Customer Operations Manager

Diversifying.io; Malvern; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working

Wellbeing support

Growth opportunities

Competitive benefits

Job summary

Smartbox is seeking a Customer Operations Manager to lead and develop a newly integrated function, shaping the journey from enquiry through to fulfilment and delivery, ensuring customers receive exceptional service.

You’ll manage a diverse team across customer service, order management, planning, and operational support, collaborating with Sales, Finance and Operations to remove barriers and drive sustainable growth.

Qualifications

• Experience leading customer operations and cross-functional teams.
• Strong knowledge of order fulfilment and service delivery.
• Proven ability to improve processes using data.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a high-performing customer operations team.
• Oversee end-to-end customer operations journey from enquiry to delivery.
• Collaborate with Sales, Finance and Operations to improve visibility.
• Identify opportunities to simplify processes and scale operations.
• Strengthen planning and supply chain coordination.

Skills

Leadership

Customer operations

Process improvement

Stakeholder management

Data-driven decisions

Tools

ERP systems

Job description

Join us in making sure no one is left without a voice

At Smartbox, our assistive technology empowers people with disabilities who experience speech difficulties to express themselves, connect with others, and live more independent lives.

We’re proud to be a global leader in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), supporting people across the UK, US, Europe, and beyond. But what truly sets us apart is our people – passionate, collaborative, and driven by the impact our products have every day.

If you’re motivated by meaningful work and want to apply your technical expertise to something that genuinely changes lives, we’d love to hear from you.

The Opportunity

We're looking for a Customer Operations Manager to lead and develop a newly integrated Customer Operations function at Smartbox.

This is a fantastic opportunity for an experienced operational leader who enjoys bringing people, processes and systems together to create a seamless customer experience. You'll play a pivotal role in shaping how we manage the journey from enquiry and quotation through to fulfilment and delivery, ensuring customers receive the exceptional service they deserve.

You'll lead a diverse team spanning customer service, order management, planning and operational support, creating clarity, consistency and accountability across the function. Working closely with colleagues across Sales, Finance and Operations, you'll help remove barriers, improve visibility and build processes that support sustainable growth.

This role offers the chance to make a lasting impact, not only on business performance, but on the experience of the people who depend on our products every day.

What You’ll Be Doing

You'll combine operational leadership with a passion for developing people and improving the way things work.

You'll create an environment where people can thrive, building a high-performing, customer-focused team that feels empowered, supported and accountable. Through coaching, mentoring and clear leadership, you'll help individuals develop their skills, build confidence and achieve their potential.

You'll oversee the end-to-end customer operations journey, ensuring orders are managed efficiently, customers receive timely communication and teams work together to deliver a smooth and positive experience. Along the way, you'll identify opportunities to simplify processes, improve visibility and introduce scalable ways of working that support future growth.

You'll also play an important role in strengthening planning and supply chain coordination across the business. By bringing together commercial demand, operational capacity and customer needs, you'll help drive smarter decisions, improve performance and ensure resources are aligned to business priorities.

Most importantly, you'll help create a culture of collaboration, continuous improvement and shared ownership, ensuring Smartbox remains easy to work with for customers and colleagues alike.

Why This Role Is Unique

This isn't a typical operations management role. You'll have the opportunity to shape a growing function, influence how teams work together and create meaningful improvements that benefit customers, colleagues and the wider business. The work is varied, strategic and hands‑on, with the freedom to challenge existing ways of working and the support to implement positive change.

What We’re Looking For

We're looking for a rare combination of operational leadership, customer focus and people development expertise.

• Proven leadership experience within customer operations, supply chain, logistics or operational management.
• Strong understanding of customer order fulfilment and operational processes.
• Experience using ERP systems to support operational performance and efficiency.
• Excellent organisational, planning and prioritisation skills.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capability, with confidence using data to inform decisions.
• Experience leading, motivating and developing teams.
• A continuous improvement mindset, with a track record of delivering positive operational change.
• Commercial awareness and a strong focus on delivering excellent customer outcomes.

Why Join Smartbox:

• Purpose-driven work with real-world impact.
• Collaborative and supportive culture.
• Hybrid working and flexibility.
• Opportunities to grow, lead and shape future products.
• Strong benefits package plus wellbeing support.

Inclusion and Sustainability

At Smartbox, we’re committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued, supported and able to thrive. We’re proud to be a Disability Confident Employer and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds.

If there’s anything we can do to support you during the recruitment process, please feel free to let us know within your application.

We also aim to build sustainability into everything we do, from how we design our products to how we operate as a business.