Operations Manager

Posted on: 2006-05-06

Paula Gantar 131 Church Rd. #10F North Wales, PA 19454 215.661.0384 (Home) Objective To secure a managerial or support position to utilize leadership, customer-driven excellence, recruiting, training, bank operations, procedures management, people management, and call center management experience contributing to organizational profitability and effectiveness. Summary of Qualifications/Skills Managing for Results Coaching and Developing Others Communicating Effectively Building Partnerships Making Sound Business Decisions/Managing Risk Site Certification Demonstrating Integrity and Personal Excellence Call Center Management/Inbound Sales Focusing on the Customer Merger Integration Developing High Performance Teams Disaster Recovery Planning Professional Experience Wachovia Bank, N.A., Philadelphia, PA 4-2003 to Present Operations Services Manager II, /Deposit, Control, and Loss Operations/ Account Services/ Legal Order Processing Department • Manages the bank’s legal order processing department, including training, customer service, hiring, database operations, and risk assessment in centralized unit. • Providing training for associates and develops training guides. • Issue periodic status reports to executive management. • Participating in selecting and hiring of staff utilizing behavioral interviewing techniques. • Conducts staff meetings to review operational problems and changes to banking regulations affecting bank operations. • Merger integration to centralized unit. • Managing security procedures in department. • Handling customer questions and complaints regarding operational issues and coordinates investigations following a reported loss. • Develops and implements strategies to identify potential losses and follow-up implementation • Directs banking call center, work scheduling, acts as customer service center for assisting internal and external customers-identifies service problems and recommends solutions. • Monitors internal programs to ensure compliance with applicable Federal and State laws and regulations and legal guidelines are met. • Provides reports on compliance. Recommends changes in bank policy to meet compliance regulations. • Site Certification and analysis of daily operations. • Scheduling audits and reports results to Risk Management. • Communicates effectively to employees any changes in regulations affecting their conduct on the job. • Coordinating the department’s disaster recovery plan. • Maintain unit budget and unit cost to ensure processing integrity and Re-engineering of database. • Manages Human Resources policies and procedures along with performance and career development for staff of 21 associates. • Currently enrolled in Managing at Wachovia II Leadership Development curriculum. Commerce Bank, N.A., Cherry Hill, NJ 2002 Assistant Branch Manager/Operations Supervise operations and staff to ensure quality customer service, customer retention, service process management, employee development, retention, and expense control. Principle responsibilities include: Leading the delivery in retail sales and service to customers, supervise operations associated with the customer service representatives and teller staff and perform branch manager responsibilities as needed. Other responsibilities including , coordinate staffing and work schedules, conduct branch orientation for all new hired staff, train and coach a successful team through staff development and positive reinforcement, complete performance reviews and provide development counseling, interview loan applicants and send required documentation to the lender, maintain supplies, logbooks, safe deposit box files and Travelers Checks, lead branch meetings, maintain the Bank Secrecy Act compliance reporting standards, and coordinate the completion of monthly reports and perform monthly audits. BISYS Retirement Services, Dresher, PA 2001- 2002 401 (k) Account Executive/Client Services Responsible for ensuring overall client satisfaction and retention of small market partners, brokers and clients. Specific duties included: • Directly responsible for the administration of 115 small to mid-sized plans with less than $3 million in total assets. • Consistently provide a high level of customer service while communicating with clients and partners to address all client service issues and provide necessary research, problem solving and resolution support • Successfully monitor and follow-up on assigned items, including seeing problems through to resolution and closure with customers. • Determine appropriate action for resolution of client issues and implement as appropriate. • Provide clear and concise communication regarding procedures and time frame to clients related to complex questions that require further research and analysis. • Communicate proper service expectations to clients and partners. • Achieve service level goals identified by each financial partner. • Manage day to day schedule according to client needs. • Ensure the commitments to clients are met by proactively reviewing the status of plans periodic activity such as ACD/ACT testing, statements, and RMD’s. • Provide feedback/solutions to management to minimize risk and improve process. • Responsible for proactive communication with the client and partners regarding all components of service delivery. Solicit and share feedback. • Apply industry knowledge to all facets of retirement operations and service. Fleet Boston Corp. Scranton, PA 1994-2000 Customer Service Unit Manager/Officer • Tripled team sales productivity in eight months. Generated new accounts over the telephone including checking, savings, IRA’s, certificates of deposit, personal and mortgage loans. • Utilized innovative recruiting practices to create quality teams of customer service representatives that responded to needs of both internal and external customers. As a result the team consistently out-performed competitors in areas of customer service and sales measured by an independent customer service study for 4 consecutive quarters. • Researched customer problems interacting daily with District, Regional, and General Managers regarding daily inquiries. • Managed a staff of 18 employees at customer service level in a start-up call center to consistently reach 98% productivity and exceed department averages. • Responsible for personal growth and development of customer service representatives to Business Banking, ATM Claims, Preferred Queue and Solutions Departments in a call center of 500 representatives. • Created quality control standards, which enhanced service and significantly reduced errors in work forwarded to other units. • Successfully implemented career development within unit coupled with teambuilding, which led to a turnover percentage of 20%, well below the call center customer service industry average and overtime expense was also eliminated. • Successfully coached rapidly changing department that was facing re-designed work processes without interruption or decrease in quality. • Advised training department with personnel needs from recruiting activities to training needs. Conducted team and one-on-one training on a continuous basis. • Actively administered daily Human Resources functions of compensation benefit, personnel management, employee relations, and performance evaluations. Additional Experience 1977-1994 Nabisco Foods Group, Inc., Field Sales Support Coordinator/Data Center Help Desk Prudential Asset Management Co., Distributions Group Leader/Defined Contributions Chestnut Hill National Bank, Operations Officer/Proof and Transit Department Pioneer American Bank, Loan Administration and Review/Customer Service/Proof/Bookkeeping Departments Education B.A. Wilkes College, Wilkes-Barre, PA 1984 A.A. Keystone Jr. College, La Plume, PA 1981 Coursework Various company sponsored courses including: Qualified Retirement Plans, Management Principles, Management Training and Development, Diversity, Behavioral Interviewing, Human Resources Policies and Procedures, Building Effective Teams, Facilitator Training, Individual Retirement Accounts, Customer Service, Principles of Banking, Money and Banking, Mortgages Appraisals, Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Lotus Notes, Managing Change, Effective Business Writing, Coaching, Time Management, Valuing the Employee, Process Improvement, Effective Presentations, and Leadership Development Program II.