REF: NP0015

OPERATIONAL IMPROVEMENT AND CHANGE MANAGER

Operations - Customer Operations – Operational Improvement

INFORMATION FOR APPLICANTS

REF: NP0015 OPERATIONAL IMPROVEMENT AND CHANGE MANAGER

Dear Candidate,

is delighted that you have expressed an interest in our positions based around Business Change. We seek to build upon our successes as a major innovator in our market place giving our customers new products and services. Our vision is to Turn our Customers into Fans driven by Growth through energy usage, Growth through energy services, Service Excellence and Differentiation through people. It is through our ‘Differentiation through People’ that we are seeking further Business Project professionals to join us on our exciting journey ahead.

npower is the retail business of RWE npower and is one of the fastest growing, largest suppliers of and gas in the UK. With over 6 million residential consumers and business customers such as Sainsburys and Boots we are well placed to become the customer's first choice for their energy needs through competitive pricing, innovative products and excellent levels of service. npower is consistently one of the UK's top three suppliers of gas and electricity. A company success story that we are inviting you to join!

You will be guaranteed to have challenges that are many and varied: Defining roadmaps for business needs, managing portfolios or individual business change projects, contributing to strategy, bringing change expertise, managing internal and external stakeholders. As a member of our team, you will help define the shape, develop and manage development of future business needs. You will help to become part of our evolving organisation to one that is becoming even more adapted to managing change. You will be key in involving additional teams in the planning and be a voice to communicate direction that generates excitement and ensures commitment. You will be a voice that will be listened to.

This is a fantastic opportunity to work with a challenger company that is seeking not to stand still but to expand much further, you are invited to become part of the journey that will see and indeed create, exciting change over the years ahead!

Linda Williams Susan Luke Service Development Manager Programme Services Manager Data Services Residential Change Team

Sarah Miles Paul Duesbury Service Development & Change Manager Data Assurance Manager Meter Plus Data Services

Mike Gilpin Operational Improvement Manager, Customer Operations REF: NP0015

About npower

We are the retail arm of RWE npower, a leading integrated UK energy supplier, part of the RWE Group. RWE npower operates and manages flexible, low-cost , oil and gas-fired power stations and are developing innovative energy-related technologies. RWE Power International offer specialist services covering every aspect of owning and operating a power plant, from construction, commissioning, operations and maintenance to eventual decommissioning. We are one of the UK's largest energy suppliers, serving residential consumers and business customers.

Company facts

npower at a glance

npower is one of the UK's top three energy suppliers and draws on 50 years experience in supplying electricity and gas. npower offers a range of essential home and business services including conveyancing, to around 6 million customers across the UK.

History

The npower business was formally created in October 1999 and launched in April 2000. It combines the former electricity and gas supply businesses of MEB, Calortex, MEB Powerline, National Power Energy Direct and Independent Energy, Electricity and and Gas. npower is part of a larger European group called RWE.

RWE Group

With 86,000 employees and annual net sales exceeding €42 billion, RWE ranks among Europe's largest industrial corporations. In implementing our multi-utility strategy, we concentrate on our four core businesses in the fields of electricity, gas, water and environmental services. We are one of the leading players in these industries in Germany, Great Britain, central Eastern Europe and the USA. Moreover, our activities give us a portfolio that enables stability just as much as it does growth. More than 20 million customers have opted for electricity and gas from RWE. Over 16 million households utilise our waste-disposal services. We also supply 70 million people worldwide with drinking water and waste water services.

Headcount, Head Offices and Management

npower employs around 8,500 people. The head office and residential teams are based in Oak House at Junction 6 of the M5 near Worcester. The vast majority of Retail and metering projects operate out of our Leeds based offices. In addition to Worcester and Leeds, there are additional offices throughout the UK.

Responsibility and obligations

As a major energy business, npower is active in the community and on national issues like energy efficiency and fuel poverty: REF: NP0015

The recruitment opportunities are focused around the following business areas:

Data Services: providing the coordination and management of metering information. Due to the pivotal role Data Services provides within npower it includes:

• Service Development - a core function that is responsible to drive and shape change initiatives across Data Services and associated functions. We drive the construction and make up of business change road maps spanning the next 2- 5 years and ultimately manage the initiatives to achieve our goals. We are made up of skilled Business Project professionals focusing on identifying change, managing multiple stakeholder needs and bringing our expertise to formulate, support and complete multiple projects and programmes of change.

• Data Assurance - Data is rightly seen as a critical asset within npower Retail. Data Assurance determines the effective management of data across a wide spectrum of processes. We are tasked to deliver best practice in data management, developing Retail wide data improvement initiatives; leading adoption of standards and techniques; looking across change initiatives spanning many functions to determine further opportunities to maximise our data value.

Meter Plus: provides a range of metering services to npower and other utility service providers in the gas, electricity industries. Our main operations are focused in the North of and the East Midlands.

• Meterplus Service development manages all improvements to enhance our service offering including handling more than 18 million meter reading visits and around 600,000 meter installation visits every year.

Customer Operations- employs more than 2,000 people in the residential business covering a range of core business activities including processing new customer contracts, registering customers with industry bodies, customer billing, revenue collection and processing of payments. The Operational Improvement team supports the management of these activities through planning, managing and delivering key operational improvement changes and initiatives. The team manages relationships with senior stakeholders in other businesses and functions and employs a range of problem solving, business planning and project management skills across a very dynamic environment.

• Residential Change Team is responsible for the governance and delivery of the business change portfolio across npowers' residential division; undertaking the project execution of 'big ticket' projects across npower. There is always a diverse range of projects underway; typically covering new product launches, sales and marketing initiatives, customer service improvements, regulatory changes and business process improvements as well as IT consolidations. REF: NP0015 JOB DESCRIPTION

Department: Operations - Customer Operations – Operational Improvement

Job Title: Operational Improvement and Change Manager

Salary: Competitive Salary

Bonus Opportunity: 10%

Notice Period: 3 Months

Reports to: Operational Development Manager

Base Location: Worcester (or agreed other npower site)

Job Holder: New Role

Date: 8 February 2007

Function of the Department

Customer Operations employs more than 2,000 people in the residential business covering a range of core business activities including processing new customer contracts, registering customers with industry bodies, customer billing, revenue collection and processing of payments. The Operational Improvement team supports the management of these activities through planning, managing and delivering key operational improvement changes and initiatives. The team manages relationships with senior stakeholders in other businesses and functions and employs a range of problem solving, business planning and project management skills across a very dynamic environment.

Purpose of the Role

The main purpose of this role is to plan, manage and deliver operational improvement initiatives and projects across Customer Operations and Service Delivery. This involves identifying, following through and managing opportunities and projects to improve overall service delivery performance that will have a direct impact on business plans up to £10M.

The role requires the management and co-ordination of senior stakeholders and managers across the full range of operations and service delivery functions throughout the npower residential business. There will also be a need to analyse and manage operational issues employing a range of problem solving and financial skills and techniques as well as managing Operational Improvement Support Analysts. REF: NP0015

Principal Accountabilities:

Performance Management Defining and analysing operational performance and identification of opportunities for improvement using appropriate measures and KPI’s across processes with values of up to £10M.

Analysis of Operational Issues Using problem solving skills and techniques to identify opportunities for operational improvement up to £10M.

Managing initiatives and projects Managing and supporting key operational initiatives and projects which would typically have a value of up to £10M. Application of appropriate project management methodologies and procedures. Prince 2 practitioner skills or similar capability.

Attending and supporting cross-functional meetings Managing across different functions and and initiatives departments to resolve cross-functional issues and initiatives. Managing project and operational teams / meetings containing professional staff to agree priorities, address issues and gain stakeholder engagement.

Key Performance Indicators

• Affecting and influencing key operational measures and KPI’s including cost to serve, cost to register, working capital, achievement of SBO’s, billing and collections • Delivery of benefits from projects and initiatives ranging up to £10M • Successful resolution of issues and problems which would typically have a value up to £10M.

Problem Solving/Complexity

• Advanced problem solving, financial and analysis skills to deal with complex operational issues, across functions with values up to £10M; • Ability to analyse complex cross-functional problems and identify opportunities for improvement within the overall context of the business and its service delivery functions; • Development of monitoring systems to identify and escalate variances and non-compliance; • Capable of managing / supervising a number of projects simultaneously using defined procedures and methodologies e.g. Prince 2; • Working to identify and implement continuous improvement initiatives through methodologies such as the npower (DRIVE) problem and process analysis toolkit; • Ability to manage cross functional project groups and meetings of senior managers.

Experience, Knowledge and Skills

• Ability to manage cross functional groups and teams of senior managers • Business or professional qualification to degree level • Networking and communication skills; able to deal with people at senior management level in the organisation • Effective management skills • Capable of managing projects using defined procedures and methodologies e.g. Prince 2 • Excellent interpersonal skills in influencing, negotiation and communication • Good knowledge of industry level business operations and systems knowledge REF: NP0015

• Excellent written, verbal communication and presentation skills • Able to analyse and work with complex statistical and financial data or information • Demonstrates integrity when working with colleagues and leads others by setting example of required behaviours • Assisting with skills development and delivery of change and development initiatives • Consultancy training / experience either internal / external • Experience of benefits realisation.

Resources

• Managing cross functional teams of managers for projects and initiatives ranging up to £10M • Managing resolution of issues and problems which would typically have a value up to £10M • Direct management and control of Operational Improvement staff.

Organisational Structure

REF: NP0015

Benefits

• Holiday 22-25 days (depending on role) per annum pro-rata plus 8 days statutory public holidays (increasing further with length of service)

• Final Salary, Defined Contribution and Stakeholder Pension Schemes available

• Car Allowance (depending on role) If a post is anticipated to require a level of travel that meet the 'job need' criteria a taxable cash allowance of £400 per calendar month is payable under the provisions of the current Company Car Allowance Policy. Current mileage rate is 14p/12p (petrol/diesel)

• (Depending on role) Performance related bonus scheme

• Private Healthcare, Dental Insurance and Health Cash Plan npower has negotiated discounted rates for Optional Private Healthcare, Dental Insurance and Health Cash Plan

• Occupational Health Service with annual eye vouchers and basic health assessments

• Powerdraw , Voluntary - £1 per entry up to a maximum of £8 per month. Prizes up to £5K

• Free Personal Accident Insurance (can be increased on a voluntary basis)

• npower has negotiated discounted rates for optional: Private Healthcare, Dental Insurance and Health Cash Plan (please note these can be withdrawn at any time)

• Sharesave Scheme Access to RWE Sharesave Scheme - next offer June 2007 at the discretion of the Company

• Company sick pay scheme

• Childcare vouchers scheme available through Leapfrog if you are the parent or legal guardian of a child under the age of 16

• Staff discounts e.g. discounted holidays; home-moving; home improvements/assistance

• Smile / Reward and Recognition schemes Smile points awarded to employees who have npower dual fuel accounts.

• Relocation expenses Payable in certain circumstances

• Catering; free beverages / subsidised canteen / snack machines

• Free Car parking