Manager Life & Annuity Claims Operations (US Benefits)
Summary
The Manager is a working people manager accounting for the overall performance of the Life, AD&D and Annuity claims team. The role owns delivery against contractual SLAs, quality and productivity targets; builds and develops a team of 1520 people; manages capacity and risks; and serves as the primary operational contact for the client.
Roles & Responsibilities
1. Delivery & SLA Ownership
- Own end-to-end delivery of backlog and ongoing claims: volumes, APT, Day-5 TAT, SLA and quality
- Define measurable success indicators for the team and monitor them daily, weekly and monthly
- Understand client contract, performance measures and claim guidelines; act as an escalation point for risks and complex cases
- Run daily huddles and operational reviews; make sure work is prioritized and allocated properly
2. People Management & Development
- Lead, coach and develop a team of 1520 (SMEs, Team Leads and Processors)
- Set goals, track performance, run feedback cycles and annual appraisals, and manage pay and recognition
- Build career paths, succession and cross-training plans; address performance gaps through remediation
- Drive engagement, psychological safety, ethics and a positive team culture; manage attrition and absenteeism
3. Capacity, Resource & Workforce Planning
- Plan FTE and shift coverage from volume, APT and productive-hours assumptions
- Manage demand and supply: permanent versus contractor mix, backlog clearance ramp-up and contractor release
- Partner with HR and Talent Acquisition on demand requests, interviews, offers and joining
- Own onboarding, classroom training, certification and proficiency plans for new joiners
4. Quality, Controls & Compliance
- Establish quality framework and audit model, including maker-checker controls and validation checkpoints
- Lead RCA and corrective and preventive actions for errors and repeat issues
- Ensure compliance with HIPAA, data privacy, information security and the Code of Conduct
- Support client and internal audits; maintain current SOPs and process documentation
5. Client & Stakeholder Management
- Be the operational contact for client and onshore leadership; handle difficult conversations with balanced, solution-focused communication
- Deliver governance: weekly and monthly reviews, SLA and trend reporting, risk and issue management
- Collaborate with other managers and shared services across shores for seamless delivery
6. Continuous Improvement & Financials
- Identify process improvements, automation opportunities and effort-reduction initiatives
- Support delivery against financial targets (utilisation, cost and margin) and billing accuracy
- Stay current with industry and domain developments, and share them with the team and leadership
Qualifications & Experience
Education
- Bachelor’s degree (B.A, B.Com, B.Sc, BBA); excluded as per Wipro standard: B.Tech/BE, LLB, B.Ed, B.Sc (IT), MCA, full-time MBA, unless exceptions are approved
Required Experience
- 10–14 years in operations, including 6+ years in US healthcare/benefits/insurance claims and at least 3–4 years in US Life, AD&D or Annuity claims
- Minimum 4–5 years of people management, currently managing or having managed a team of 15–20 people (including team leads)
- Proven delivery of SLA, quality and productivity targets in a high-volume BPO or outsourced environment
- Experience in capacity planning, onboarding and training, and backlog management
- Strong client-facing skills, stakeholder governance and escalation handling
- Strong MS Office skills (Excel, PowerPoint, Word) and MIS or dashboard reporting
- Excellent written and verbal communication
Preferred Experience
- Experience in Life and Annuity claim adjudication, beneficiary and payout processes
- Experience in transitions, RCA and Lean/Six Sigma or process improvement
- Exposure to automation or AI-led productivity initiatives
- Experience in P&L, billing or financial tracking for an account
Key Competencies
- Leadership and people development
- Ownership, accountability and decision-making
- Analytical thinking and data-driven management
- Client focus and influencing
- Collaboration across shores
Work Conditions
- Shift: Primarily US time-zone hours (night shift IST), five days a week; flexibility to rotate as business requires
- Experience in US Life pension and annuity
- Work mode: Work from office – [Location: Gurugram]
- Flexibility to extend hours occasionally for business-critical needs, such as backlog clearance or audits