Team Lead (Commercial Operations)

Role: Team Lead (Commercial Operations)

Industry: Insurance

MUST be Malaysian and Mandarin & Cantonese speaker

Role Purpose

We are seeking a dynamic and experienced Team Lead to oversee a team of Operations Specialists within our Commercial Insurance division. In this pivotal role, you will be the driving force behind our service delivery, ensuring our team consistently meets and exceeds Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and quality benchmarks for our onshore brokers and distribution partners. You will be a player-coach, responsible for the day-to-day performance management, coaching, and development of your team, while also acting as the first line of escalation for complex processing issues. Your leadership will be key to fostering a culture of high performance, accountability, and continuous improvement, directly contributing to the efficiency and success of our commercial operations.

Key Responsibilities

1. Service Delivery & Operational Excellence

• Workflow Management: Efficiently allocate daily work, manage priorities, and oversee the end-to-end workflow to guarantee timely and accurate policy administration.
• Performance Monitoring: Utilize dashboards and performance data to actively monitor individual and team productivity, conducting regular huddles and structured reviews to drive continuous improvement.
• Risk & Issue Management: Proactively identify operational risks, bottlenecks, and emerging issues. Escalate these to the Operations Manager with clear, actionable recommendations for mitigation.
• Business Continuity: Ensure robust cross-coverage and contingency plans are in place to maintain seamless service delivery during absences or unexpected surges in workload.

2. People Leadership & Talent Development

• Coaching & Mentorship: Lead by example, coaching your team members through regular one-on-one sessions (minimum weekly), providing constructive feedback, and executing targeted development plans to unlock their full potential.
• Performance Management: Drive a culture of accountability by managing individual performance, attendance, and conduct to the highest standards, while also recognizing and rewarding high achievers.
• Talent Acquisition & Onboarding: Collaborate with the Operations Manager on the hiring, onboarding, and training of new team members, ensuring they are set up for success from day one.
• Capability Building: Identify cross-training and upskilling opportunities to build a more resilient, flexible, and multi-skilled team capable of adapting to evolving business needs.

3. Stakeholder & Broker Servicing

• First Point of Escalation: Act as the primary escalation point for resolving complex processing queries from Operations Specialists, Underwriting teams, and our distribution partners.
• Service Excellence: Champion a service-first mindset, ensuring proactive, accurate, and empathetic communication with brokers to reduce errors, rework, and ensure a superior partner experience.
• Issue Resolution: Take ownership of escalated issues, driving them to swift and satisfactory resolution while reinforcing the team's commitment to responsiveness and accuracy.

4. Quality Assurance & Compliance

• Quality Oversight: Oversee all team output to ensure strict adherence to quality guidelines, internal controls, and regulatory requirements.
• Root Cause Analysis: Partner with Quality Analysts to analyze error trends, identify root causes, and implement effective remediation actions and training interventions.
• Knowledge Management: Ensure team members are always up-to-date with the latest process updates, policy changes, and compliance mandates.

5. Reporting & Continuous Improvement

• Performance Reporting: Deliver comprehensive weekly and monthly reports on team performance, capacity utilization, challenges, and emerging opportunities to senior management.
• Continuous Improvement: Champion a culture of innovation by using performance data and trend analysis to identify and implement at least two continuous improvement initiatives annually, with a focus on enhancing productivity and quality outcomes.
• Collaboration: Work closely with the Commercial Trainer and Quality Analysts to align on training gaps, share best practices, and drive standardisation across commercial operations.
• Strategic Contribution: Contribute to broader initiatives surrounding standardisation, automation, and best-practice sharing across the wider commercial operations function.

Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• SLA & TAT: Achievement of Service Level Agreement and Turnaround Time targets.
• Quality & Accuracy: Maintenance of high operational accuracy and quality scores.
• Team Productivity: Maximizing productivity per Full-Time Equivalent (FTE).
• Engagement & Retention: Fostering a positive environment reflected in high employee engagement and retention rates.
• Innovation: Successful delivery of continuous improvement initiatives.

Experience, Skills & Qualifications

• Experience:
• A minimum of 5 years experience in the insurance industry, with at least 2 years in a formal team leadership or supervisory capacity within an operations environment.
• Demonstrable experience in commercial insurance policy administration and broker servicing is essential.
• Skills & Competencies:
• Leadership & Coaching: Proven ability to coach, mentor, and develop a high-performing team with a focus on accountability and continuous growth.
• Organizational Skills: Excellent organizational, prioritization, and time-management skills with an acute attention to detail.
• Communication & Stakeholder Management: A clear and confident communicator with the ability to manage stakeholder expectations effectively and build strong relationships.
• Analytical Thinking: Experience using performance data and trend analysis to drive strategic improvements.
• Qualifications:
• Possession of relevant Commercial General Insurance certifications is highly desirable.
• Candidates without certifications will be fully supported with training and are expected to attain the required certification within a designated timeframe.
• Advantageous:
• Experience working in a shared-services or regional delivery environment is strongly preferred.