lululemon Looking for Manager, GEC | Vancouver, BC at Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Full Time

Who we are

lululemon is a yoga-inspired technical apparel company up to big things. The practice and philosophy of yoga informs our overall purpose to elevate the world through the power of practice. We are proud to be a growing global company with locations across North America, Australia and New Zealand, Europe, and Asia. We owe our success to our innovative product, our emphasis on our stores, our commitment to our people, and the incredible connections we get to make in every community we are in.

About This Team

The Guest Education Centre (GEC) supports our growing North American e-commerce business with a growing work-from-home program. By phone, email, text and live chat, we answer questions and collect feedback on just about everything under the lululemon sun. We develop authentic connections, solve problems, and find creative solutions to create lifelong guests. We work in a fast-paced environment that emphasizes goal setting, health and fitness, community involvement and personal development through our core values. We also have a lot of fun!

The Manager, Guest Support (Tier 2) will support the Senior Manager, Guest Support in driving the long-term strategy and daily business of the Guest Support Post Purchase team. The Manager directly oversees the Tier 2 Operation Manager and Floor Support Team Lead in the day-to day operations and projects. The Guest Support Manager (Tier 2) key responsibilities to ensure efficient operations and guest support within their designated area. Their role involves overseeing a team consisting of Operation Manager, Team Leads and support Educators and addressing escalated guest issues that require more advanced knowledge and problem-solving capabilities.

A Day In The Life

Our Guest Support (Tier 2) Manager lead the operations of lululemon’s tier 2 and support contact centre and work from home teams and are responsible for leading execution of a world-class guest and employee experience. The Manager effectively drives for results through others; influencing partners for better guest experience, developing future leaders in the world, building a culture that stands for greatness and challenges the status quo. By fulfilling these mandates and key responsibilities, Tier 2 Managers contribute to the efficient resolution of complex customer issues, effective team management, continuous improvement, and overall guest satisfaction in the contact center environment.

• Leads and coaches through the company vision, mission, and core values; instilling the culture in all aspects of the GEC.
• Provides consistent leadership coaching and feedback to their direct reports, developing their skills to achieve strong business results.
• Successfully leads recruiting and training of a diverse leadership team who delivers world-class guest experience and maintains a strong leadership pipeline throughout the year.
• Collaborates with the Guest Support management team to create long-term strategies, annual operating plans, and financial cases.
• Guest Issue Resolution: The Tier 2 Manager is responsible for handling escalated guest issues that cannot be resolved at Tier 1. They should have in-depth knowledge of the products, services, and processes to identify root causes and provide effective solutions to guest problems. This involves analyzing complex cases, coordinating with other departments if needed, and ensuring timely and satisfactory resolution.
• Team Management: The Tier 2 Manager is accountable for managing and leading their team of Tier 2 OPM and Team Leads. This includes providing guidance, support, and coaching, conducting performance evaluations, and fostering a positive and collaborative team environment. They should also ensure that educators have the necessary resources, training, and tools to effectively handle guest issues.
• Complex Escalated Case Expertise: Tier 2 Managers need to possess advanced knowledge related to the contact center’s products, services, and systems. They should stay updated on any changes or updates, ensuring that their team is well-informed and capable of addressing complex challenges. This involves conducting regular training sessions, staying informed about industry trends, and fostering a culture of continuous learning within the team.
• Escalation Point: The Tier 2 Manager acts as an escalation point for both guests and Tier 1 educators, retail and executive teams. They should be accessible to address complex guest inquiries or issues that require higher-level intervention. Additionally, they collaborate with Tier 1, retail and cross functional teams to provide guidance and support, ensuring smooth information flow and effective case management.
• Process Improvement: Tier 2 Managers play a crucial role in identifying process gaps, inefficiencies, and areas for improvement within their domain. They should proactively suggest enhancements to existing processes, tools, or systems to optimize operations and enhance guest satisfaction. They collaborate with cross-functional teams to implement process improvements and share best practices.
• Reporting and Analytics: The Tier 2 Manager is responsible for monitoring and analyzing performance metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) within their team. They generate reports, track trends, and identify opportunities for performance improvement. This involves conducting regular performance reviews, setting goals, and implementing strategies to achieve targets.
• Floor Support Management: Responsible for supporting the Floor Support Program and Team in a contact center is to ensure the smooth operation and efficient functioning of the contact center floor. The team is responsible for providing immediate support, guidance, and supervision to the contact center educator experts during their shifts. The Floor Support Team serves as a critical link between the frontline educators and the Tier 1 OPM and TL teams, ensuring effective communication, adherence to operational standards, and a positive guest experience. The Floor Support Team is responsible for providing ongoing support and guidance to contact center educators. They assist educators in addressing any questions or concerns that arise during their shifts.
• Communicates effectively both with senior leadership and with Educators, partners seamlessly with Guest Support teams around North America, represents their team in cross-functional meetings.

Key Responsibilities

• Represent the Contact Centre in discussions, teams and committees involving other cross-functional and external groups on matters related to business process documentation and improvement
• Obtain alignment on business problem, recommendations with business trade-offs, prioritize, and plan to tackle with cross-functional partners
• Research, study and analyse operational and performance data to identify trends and opportunities for improvement to positively impact the guest experience
• Develop project plans, communicate changes and provide debriefs to impact guest support
• Explore areas of guest pain points and internal inefficiencies, backup with data, analytics and guest insights Think beyond the day to day, taking a long-term, big-picture view of guest support
• Foster a sense of urgency in teams for reaching goals and meeting deadlines
• Identify, document and validate current state processes and work with the business and stakeholders to design the desired future state
• Produce executive reports on assigned project to keep management apprised of project status, major issues, scope changes, and milestone achievements or misses
• Under the direction of your manager, perform/complete other additional projects, duties, and assignment as required and/or by request.

Qualifications

• Undergraduate degree preferred
• 5-8 years of progressive leadership experience working in an operations-based environment
• Relevant ecommerce and retail experience required, contact centre leadership experience a plus
• Demonstrated experience analyzing complex data sets and translating them to actionable solutions
• Experience building budgets and managing P&L statements

Must Haves

• Passion for customer service and delivering an exceptional experience for guests.
• Acknowledges the presence of choice in every moment and takes personal responsibility for their life.
• Possesses an entrepreneurial spirit and continuously innovates to achieve great results.
• Communicates with honesty and kindness, and creates the space for others to do the same.
• Leads with courage, knowing the possibility of greatness is bigger than the fear of failure.
• Fosters connection by putting people first and building trusting relationships.
• Integrates fun and joy as a way of being and working, aka doesn’t take themselves too seriously.