Senior Director - Operations

Foundever; Cape Town; On-site; ZAR 2,400,000 - 4,800,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical Aid

Pension

Job summary

Foundever seeks a Senior Director, Operations to own end-to-end service delivery for a UK/US client portfolio from South Africa. You will manage performance across locations, drive profitability, and lead transformation initiatives with senior client stakeholders.

You will oversee a broad portfolio, build a high-performance team, ensure risk controls, and pursue growth through credible, data-driven operating practices.

Qualifications

• At least 15 years of experience in BPO, customer experience or outsourced operations
• Eight years in senior operational leadership
• Proven accountability for large revenue portfolios and P&L ownership
• Experience leading multiple delivery locations and diversified client accounts
• Strong commercial judgment and data-driven decision making
• Lean/Six Sigma or continuous-improvement certification advantageous with automation/AI exposure

Responsibilities

• Provide end-to-end leadership across UK/US client portfolios and multiple delivery locations.
• Own portfolio performance against SLAs, quality, customer experience, productivity and compliance.
• Lead executive governance with clients and drive growth, retention and expansion opportunities.
• Drive transformation roadmap, automation, and data-driven decision making across locations.
• Ensure governance, risk control, forecasting accuracy and financial discipline.

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business/Operations Management or related

MBA or relevant postgraduate qualification preferred

Job description

Role Mandate

The Senior Director, Operations is the enterprise operating owner for a diversified UK and US client portfolio delivered from South Africa. The role carries end-to-end accountability for service delivery, client confidence, financial performance, growth, people, risk and transformation across multiple delivery locations, accounts and service channels.

Strategic Context

South Africa has scaled rapidly as a strategic delivery market. The next phase requires an experienced executive operator who can institutionalise a consistent operating model, protect current performance, strengthen commercial returns and convert delivery credibility into sustainable client growth.

Key Accountabilities

• Portfolio Leadership and Operating Model
• Provide end-to-end leadership across multiple UK and UD client portfolios, delivery locations, operating shifts and service channels.
• Translate enterprise strategy into a clear portfolio operating plan, governance cadence and account-level priorities.
• Apply the Deliver, Drive, Delight, Develop and Transform framework to balance performance, profitability, client value, people and innovation.
• Create clear accountability across Operations and partner functions, ensuring local and global teams operate as one integrated delivery system.
• Operational Performance and Service Excellence
• Own portfolio performance against contracted SLA's, quality, customer experience, productivity, sales and compliance outcomes.
• Establish early-warning mechanisms, fact-based performance reviews and decisive recovery plans for underperforming accounts.
• Drive consistency across voice, email, chat, back-office, social media, sales and technical-support operations.
• Executive Client Leadership and Growth
• Act as the senior operational sponsor and escalation point for strategic UK and US clients.
• Lead EBR's, QBR's and executive governance with a clear narrative on performance, value creation, risk and future opportunity.
• Build trusted client relationships that protect retention and create expansion, cross-sell and renewal opportunities.
• Partner with Growth, Solution and Commercial teams to shape compelling, operationally executable propositions.
• Financial and Commercial Stewardship
• Own the operational P&L for a portfolio generating more the US$20 million in annual revenue, with accountability for revenue, gross margin, EBITDA and cash discipline.
• Maintain accurate forecasting and explain performance through clear revenue, pricing, volume, productivity and cost bridges.
• Identify and recover revenue leakage, protect contractual economics and ensure operational delivery remains aligned with pricing assumptions.
• Improve margins through workforce efficiency, management leverage, automation, process redesign and disciplined cost governance.
• Workforce, Capacity and Organisational Readiness
• Partner with Workforce Management, Talent Acquisition and Learning to translate client demand into executable staffing and capability plans.
• Oversee capacity, occupancy, shrinkage, adherence, overtime and seasonal demand across multiple locations and time zones.
• Ensure operational readiness for growth, including leadership capacity, training throughout, facilities, technology and support-function coverage.
• Leadership and Culture
• Lead, coach and hold accountable Directors, Senior Operations Manages and cross-functional leader across the portfolio.
• Build a strong succession pipeline and ensure leadership depth at every critical level of the operation
• Create a high-performance culture grounded in ownership, transparency, collaboration, employee engagement and continuous improvement.
• Reduce regrettable attrition by addressing leadership quality, employee experience, career progression and workforce stability.
• Transformation, Analytics and Innovation
• Own a prioritised transformation roadmap spanning AI, automation, analytics, Lean and process redesign.
• Ensure transformation initiatives are supported by robust business cases, accountable sponsors and Finance-validated benefits.
• Use operational data, Voice of Customer insights and predictive indicators to improve decision-making and client outcomes.
• Position South Africa as a capability and transformation partner, not simply a capacity provider.
• Governance, Risk and Control
• Maintain strong operational governance, audit readiness and compliance with client, regulatory, information-security and data-privacy requirements.
• Ensure robust business continuity, disaster recovery, risk mitigation and escalation disciplines across all delivery locations.
• Provide concise, accurate executive reporting that makes performance, risk, decisions and accountable actions visible.
  

Measures of Success

• Consistent portfolio attainment of client SLAs, quality and customer-experience commitments.
• Revenue, gross margin and EBITDA performance against plan, supported by accurate forecasting and disciplined cost control.
• Improved client health, retention, referenceability and organic growth across the portfolio.
• Measurable improvement in productivity, shrinkage, management efficiency, attrition and employee engagement.
• Successful launches and expansions delivered on time, within budget and with stable early-life performance.
• Finance-validated transformation benefits and sustained adoption of new ways of working.
• A credible succession bench and stronger leadership capability across locations and accounts.
  

Required Experience And Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Operations Management or a related discipline; MBA or relevant postgraduate qualification preferred.
• At least 15 years of experience in BPO, customer experience or outsourced operations, including a minimum of eight years in senior operational leadership.
Demonstrable experience leading multiple delivery locations and a diversified portfolio of client accounts; single-site or single-account leadership alone will not be sufficient.
• Proven accountability for an annual revenue portfolio exceeding US$20 million, including direct ownership of P&L, gross margin, EBITDA and forecasting.
• Experience leading large-scale operations of at least 1,000 FTE across multiple accounts; exposure to portfolios of 1,500+ FTE is highly advantageous.
• Strong understanding of UK and US client expectations, operating models, time zones and executive governance requirements.
• A track record of stabilising performance, leading complex turnarounds, executing large ramps and converting delivery credibility into growth.
• Executive-level client engagement and the ability to influence senior internal and external stakeholders across a matrix organisation.
• Strong commercial judgment, analytical capability and experience using data to drive decisions and challenge assumptions.
• Lean, Six Sigma or comparable continuous-improvement certification is advantageous, together with practical experience deploying automation and AI-enabled solutions.
  

Leadership Profile

• Enterprise thinker who can connect client outcomes, people, operations, economics and transformation.
• Decisive and accountable operator who remains composed in complex, high-pressure environments.
• Commercially astute client partner with credibility at executive level.
• Visible people leader who builds trust, develops successors and creates clarity across a distributed organisation.
• Change leader who can simplify complexity and translate strategy into disciplined execution.
  

Work Environment

The role operates within a fast-paced, highly commercial 24/7 BPO environment supporting UK and US time zones. It requires executive flexibility, regular presence across delivery locations, and availability during critical client, performance, launch and escalation periods.

Key Points

Salary: Market Related
Benefits: Medical Aid and Pension
Location: Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, Cape Town
Contracted Hours: 40 hours per week
Working Hours: Core business hours
Contract Duration: Permanent