Senior Client Manager, Global Merchant Services - UK

American Express; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading financial services company in the UK is seeking a Senior Client Manager to engage key merchants and drive client satisfaction in the High Street Retail sector. This role focuses on retention, relationship management, and expanding the acceptance network across UK merchants. The ideal candidate will possess strong business development and negotiation skills, with experience handling senior stakeholders. The position offers competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits, including a flexible working model.

Benefits

Competitive base salaries

Bonus incentives

Comprehensive medical, dental, vision benefits

Flexible working model

Generous paid parental leave

Global on-site wellness centers

Career development opportunities

Qualifications

• Experience managing clients from negotiation to conclusion.
• Ability to influence and persuade at all levels.
• Strong track record of driving results.

Responsibilities

• Maintain relationships with key accounts to maximize satisfaction.
• Handle commercial objections to add value.
• Renegotiate commercial agreements to sustain profit margins.
• Identify and drive business development solutions.

Skills

Outstanding relationship management

Business development skills

Confident communicator

Negotiation skills

Experience with senior stakeholders

Marketing knowledge

Experience with Payments Industry

Job description

How will you make an impact in this role?

At American Express, our culture is built on a 175-year history of innovation, shared values and Leadership Behaviors, and an unwavering commitment to back our customers, communities, and colleagues. As part of Team Amex, you'll experience this powerful backing with comprehensive support for your holistic well-being and many opportunities to learn new skills, develop as a leader, and grow your career.

Here, your voice and ideas matter, your work makes an impact, and together, you will help us define the future of American Express.

This exciting role is focused on retaining, engaging and expanding acceptance in a portfolio of UK merchants in the High Street Retail sector.

The GMS UK-based Client Management & B2B team is a merchant-facing team within the Global Merchant & Network Services business unit of American Express. The team ‘s principal role is to retain and grow merchant acceptance with our most strategic UK merchants The CLM & B2B team play a critical role in GMS UK’s strategic vision to grow coverage in the UK and we are looking for a Senior Client Manager to join this high profile and successful team.

The role is responsible for:

• Retention: Deliver 100% retention across the base, renegotiating revenue generating and profitable deals
• Expanding the network: Grow coverage by closing all outstanding acceptance gaps, ensuring a consistent coverage experience for our cardmembers.
• Deepen relationships, leveraging engagement, marketing opportunities and industry partnerships to drive merchant satisfaction as measured by NPS
• Driving incremental revenue via Enterprise collaboration
• Ensuring compliance with all risk, legal and compliance policies.

By leveraging excellent relationship management skills, the successful candidate will need to develop an in-depth understanding of the marketplace, clients and associated industries. They must demonstrate the ability to negotiate and influence client decisions plus develop and execute strategic account plans linked to customer priorities and strategies. They must be effective in differentiating the American Express value and build relationships for the long term with keen focus on retaining clients on a profitable basis.

Core responsibilities

• Maintain and build the day to day relationships between American Express and a portfolio of key accounts. Deepen existing relationships and build new ones, to identify new opportunities and maximise customer satisfaction across the whole spectrum of the relationship.
• Handle commercial objections- demonstrate and identify new ways that Amex deliver incremental value.
• Renegotiate commercial agreements that maintain or grow Amex profit margins in line with Amex processes and policies.
• Identify and drive business development solutions to drive increased revenue.
• Deepen relationships across all levels at a merchant business (day-to-day through to C-levels).
• In partnership with the Marketing team, develop and implement broad-based and targeted marketing campaigns that deliver incremental spend to the customer and value to the Cardmember.
• Increase merchant satisfaction measured by Net Promoter Score (NPS).
• Work closely with the Global Servicing Network to ensure the highest quality of servicing is consistently delivered to your clients.
• Work in partnership with Payments Consulting colleagues to identify emerging payment technologies and trends
• Collaborate across the enterprise to drive additional value and revenue

Minimum Qualifications

• Outstanding relationship management and business development skills
• Confident communicator with the ability to influence and persuade at all levels both internally and externally
• Experience of managing the negotiation process with clients from beginning to conclusion
• Experience dealing with senior client stakeholders
• Strong track record of driving results and innovating
• Strong “will to win”, team player with a growth mindset
• Knowledge of Marketing and Servicing would be an advantage
• Confidence handling financial information and using data to drive commercial decisions
• Experience of the Payments Industry and emerging payment technologies an advantage

Employment eligibility to work with American Express in the UK is required as the company will not pursue visa sponsorship for these positions.

We back you with benefits that support your holistic well-being so you can be and deliver your best. This means caring for you and your loved ones' physical, financial, and mental health, as well as providing the flexibility you need to thrive personally and professionally:

• Competitive base salaries
• Bonus incentives
• Support for financial-well-being and retirement
• Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, life insurance, and disability benefits (depending on location)
• Flexible working model with hybrid, onsite or virtual arrangements depending on role and business need
• Generous paid parental leave policies (depending on your location)
• Free access to global on-site wellness centers staffed with nurses and doctors (depending on location)
• Free and confidential counseling support through our Healthy Minds program
• Career development and training opportunities

Offer of employment with American Express is conditioned upon the successful completion of a background verification check, subject to applicable laws and regulations.