Alison Eldridge Email & Phone Number

School Aycliffe, Gb

School Aycliffe, Gb

North East England

Reporting directly to the Chief Executive having direct line management responsibility for a team of supervisors , paraplanners and administrators. A key aspect of my role is to ensure that the operational support team deliver an excellent service to key stakeholders - our clients, wealth planning advisers, mortgage advisers and senior / sales management.Primary focus is the day to day management and personal development of the adviser support team, understanding and responding to issues arising from the activities of the team, working closely with other parts of the business as required, in particular the CEO, Investment Team, Sales Management and Compliance.Key Responsibilities:Manage the day to day activities of all direct reports in order to maximise staff performance and capability.Ensure work is allocated appropriately within the team taking account of workload capability and resource on a daily basis.Lead and develop, whilst building a strong working relationship with other areas of the business and senior management.Feed in to strategy and direction for the firm as it relates to adviser supportImplement training and development plans for each team member, managed through regular 1:1's, periodic appraisals and objective setting.Monitor service standards ensuring that the team delivers work to the advisers and clients within agreed service levels, taking remedial action as and when necessary.Carry out regular recorded audits implementing and monitoring team procedural change to ensure consistency and quality of service to all stakeholders.Ensure that the Adviser Support Team operates in line with required FCA standards and internal processes and procedures at all times.Work with the CEO on the achievement of the business goals by regular meetings to review headcount, current team capability, procedural changes, costs etc.Deal with complex queries from clients, advisers or colleagues in a timely and effective manner.

Gosforth

Overall responsibility for the scheduling and co-ordination of TSG chargeable resources, including the creation of projects from orders received via the sales team to final customer delivery. Working closely with managers and staff within the Project Office plus directors and team leads from all other silos in order to streamline project processes. Key Responsibilities: Manage the team of Scheduling Co-ordinators. Control, monitor and maximise the scheduling of all chargeable resources. Manage coordination of the project implementation process from initial sales order through to project completion. Advocate a bespoke project management methodology ‘GURU’ throughout the business. Liaise with the sales team for all orders, gathering information, obtaining a project handover from sales to provide and publish information such as forecasting and lead times for each silo.Manage SLA's for the creation of new CRM projects and subsequent initial customer contact. Analyse and report on project statistical data up to board level. Maintain internal systems to ensure one way processes are followed and ISO 9001 compliant. Manage and streamline the installation process from a scheduling perspective including liaising with implementation team members, consultants and project managers to arrange and confirm implementation dates with the customer.Ensure CRM project records are accurate and up-to-date. Develop and provide coaching and development for the Scheduling Co-ordinators. Regular reviews of PMO processes for accuracy and improvement. Manage escalations and provide a key point of contact for the Scheduling Co-ordinators.

Stockton On Tees

Worked closely with key service delivery managers to develop and deliver a new Customer Service Centre. Responsible for the operational link between customers, customer service representatives, tenancy officers, property services, PR & communications and finance control. This included fixed costs management, functional guidance of personnel, succession planning, training, people development.Key responsibilities:• The management, organisation and co-ordination of the day to day duties of the customer service team, ensuring delivery of the highest standards of services to customers• Ensured customer enquiries were dealt with by planning resources; assessed and developed the team effectively through ongoing coaching, training and motivation achieving required performance standards• Introduced differentiated service levels for the segmented customer basis and service customers according to measured standards• Influenced the commercial business model and how we interacted with customers on pro-active initiatives, based on the in-depth understanding and interpretation of customer and business expectations• Continuous Improvement - Established processes to continuously benchmark the department against best-in-class leaders• Established processes for external/internal feedback-loops in order to evidence strengths and weaknesses• Continuously implemented the Customer Service Vision with concrete actions• Identified and proposed ways to improve and simplify the repair and maintenance processes and thus identifying saving potentialsKey achievements:• The project planning and introduction of a new telephony system to the business successfully launched in March 2014• Worked with Tenants and Managers to develop, deliver, and manage systems to capture customer insight. • Monitored and reported on performance and customer insight.

Brewin Dolphin

Overall operational responsibility for the administration of client holdings transferred both into and out of the company. Responsible for controlling the financial budgets as well as handling all forecasting and capacity planning, to ensure that functional targets are achieved. Additionally selected to join the G3 Steering Group April 2012; this involved participating in weekly meetings to discuss and plan strategies and initiatives for Business Support following directives from executive level.• Led and directed a team of Account Managers and Administrators including all handling all HR recruitment and selection functions as well as delivering induction and additional training• Resource and Capacity planning (both short and long term), included handling daily workload planning along with key members of the department• Conducted staff appraisals and development reviews including developing career progression plans and performance improvement plans; also handled absence monitoring and management• Daily, weekly and monthly MI reporting up to Board level; also chaired the weekly executive level stock control meetings in addition to attending weekly conference calls with heads of office to discuss key business issues• Provided representation to the department during external and FCA auditsKey achievements:• Handled the planning and recruitment of 25 FTE to cover backfill for SME support of I.T. system migration• Designed and presented ‘Transfers Lifecycle’ and ‘Fees’ workshops for re-pricing attended by key stakeholders as part of a new initiative to improve communications between different areas of business; this included inviting key staff from various business areas to discuss processes and issues• Planned, organised and supported office relocations for Newcastle Business Support

Brewin Dolphin

Worked closely with a team of Directors to manage specific and unique projects involving System Migration. This also included a Client Pricing and Proposition programme involving analysis of 90,000 clients for the purpose of re-pricing and aligning the structure of their accountsKey responsibilities:• Led and managed the team, prioritising work, allocating appropriate resources and dealing with problems to ensure deliverables were met as well as ensuring the delivery of excellent customer service at all times• Managed the collation of information for the Weekly Business Support Project Plan (BSPP) and undertook analysis the for accuracy before releasing it to the Group Steering Committees• Prepared statistical data for the purpose of M.I. which was distributed to Key Stakeholders, Senior Management and Directors• Proposed direction relating to Key Management Initiatives to ensure that resourcing issues were resolved• Led and managed the team on a daily basis to identify and resolve issues including monitoring data validity and providing daily progress flagging potential risks and providing recommendations to minimise • Responsible for staff development and monitoring team performance through development reviews and performance plans; also delivered coaching to team members• Participated in the recruitment of new team colleagues and delivered induction training; also disseminated technical advice to the team to advise them on new Strategic InitiativesKey achievements:• Wrote and presented proposals that identified Key Indicators which enabled effective management of sickness absence and also a reconciliation of the process for client AML checks, achieving a further improvement in agreed service levels• Ensured that effective risk management processes were established within the team in accordance with the company’s risk appetite and control framework• Led the development and delivery of a productivity tracker to evaluate staff performance against KPI's

Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom

Worked closely with senior managers and directors to deliver a specific and unique project (the largest ever of its kind) that involved the movement and integration of 30 Million customer’s data from one IT platform to another following buy-out of HBOS. Personally tasked with handling data mapping to ensure correctness on new system; this involved command and control of several weekends and overnight shifts of test migration.Key responsibilities:• Led and directed a team of three team leaders and 50 colleagues as well as deputised for the Operations Director when required; also handled team recruitment• Controlled financial budgets, all forecasting and capacity planning, to ensure that future targets were achieved• Worked alongside senior project managers to develop a strong risk matrix as well as leading quarterly reviews• Coached and mentored Team Champions within the department whose focus highlighted major issues for the site, which included Risk, Continuous Improvement, Gemba, Lean and 5’s and TCF (Treating Customers Fairly)• Handled change management functions throughout all stages of the process; this included managing several disciplinary matters and working closely with union representatives to minimise any potential negative consequences• Conducted daily meetings to assist the effective communication of issues to the team and provided a daily commentary to senior management on daily operations and team performance against agreed goals

Darlington, United Kingdom

• Set up and managed own business which provided catering services for a wide range of Corporate / Council events nationwide (including marquee and silver service catering)• Handled all aspects including new business acquisition through sales and tendering as well as developing and maintaining business relationships• Operational management responsibilities spanned resource planning, supplier selection and ordering in addition to handling associated administration• Recruited and trained event teams as well as coordinating operations during events• Additionally ensured ongoing compliance of the business with food hygiene and safety regulations, including completing risk assessments and managing all relevant documentation• Managed finances and budget for the business, including budget management, cost control and financial forecasting; also monitored and managed stock levels

Darlington, United Kingdom

Led and directed 30 colleagues, split in two teams, covering call centre and correspondence administrative duties with a focus on resolving the most serious customer issues in order to retain business

Education record

Education record