Associate Director of Soft Services

XCL WORLD ACADEMY PTE. LTD.; Singapore; On-site; SGD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

XCL World Academy PTE. LTD. in Singapore seeks an Associate Director of Soft Services to lead and optimize vendor management for essential school services.

You will oversee canteen, transportation and health office operations, manage third-party relationships, and drive improvements in service quality and cost efficiency. The role requires strong leadership, stakeholder engagement, and a strategic view to align vendors with the school's goals and standards.

Qualifications

• Degree in Business Management or Administration or other relevant courses.
• Minimum 5 years of relevant experience.
• Prior experience in vendor management such as Transport or Canteen, either managing or being a service vendor.
• Supervisory experience.
• Excellent communication skills in English, both written and spoken.
• High level of customer service mindset and ability to interact with the parent community with regards to day-to-day operational issues.
• Ability to empathise with workers and find solutions for their daily problems/issues.
• Resourceful and able to seek alternative solutions to problems/issues that arise.
• Able to look at the bigger picture and strategize on the mid- and long-term plans for vendor management.
• High proficiency in Microsoft Office applications, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Responsibilities

• Help ensure the smooth operations for essential services conducted at the school, and which directly impact the customer experience – such as Canteen, Transportation, Uniforms & Health Office
• Direct responsibility for Canteen, Transportation and Health Office
• Assist the Procurement team in communicating between the third-party vendor, parents, students, and school administrators regarding school uniforms
• Evaluate potential suppliers using developed and agreed criteria to support alignment and understanding of the expectations and requirements of engagement
• Monitor and report on the performance of selected vendors to ensure delivery in line with contractual obligations and performance metrics
• Manage outward communication to vendors to facilitate understanding and awareness of XCL strategic direction, changes and challenges
• Review, report on, and revise contractual agreements as necessary
• Conduct periodic KPI reviews for all vendors and make recommendations on mitigation plans where needed, and follow through on the proposed actions
• Investigate all incidents together with the affected vendor, including resolving the issues, to ensure that they are properly resolved, documented, and referenced for future review
• Conduct periodic customer satisfaction surveys of the school community for all services

Skills

Vendor management

Supervisory experience

English communication

Customer service mindset

Strategic thinking

Problem solving

Stakeholder management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business Management or Administration

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

About the role

The Associate Director of Soft Services is responsible for ensuring the effective operation of the Soft Services. Building and managing relationships with external third-party vendors who supply essential products and services to the School and ensuring that vendors meet and exceed their contractual obligations. Responsible for ensuring a high level of customer service/experience for all stakeholders, including parents, students, third-party external vendors, and school employees.

Key responsibilities

• Help ensure the smooth operations for essential services conducted at the school, and which directly impact the customer experience – such as Canteen, Transportation, Uniforms & Health Office
• Direct responsibility for Canteen, Transportation and Health Office
• Assist the Procurement team in communicating between the third-party vendor, parents, students, and school administrators regarding school uniforms
• Evaluate potential suppliers using developed and agreed criteria to support alignment and understanding of the expectations and requirements of engagement
• Monitor and report on the performance of selected vendors to ensure delivery in line with contractual obligations and performance metrics
• Manage outward communication to vendors to facilitate understanding and awareness of XCL strategic direction, changes and challenges
• Review, report on, and revise contractual agreements as necessary
• Conduct periodic KPI reviews for all vendors and make recommendations on mitigation plans where needed, and follow through on the proposed actions
• Investigate all incidents together with the affected vendor, including resolving the issues, to ensure that they are properly resolved, documented, and referenced for future review
• Conduct periodic customer satisfaction surveys of the school community for all services

About you

• Degree in Business Management or Administration or other relevant courses
• Minimum 5 years of relevant experience
• Prior experience in vendor management such as Transport or Canteen, either managing or being a service vendor
• Supervisory experience
• Excellent communication skills in English, both written and spoken
• High level of customer service mindset and ability to interact with the parent community with regards to day-to-day operational issues
• Ability to empathise with workers and find solutions for their daily problems/issues
• Resourceful and able to seek alternative solutions to problems/issues that arise
• Able to look at the bigger picture and strategize on the mid- and long-term plans for vendor management
• High proficiency in Microsoft Office applications, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint

About us

XCL World Academy is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of students, children and young people and expects all employees, volunteers and other third parties to share this commitment.