority to internal and external customers leading to enhancement

Customer Service, Communication and Team Working

Evidenced ability to communicate conceptually detailed and complex information both accessibly and professionally to a wide range of audiences, tailoring communication as appropriate.

Evidenced ability to explore and understand customers’ needs, adapt services and IT systems to ensure a quality service is delivered, influencing, and persuading across different hierarchies.

Planning, Analysis and Problem solving

Evidence of ability to research and solve expansive problems using initiative and creativity. A personal approach which identifies the issue, proposes practical and innovative solutions.

Ability to interpret, analyse and present qualitative and quantitative data sets. 

Evidence of ability to undertake and deliver projects and supervise short term project teams.

Desirable Criteria

Relevant Postgraduate/Professional qualification.

Experience of working in service delivery in a Higher Education environment.

Fluency in Welsh, written and oral.

Additional Information

We use Engage to Service: Retain software in Student Life. We also use Target Connect as the CRM for our Student Futures (formerly Careers and Employability) work; Cohort for our Student Occupational Health Services and Gecko for online live chat enquires.

The focus of this role is working with Engage 2 Serve: Retain, however we welcome applications from candidates who have no experience of this specific software system.
In line with working practices for staff based in the Centre for Student Life and the University’s wider Better Ways of Working Programme there is flexibility around home working arrangements for this role. Specific arrangements will be subject to discussion with the successful candidate.

Job Category

Information Technology, Management & Executive