Director Of Portfolio Management And Customer Centricity

Director of portfolio management and customer centric.

Bristol, Coventry, Guildford, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle or Northstowe

Closing Date 5th February 2024  Interviews week commencing 19th February 2024 to be held face to face in our London Office

Homes England, the government's national housing agency, is seeking a dynamic and experienced professional to join our Chief Customer Officer team as the Director of Portfolio Management and Customer Centricity. This pivotal role - reporting direct to an Executive Leader, the Chief Customer Officer – is needed to transform, improve and digitise the way we serve our 250,000 Help to Buy & Legacy scheme customers.  This role will oversee the stewardship of our £18 billion equity loan book, supporting repayment by the customer when due and providing careful management and understanding for customers when they face financial difficulty.  The successful candidate will play a crucial role in ensuring we deliver high-quality customer service, defining, and implementing a long-term portfolio management strategy, and balancing the needs of customers with value for money for the taxpayer. 

A bit about you…

Help to Buy & Legacy Lending Oversight: Act as the senior delivery owner for the closed Help to Buy book and its legacy programs, managing financial, fiduciary, and reputational risks arising from the portfolio and ensuring key stakeholders are managed and regulations adhered to.  

Strategic Portfolio Management: Develop and implement a long-term management strategy for the loan portfolio, ensuring a balance between customer needs, policy and value for money, in line with wider government priorities.  

Risk Management: Ensure effective management of financial, fiduciary, and reputational risks associated with the loan book, being accountable to Homes England Executive, Board, and Ministers for successful delivery against agreed priorities and objectives.

Innovation and Transformation:  Develop and Execute innovation and transformation in how we serve our customers, working with the outsourced model to leverage efficiencies including more digitalisation and self-serve as well as leveraging third-party technological solutions to enhance outcomes for customers and taxpayers, establishing a sustainable, efficient, long-term business model.

Customer Support: Utilise expertise in supporting customers facing financial difficulties, particularly those in arrears, to ensure a compassionate and effective approach to customer service.

Commercial management – harness previous experience to build commercial relationships with the agency’s service provider and where services are outsourced ensure appropriate controls and levers are in place to support and enable a successful service.  

Stakeholder Engagement: Developing strong relationships at all levels within Homes England and our key stakeholders at the Department of Housing and Levelling Up as well as industry influencers such as UK finance.  

What are we looking for from you?

An experienced leader in a scale consumer business who understands the importance of a customer centric strategy.  Ideally you will come from a financial services background – particularly with a lending portfolio experience (not necessarily mortgage lending).

You will be a strategic thinker with a proven track record of delivering results and change in complex financial environments and multiple stakeholder engagement delivered through empowering, inspiring and leading colleagues.  

We are looking for someone who brings energy, ideas and enthusiasm and can execute organisational and transformational change – particularly the digitation of our service proposition.  

You will also need to understand the social impact and benefits of the Help to Buy Loan book and how we can deliver value for money whilst at the same time supporting customers.

Leading a team Assistant Directors and around 100 colleagues in their teams you will inspire and bring colleagues with you on the journey as measured by our colleague survey.  

Please note this role will be 50% office based at one of our offices outside of London that will include extensive travel across our UK offices. 

Who are we? 

Homes England The Housing and Regeneration Agency.  We believe that affordable, quality homes in well-designed places are key to improving people’s lives. As the government’s housing and regeneration agency, we create thriving new places and transform urban areas, combining the full breadth of our powers, expertise, land, capital and influence to bring investment to communities and get more homes built.

How? We form long-term partnerships that bridge the gap between the public and private sector to meet local needs and aspirations. We use our influence to champion the creation of sustainable homes, communities and places that are brilliantly designed for the people that live there now, and in the future. And we use our funding and support to build a more resilient, diverse and innovative housing sector, helping new entrants in the market, encouraging modern methods of construction and design, and promoting the utmost attention to building safety.

Together with our partners, we’re accelerating the pace of house building, remediation and regeneration across the country, as we seek to deliver ever more affordable homes in places people are proud to call home for generations to come.

What we offer... 

As well as a competitive salary and 33 days annual leave, we are committed to 50/50 hybrid working. We’ll support you, wherever possible, so that you don’t miss out on what matters to you. 

Internal applicants: please note that if you are successful, the salary you are offered will be in accordance with our pay controls and pay policy. You can find these on the recruitment pages of the intranet.

If you ever need a bit of extra help, we have a great employee assistance programme, financial wellbeing support and access to many great discounts with leading high street names. 

Our range of network groups are also there to support you to be yourself at work and play a key role in helping shape our future. 

If you are a member of a professional body, we’ll pay for your membership and once you get your digital kit, you’ll be good to go. 

Homes England are a geographically diverse community. We work to a 50/50 office/ home based model. Moving back into our office environments has enabled us to utilise our space and time together in the most collaborative way. 

We would encourage all applicants to apply as soon as possible as we may close vacancies early should we receive a high number of applications. 

We also encourage you to apply using the full application option as opposed to quick apply, this is especially important if you would like to indicate to us that you would like to be considered under the disability confident scheme. 

If your application is shortlisted to interview we will require you to provide proof of your right to work in the UK at this stage.