Corporate Services Officer
Date: 09-Feb-2023
Location: Prague, European Union, CZ
Company: British Council
The British Council builds connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and other countries through arts and culture, education and the English language.
We work in two ways – directly with individuals to transform their lives, and with governments and partners to make a bigger difference for the longer term, creating benefit for millions of people all over the world. We help young people to gain the skills, confidence and connections they are looking for to realise their potential and to participate in strong and inclusive communities. We support them to learn English, to get a high-quality education and to gain internationally recognised qualifications. Our work in arts and culture stimulates creative expression and exchange and nurtures creative enterprise. We connect the best of the UK with the world and the best of the world with the UK.
These connections lead to an understanding of each other’s strengths and of the challenges and values that we share. This builds trust between people in the UK and other nations which endures even when official relations may be strained. We work on the ground in more than 100 countries. In 2019-20 we connected with 80 million people directly and with 791 million overall, including online and through our broadcasts and publications.
Role purpose
The Corporate Services Officer (CSO) co-ordinates the details of service delivery execution for corporate contracts and leads on financial management and customer care duties towards our corporate clients from the B2B, B2G and B2I sectors.
The postholder is involved throughout the customer journey from the initial signing of contract through the delivery stages and finishing with the organisation of end of course customer reports and feedback. This is then followed by further engagement with the client and the cluster Sales Account Manager on future agreements and details of repeat and/or new business.
Liaising effectively with Operations and Customer Service teams locally and regionally, the CSO will engage frequently with contracted corporate clients to ensure delivery standards are maintained and the financial management of each contract is carried out compliantly and to agreed deadlines.
The role is a critical one as the postholder leads the back-end processes once sales opportunities have been closed with our growing number of corporate clients.
Role context
Over 70% of our Adult students taking English training with the British Council are professional workers aged 25-39. The need to improve language levels, demonstrate workplace skills in English and obtain qualifications remains a priority for public and private sector employees globally. The British Council English division offers face to face, online and blended solutions to companies and organisations across our global network to help meet these needs.
The corporate sector has been one of the more resilient sectors in terms of continued demand for training since the onset of the pandemic. To better meet this demand, we have broadened our range of quality products and now provide a mix of solutions to clients in keeping with the changing demands of young professional workers and their employers.
Alongside the new portfolio of products, we are investing in prospecting tools and increased levels of targeted B2B marketing campaigns to improve levels of lead generation for our Sales and Account managers to oversee and close.
The CSO role will work closely with the other key corporate services related posts including the cluster Sales and Account Manager, and the Business Development Executive. There will also be a need for regular interaction with Teaching Operations colleagues and members of the Academic and Customer Management teams to ensure high standards of delivery.
Main accountabilities
Finance and Resource management
Invoices clients in line with financial compliance
Manages corporate payments and monitors debt as part of debt control team in country/cluster
Organises legal documentation and keeps accurate records of government support schemes and funding organisation scholarships linked to corporate contracts
Runs essential SAP and TCMS reports on agreed financial timetable to support monitoring of corporate income and maintenance of audit trail
Customer Support
Works closely with Customer Management team in the registering and onboarding of customers (including B2B placement/testing)
Liaises with Customer Management team to manage changes/amendments to B2B and B2B2C class lists
Informs Delivery team of concerns flagged by clients to help make improvements in customer experience
Service and product delivery support
Leads on process for end of course reports and certificates for B2B clients –liaising effectively with Ops and Delivery teams, and ensures all deadlines met
Runs feedback/ Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system and collates results for presentation to client and sales colleagues
Relationship and Stakeholder management
Listens to client needs and requests regarding future cohorts and new courses
Works closely with Sales & Account Manager to provide accurate and timely data to the client as well as building opportunities for repeat and new business
Managing self and others
Tasks and coordinates others (e.g. internal colleagues or external contractors/suppliers) to complete time-limited, straightforward activities, within established procedures, to ensure efficient delivery of services. Monitors task completion to agreed quality and time standards
Further information
Pay band: PB4/H Local contract
Location: Czech Republic
Contract type: 1 year fixed term contract
Requirements: Candidates must have the right to work in the country they are based
Closing date: Tuesday 23rd February 2023 (23:59 CET Time)
A connected and trusted UK in a more connected and trusted world.
Equality , Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Statement
The British Council is committed to policies and practices of equality, diversity and inclusion across everything we do. We support all staff to make sure their behaviour is consistent with this commitment. We want to address under representation and encourage applicants from under-represented groups, in particular, but not exclusively, on grounds of ethnicity and disability. All disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria are guaranteed an interview and we have Disability Confident Employer Status. We welcome discussions about specific requirements or adjustments to enable participation and engagement in our work and activities.
The British Council is committed to safeguarding children, young people and adults who we work with.
We believe that all children and adults everywhere in the world deserve to live in safe environments and have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse, maltreatment and exploitation as set out in article 19, UNCRC (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child) 1989.
Appointment to positions where there is direct involvement with vulnerable groups will be dependent on thorough checks being completed; these will include qualification checks, reference checks, identity & criminal record checks in line with legal requirements and with the British Council’s Safeguarding policies for Adults and Children.
If you have any problems with your application please email [email protected]
Please note: Applications to this role can only be considered when made through the Apply section of our careers website. Our ‘ASK HR’ email is only to be used in case of a technical issue encountered when applying through the careers website. Emails with supporting statements and CV/Resumes sent to this email address will not be reviewed and will be deleted.