Head: Non-Motor & Claims Operations

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Job Description

The Head: Non-Motor & Claims Operations is accountable for the strategic direction, leadership, governance, operational performance and customer experience outcomes across the Non-Motor Claims value chain. The role provides end-to-end accountability for customer claims operations, regional branch operations, technical claims disciplines and specialised claims functions, ensuring consistent delivery of operational excellence, financial performance, customer-centric outcomes, technical integrity and regulatory compliance.

The incumbent leads a large national claims operation and is responsible for enhancing claims quality and productivity, strengthening service delivery, reducing claims leakage, optimising capacity, and delivering fair and consistent outcomes across all customer and intermediary touchpoints.

Key Responsibilities

·       Develop and execute the Non-Motor & Claims Operations strategy in alignment with the Retail Claims strategy and business objectives.

·       Lead customer operations, regional claims operations, technical claims disciplines and specialised claims functions.

·       Deliver operational excellence, service performance, claims quality and consistent customer outcomes.

·       Provide oversight of technical standards, claims governance, delegated authorities and quality assurance.

·       Drive financial discipline, operational efficiency, claims leakage reduction and effective resource utilisation.

·       Lead customer experience, complaints management and sustainable service improvement.

·       Build leadership capability, organisational capacity and a high-performance culture.

·       Drive continuous improvement, innovation, digitisation and operational transformation.

Strategic Leadership

·       Define and implement the strategic direction for Non-Motor and Claims Operations.

·       Translate Retail Claims priorities into clear operational plans, performance measures and accountability frameworks.

·       Lead the evolution of the claims operating model to improve scalability, productivity, technical quality and customer outcomes.

·       Sponsor transformation, digitisation, automation, analytics and process optimisation initiatives.

·       Anticipate emerging claims trends, operational risks and capability requirements and implement appropriate responses.

·       Contribute to Retail Claims leadership forums and enterprise-wide strategic initiatives.

·       Promote a culture of customer centricity, innovation, collaboration and continuous improvement.

Claims Operations Management

·       Provide strategic and operational oversight of First Notification of Loss (FNOL), Contact Centre Operations and Autoglass.

·       Lead regional branch claims operations and ensure consistent processes, service standards and performance across regions.

·       Oversee Claims Relationship Consultants and ensure effective broker and intermediary claims support.

·       Direct Non-Motor Field Assessing, Non-Motor Merit Moderation and Building Moderation.

·       Provide leadership to Fast Track and Plumbing, Elite Claims and Alternative Business Solutions (ABS) Claims.

·       Establish and monitor operational standards, service levels, productivity measures and turnaround-time targets.

·       Drive workforce planning, capacity management, workload balancing and resource optimisation across branches and specialist units.

·       Ensure accurate, fair and consistent claims decisions through effective technical oversight and quality assurance.

·       Drive root-cause analysis and corrective actions for operational underperformance and recurring service failures.

Financial and Risk Management

·       Develop and manage operational budgets within agreed financial parameters.

·       Monitor claims cost drivers and implement targeted interventions to improve financial outcomes.

·       Drive claims leakage management through effective controls, technical disciplines and performance monitoring.

·       Ensure adherence to delegated authority and approval frameworks.

·       Identify, assess and mitigate operational, financial, conduct and reputational risks.

·       Optimise operating expenditure, resource deployment and productivity without compromising customer or technical outcomes.

·       Ensure appropriate controls are in place to minimise fraud, waste, errors and operational losses.

·       Provide accurate financial and risk reporting to relevant governance and leadership forums.

People Leadership

·       Lead, inspire and develop a geographically dispersed leadership and operational team.

·       Create a high-performance culture characterised by accountability, collaboration, customer focus and disciplined execution.

·       Drive workforce planning, succession planning and talent management for critical and scarce capabilities.

·       Coach and mentor leaders to strengthen technical, operational and people-management capability.

·       Ensure effective goal setting, performance management, recognition and development practices.

·       Promote employee engagement, inclusion, wellbeing and ethical conduct.

·       Build a sustainable leadership pipeline and future-fit claims capability.

Stakeholder Management

·       Build effective strategic relationships with internal and external stakeholders.

·       Partner with Underwriting, Distribution, Customer Experience, Finance, Risk, Compliance, Procurement, Technology and Human Capital.

·       Maintain constructive relationships with brokers, intermediaries, suppliers, service providers and assessing networks.

·       Represent Non-Motor and Claims Operations at management, governance and executive forums.

·       Influence cross-functional decisions affecting claims operations, customer outcomes, risk and profitability.

·       Communicate operational performance, risks, priorities and improvement plans clearly to senior stakeholders.

Governance, Compliance and Control

·       Ensure compliance with applicable legislation, regulatory requirements, internal policies and claims standards.

·       Maintain an effective governance, control and assurance framework across all areas of accountability.

·       Ensure consistent application of claims mandates, authorities, policy provisions and technical standards.

·       Embed quality assurance, monitoring and control processes throughout the claims value chain.

·       Oversee audit and assurance actions and ensure timely remediation of control weaknesses.

·       Promote Treating Customers Fairly principles and fair customer outcomes throughout the claims journey.

·       Ensure operational risks, incidents, breaches and control deficiencies are identified, escalated and addressed appropriately.

Customer Experience

·       Champion a customer-centric culture across all Non-Motor and Claims Operations functions.

·       Ensure claims are handled fairly, consistently, empathetically and within agreed service standards.

·       Drive improvements in customer satisfaction, customer advocacy and broker experience.

·       Reduce complaint volumes and recurrence through root-cause analysis and sustainable corrective actions.

·       Improve first-contact resolution, communication quality and claims turnaround times.

·       Use customer, intermediary and service-quality insights to prioritise operational improvements.

·       Ensure vulnerable customers and customers experiencing complex claims circumstances receive appropriate support.

Key Performance Indicators

·       Claims turnaround times, service-level achievement and operational productivity.

·       FNOL and Contact Centre accessibility, responsiveness and quality measures.

·       Regional branch performance, workload distribution and capacity utilisation.

·       Customer satisfaction, customer advocacy, complaints volumes and resolution performance.

·       Broker and intermediary service experience.

·       Claims leakage, indemnity cost management, expense management and budget performance.

·       Quality assurance, moderation accuracy, assessing quality and technical audit outcomes.

·       Compliance with delegated authorities, governance requirements and control standards.

·       Employee engagement, talent retention, succession readiness and leadership effectiveness.

·       Delivery of transformation, efficiency and continuous improvement commitments.

Minimum Requirements and Qualifications

·       Relevant Bachelor’s degree in Commerce, Business Management, Insurance, Risk Management, Law or a related discipline.

·       Relevant insurance industry qualification.

·       Advanced leadership and management capability appropriate to a Q-level head role.

·       Postgraduate qualification, MBA or equivalent is advantageous.

·       Management or executive leadership development programme is advantageous.

·       Relevant FAIS regulatory qualifications and RE5 are advantageous, subject to the regulatory requirements applicable to the role.

Experience Required

·       A minimum of 10 to 15 years’ experience in the short-term insurance industry, with substantial exposure to claims.

·       Extensive experience in Non-Motor Claims and large-scale claims operations.

·       Demonstrated senior leadership experience within a complex, geographically dispersed operational environment.

·       Proven experience in customer operations, contact centre management, branch operations and service delivery.

·       Strong experience in assessing, moderation, claims governance, leakage management and operational risk.

·       Demonstrated success in operational transformation, process optimisation and change leadership.

·       Experience managing significant operating budgets, performance targets and senior stakeholder relationships.

·       Experience presenting to executive, governance and assurance forums.

Knowledge and Skill

·       Deep knowledge of Non-Motor Claims, claims operations and the short-term insurance value chain.

·       Knowledge of FNOL, contact centre operations, branch claims operations, field assessing, merit moderation and building moderation.

·       Knowledge of customer experience, complaints management and service-quality practices.

·       Knowledge of claims governance, delegated authority, leakage management, quality assurance and control frameworks.

·       Strong strategic leadership, business acumen and financial management skills.

·       Advanced operational management, workforce planning and capacity-management capability.

·       Excellent judgement, decision-making, problem-solving and analytical skills.

·       Strong stakeholder engagement, influencing, negotiation and executive communication skills.

·       Demonstrated change leadership, innovation and continuous-improvement capability.

·       Ability to lead through complexity, manage competing priorities and deliver sustainable outcomes.

 

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Skills

Accounting, Action Planning, Claims Management, Current State Assessment, Data Compilation, Data Controls, Executing Plans, Financial Auditing, Insurance Claims Investigations, Policies & Procedures, Typology

Competencies

Builds Effective Teams

Business Insight

Collaborates

Communicates Effectively

Decision Quality

Financial Acumen

Instills Trust

Manages Complexity

Education

NQF Level 9 – Masters

Closing Date

11 October 2026 , 23:59

The appointment will be made from the designated group in line with the Employment Equity Plan of Old Mutual South Africa and the specific business unit in question.

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