Customer Services Manager

Our client is a well-established and growing service-based business with operations across the UK and Ireland. As part of its continued development, the organisation is seeking an experienced customer service or operations leader to take ownership of its Customer Solutions function, leading a key area of the business and helping to shape its next phase of growth.

The Job:
Reporting to the Operations Director, the Customer Services Manager will lead a team of c.14 people, combining technical support and customer service into a single Customer Solutions function, and will take full ownership of its performance, governance and strategic direction.

The successful candidate will:

• Lead, coach and develop the Customer Solutions team, handling 1:1s, performance management and day-to-day people issues.
• Own the overall performance and control of the department, monitoring KPIs such as site uptime, incident response times, first contact resolution and complaint trends.
• Act as the senior escalation point for complex or sensitive complaints, ensuring fair, timely and well-documented resolutions.
• Maintain oversight of daily and weekly workflow, protecting SLAs and priorities during high-demand periods.
• Represent Customer Solutions in management meetings, reporting on staffing, training needs, risks and opportunities to the Operations Director.
• Act as senior point of contact for key installers and major customers, chairing account reviews and performance discussions.
• Champion a "Solutions First" culture, ensuring issues are investigated, communicated and resolved without a blame culture.
• Participate in the senior manager on-call rota (approximately one week at a time, infrequently).

The Person:
We are seeking an experienced team leader with a strong track record of managing customer service, support or operations teams (ideally 10+ people) in a high-volume, high-detail environment.

Candidates should be able to demonstrate:

• Proven experience leading and developing a team, including coaching, performance management and handling HR-linked issues such as absence and conduct.
• Experience handling escalations and serious customer issues, with a fair and evidence-based approach to resolution.
• Strong organisational and prioritisation skills, with the ability to manage multiple workstreams and maintain control under pressure.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with the confidence to engage at senior/Director level.
• High accuracy and attention to detail in a high-risk operational environment.
• Confidence using CRM systems and Microsoft Office to produce clear reports and updates.

The successful candidate will be calm, resilient and level-headed - a mature, credible leader capable of influencing upwards and downwards, with a clear pathway to join the Senior Leadership Team once they've demonstrated capability in the role.

To Apply:
If you have the experience and drive to lead a fast-moving, business-critical customer solutions function, please send a tailored CV using the appropriate method or call Lucas Executive Search for a confidential discussion about the opportunity.

All applications will be treated in the strictest confidence.

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