The British Council Job in Lagos for a Schools Examinations Operations Manager
The British Council
is the world’s leading cultural relations organization and creates
opportunities for people in the UK and worldwide to understand each
other, to work together and learn from one
another. We see this as
crucial to building secure, more prosperous and sustainable futures for
us all. We build trust and understanding between different countries
and cultures and develop strong international links that are of
benefit to people in Britain and the rest of the world.
We are recruiting to fill the below position of:
Job Title: Schools Examinations Operations Manager
Region: Sub Saharan Africa
Location: Lagos
Department: Exams, Nigeria
Pay Band: Country Appointed PB6
Reports to: Deputy Country Exams Manager
Purpose of Job
- To support Examination Services in Nigeria in delivering school examinations on behalf of UK examination boards.
- To provide a great branded customer expereince for our clients
and to maintain them at the highest professional standards as set out in
the British Council's QCA (Quality and Compliance Standards), project
outcomes, examinations boards and partner requirements.
Accountabilities, Responsibilities
(including people management and finance)
- The Schools Exams Manager is responsible for developing
relations with current and future clients in order to meet business
targets.
- Reliability: to ensure Schools examinations in Nigeria are delivered securely according to board requirements
- Impact: to achieve impact for the UK and the BC through providing access to quality UK qualifications
- To develop and manage the British Council Schools Network project so it remains a leader in the British Council global network
- Business growth: to grow the business and set country business strategy with CEM.
- Leadership: to manage and motivate the School Exams team to achieve challenging objectives
- Quality: to deliver a high standard of customer service to our
schools and their candidates. As measured by our own Exams Quality
Standards and the inspection visits from Cambridge International Exams.
- Financial control, monitoring and reporting: to manage the
School exams business to target by monitoring and reporting income and
costs on a monthly basis
Main Duties
Examination Delivery:
- Responsibility for the full cycle of operations of school
examinations in Nigeria. To ensure that Schools Examinations in Nigeria
are delivered to examination board, partners’ and QCA standards. To
assist in delivery at peak times.
- To keep a database of malpractice cases, to monitor these
nationally and investigate cases further where necessary. To work
towards minimising cases of suspected malpractice.
- To substitute for schools exams colleagues in Lagos.
- To identify processes for rationalisation, standardisation and automation as part of the GNOME project.
- To monitor and improve service delivery, and ensure best practice is delivered across Nigeria.
- Compliance: To manage regular inspection visits from
examination boards as well as carrying out regular inspections to
schools, monitoring security processes against standards set by the
examination board and QCA. Good record keeping is essential of all
visits made. To conduct spot checks where necessary.
- To respond to and implement appropriately recommendations from exam boards, partners and QCA reviewers.
- To identify areas for increased efficiency in examination delivery and prepare plans to implement these.
Venue Staff:
- To lead on the recruitment, training and monitoring team for schools exams venue staff for Nigeria.
- To ensure training of venue staff in Nigeria for schools
examinations is appropriate and takes into account feedback from
partners and quality checks.
- To carry out periodic performance monitoring of venue staff and retain documentation for these.
- To manage a national team of school inspectors.
Training Events & Educational Projects:
- To develop and manage a Nigeria-wide network of teacher and
schools co-ordinator development groups for current and future attached
centres. This is the BCSN.
- To plan teacher training and schools co-ordinator development events for attached and potential attached schools.
- To work with CEM/DCEM/GFS project managers in the planning and delivery of schools-specific events.
Business Development, Marketing & Customer Service:
- Planning for Growth: responsibility for increasing the number of
school examinations as outlined in the Marketing Action Plan (MAP);
working with CEM/DCEM on the Schools section of the MAP and planning
targets for future years. To develop appropriate marketing strategies
for Schools examinations.
- To issue a quarterly newsletter to all attached centres.
- To collect and analyse qualitative and quantitative marketing
data in order to contribute to the marketing action plan and support
business development.
- Seek and use customer feedback to improve service delivery
- To develop and manage a programme of visits to schools to build
relationships with existing and potential clients to meet business
targets.
Budget Management:
- To assist CEM and Head of Operations in planning activity and
then to assist on monitoring and managing income and expenditure to
agreed targets. To report on these targets monthly.
- To identify areas for improving value for money through better administrative processes and vendor market testing.
Finance:
- To oversee the preparation of Lagos Schools income reconciliations to agreed timescales.
- To ensure income is recorded correctly on the FABS system and in a timely manner.
Line Management:
- To line manage up to 6 members of staff according to essential HR standards.
General Management:
- To contribute to Nigeria Exams team objectives by attending and contributing to staff meetings.
- To substitute for other management team members in their absence.
Key Relationships
- Internal: Outreach Schools Officer (Lagos), Schools Officer
(Lagos), Country Exams Manager, Deputy Country Exams Manager, Centre
Manager Port Harcourt, Schools Officers in Port Harcourt and Abuja;
Regional Nigeria Sales Managers, Head of Operations, Country Director,
SBU leads; global schools quality project steering committee.
- External: CIE UK and SSA representatives, other UK school
examination boards, school principals, school examinations
co-ordinators, AISEN, ELTAN, APEN, BCSN members and steering committees,
and other professional teaching associations, venue staff, enquirers,
candidates, customer service staff, Regional Exams Manager;
Commissioners of Education, Head NUC.
Other important Features or Requirements of the Job
(e.g. travel, unsocial/evening hours, restrictions on employment etc):
Travel to administer/monitor examinations in centres outside of Lagos
may be required. Overnight stays and weekend working may be required.
Person Specification
Behaviours:
- Making it happen (More demanding)
- Being Accountable (More demanding)
- Connecting with others (More demanding) - Making regular opportunities to understand others better.
- Creating Shared Purpose (Essential)
- Working together (More demanding) - Establishing a genuinely common goal with others.
- Shaping the future (Essential)
- Look for ways in which we can do things better.
Assessment Stage:
Skills and Knowledge
- Business Management Level 1
- Analysing data and formulating marketing plans from these data.
- Presentation skills.
- Using Microsoft Office Word and Excel. Using web browsers.
- English Language proficiency to IELTS band 7.0 in all areas (or equivalent).
Assessment Stage:
- Short-listing and interview
Experience
Essential:
- Line management and/or leading a team. Training and coaching people.
- Monitoring service to quality standards and implementing improvements.
- Knowledge and experience of the education and qualification systems in the UK and Nigeria.
- Dealing with customers and enquiries in a service environment.
Desirable:
- Organising teacher training events.
- Three (3) year's work experience as an operations manager.
Assessment Stage:
- Short listing and Interview
Qualifications
Essential:
- A first Degree of equivalent in any field.
Desirable:
- A first Degree in an Education-related field or NCE.
Assessment Stage:
How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online
Click here to download job details MS Word
Click here to download BC Core Skills (pdf)
Application Deadline 6th September, 2015.
Start Date 2nd October, 2015.