Senior Dispute Resolution Specialist - Banking and Finance

Australian Financial Complaints Authority; Sydney; On-site; AUD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

AFCA in Sydney is seeking a Senior Dispute Resolution Specialist in Banking and Finance. You will play a central role in reviewing complex complaints, applying AFCA's fairness standards, and negotiating outcomes with financial firms.

The role emphasizes mentoring teammates, upholding high-quality written and verbal communications, and using conciliation where appropriate to resolve issues promptly. You will work as part of a collaborative team and support continuous improvement in

Qualifications

• Experience in financial services, ideally Banking & Finance, or compliance.
• Strong understanding of complaint handling or alternative dispute resolution processes.
• Ability to identify issues and investigate complex complaints.
• Excellent written communication and QA experience with plain English.
• Strong organisational skills to manage multiple complaints.
• Experience coaching and mentoring team members.
• Resilience and empathy for difficult conversations.
• Proactive, autonomous, and collaborative team member.
• Commitment to fairness, efficiency, and accessibility.

Responsibilities

• Review complex consumer and small business complaints.
• Engage with customers to understand issues and gather information.
• Apply AFCA criteria and relevant codes to resolve fairly.
• Use ADR methods, including conciliation, to resolve by negotiation.
• Conduct thorough investigations and produce clear assessments.
• Perform quality assurance on written communications and provide feedback.
• Mentor and coach team members on case management and analysis.

Skills

Negotiation

Conciliation

Case investigation

Mentoring

Quality assurance

Plain English communications

Analytical thinking

Stakeholder engagement

Resilience & empathy

Job description

Senior Dispute Resolution Specialist - Banking and Finance

Australian Financial Complaints Authority – Sydney NSW

6d ago , from Australian Financial Complaints Authority AFCA

Make a real impact at AFCA. Where fairness drives every decision. Help us deliver world-class, independent complaints resolution for Australians. As a not-for-profit and progressive financial ombudsman, we’re championing positive change. Achieving our purpose takes progressive thinking, accountability and resilience. At AFCA, our inclusive leadership values every voice. We offer our people flexible work options, thoughtful benefits and opportunities to deepen expertise. Flourish in a diverse, caring culture. Feel the difference of belonging to an organisation intentionally designed to put people first.

Job Description

AFCA's Senior Dispute Resolution Specialists play a central role in how we consider and resolve complex and difficult complaints, often with multiple issues. In this role, you will utilise experience in negotiation, conciliation and case investigation to resolve financial complaints fairly and efficiently, applying relevant codes, industry guidelines, legislation, common law and AFCA's Fairness Jurisdiction.

Working as part of a team, Senior Dispute Resolution Specialists review complex complaints from consumers and small businesses that have not been resolved directly with the financial firm, and impartially negotiate fair outcomes where possible.

Where a complaint cannot be resolved by agreement, a Senior Dispute Resolution Specialist investigate complaints to prepare and provide a verbal or written assessment of the issues and recommended outcome.

The Senior Dispute Resolution role also has a strong focus on mentoring and quality. Beyond managing a caseload of active complaints, Senior Dispute Resolution Specialists are a trusted reviewer and coach for colleagues, helping to sharpen their investigation approach, increase capability and technical knowledge and lifting the standard of written and verbal communication.

As a Senior Dispute Resolution Specialist, you will play a central role in how we consider and resolve complaints. You will:

• Review complex complaints from consumers and small businessesthat have not been resolved directly with the financial firm
• Work with customers to understand the issues in the complaint and gather relevant information
• Apply a sound understanding of the AFCA complaint resolution criteriaincluding: relevant legal principles, applicable industry codes or guidance, good industry practice and previous AFCA decision to resolve financial complaints fairly and efficiently
• Use alternative dispute resolution methods, including conciliation, to help parties resolve complaints by negotiation
• Conduct a thorough investigation of complaints that cannot be resolved by negotiation, using your strong analytical and critical thinking skills to produce well-reasoned and fair preliminary assessments in Plain English
• Complete quality assurance activities, reviewing written communication, assessments and correspondence to providing constructive feedback that lifts clarity, structure, reasoning and Plain English standards across the team
• Support the overall capability and confidence of the team by mentoring and coaching team members on case management activities, resolution techniques, and investigation and analytical tasks.

Our Banking and Finance teams deal directly with consumers and financial firms to help resolve and investigate complaints across all banking and finance products. Some of the issues commonly investigated include:

• Disputed transactions and scams
• Responsible and Appropriate lending
• Misleading and unconscionable conduct
• Charges including interest and fees
• Privacy and confidentiality, including Credit Reporting

Qualifications

To be successful in this role, you will have:

• Considerable experience in the financial services industry, preferably within Banking & Finance, legal, or compliance focused roles
• Comprehensive understanding of complaint handling or alternative dispute resolution processes and a strong resolution mindset
• Ability to identify complaint issues and investigate complex complaints
• Highly developed written communication and quality assurance expertise, with demonstrated experience communicating complex information in Plain English and reviewing draft letters to identify opportunities for improvement
• Excellent organisational skills that enable you to work across multiple complaints and activities simultaneously ensuring matters are progressing appropriately for their priority
• Experience coaching and mentoring team members, and providing constructive, actionable feedback to support continuous improvement
• Resilience and empathy to have difficult conversations with a focus on resolving complaints for consumers and financial firms in a timely manner
• A highly proactive approach to your work and the ability to work autonomously and as part of a close and supporting team
• An opportunity to thrive in and help contribute to a culture that values fairness, efficiency, and accessibility.

Additional Information

We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, cultures, abilities, sexual orientations, and gender identities. If you require any accessibility support during the recruitment process, please reach out to our team at [emailprotected].

We believe fairness starts with people. That’s why we don’t use AI or automated tools to screen candidates. As a result, our processes may take a little longer, and we thank you for your patience.