Sr Client Advocate I

Summary

• Companion Data Services provides leading IT solutions and managed services. We operate multiple geographically disperse data centers, including two of the nation’s largest healthcare data centers – both rated among the top five percent of data centers worldwide by MIPS.
• With three U.S. locations and decades of experience in government, commercial and education markets, our innovative solutions and reliable services allow clients to focus on core business and improve outcomes.
• Our data centers host applications process billions of transactions, supporting state, federal and commercial business.

Description

• Position Purpose:
• The Senior Client Advocate serves as the central point of contact for all Contract related issues, managing a constant flow of incoming requests and forward each request to appropriate support area. Responsible for establishing, building, and maintaining sustainable client relationships. Ensures appropriate client communication, client focus, and client control of priorities by coordinating with the client organization at strategic, tactical, and operational levels. Works with customer to identify opportunities for innovation, cost reduction, improved efficiencies and business challenges. Acts as a liaison between I/S and leadership for assigned business units. Ensures that the design and integration of proposed system, software, and hardware solutions leads to the development and growth of the business through effective use of technology. May participate in the training and development of staff. May assist department managers in the day-to-day operations of the department.

Location:

This position is full time and fully onsite in Columbia, South Carolina, State College, PA, or Dallas, TX. This position will have occasional on call/nights weekends based on any incidents that are reported by the client or Disaster Recovery.

Logistics:

Companion Data Services – one of BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina’s subsidiary companies.

This position is not eligible for sponsorship now or in the future.

What You’ll Do :

• •Technical Account Management --- Acts as an account manager responsible for the collection, analysis, review, documentation, and communication of customer needs and requirements. Ensures I/S solutions are tailored to the customer’s strategies by continually obtaining a complete understanding of the customer’s business needs from initial requirements to final implementation. Communicates quickly and accurately. Manages political and interpersonal issues. Fosters relationships between the customer and the I/S organization as well as analyzes problems, settles disputes, and negotiates with the customer within current contractual boundaries. Acts as specialists in client’s business and generalists in I/S products and services.
• •Steering Support --- Helps the customer define their business needs as specific changes and works with the customer on priority setting. Allows the customer to have major influence over I/S work priorities, therefore improving customer control over costs of products and services that I/S delivers. Assists in the definition of I/S work/audit requests and completes the packaging and delivery of I/S work/audit requests estimates and supporting documentation to customer. Negotiates final estimates, authorization, and start/completion dates for each request with customer. Provides tracking of work requests to allow better control of costs. Monitors work requests to ensure delivery of products and services based on customer’s priorities, estimates, and dates.
• •Systems/Services Monitoring --- Monitors service levels, reports actual versus agreed to service levels, and reviews service levels with the customer to determine opportunities for improvement. Establishes and reports metrics that measure I/S performance and satisfaction to customer. Reports Service Level Agreement (SLA) performance. Analyzes requested and existing SLAs for reasonableness and takes appropriate action. Reports overall customer status to the I/S Management. Provides strategic consultancy support to assigned customers in defining of designing business or technological processes. Responsible for quality oversight of the project work being done to ensure on-time delivery, within budget, with high quality, and to the customer specifications.
• •Internal Marketing --- Takes proactive marketing approach when communicating with customer in response to external requests for change or internal I/S product activity. Focuses on customer needs and makes customer aware of potential offerings that could meet those needs and/or add value. Designs products and services with common components that can be leveraged across many customers. Establishes pricing, obtains approval by LOB management, and packages/delivers to customer. Focuses the communication with the customer on features offered and works with I/S team to propose and build tailored, customer-focused solutions.
• •Product Improvement --- Research/discovers opportunities to employ the proper subsets of I/S and its products and services. Identifies the customer’s strategic business strategies and finds the right products and services to fill the customer’s need and uses internal Marketing to sell the solution. Research and tracks industry trends and maintains knowledge of new technologies in the area of expertise to better evaluate business unit service requests, requirements, and proposals. Summarizes the customer’s business strategies and communicates the customer’s needs to the I/S organization.

To Qualify for This Position, You’ll Need the Following :

Required Education:

Bachelor's

Degree Equivalency:

Associates degree plus an extra 2 years job related work experience for a total of 9 years of required work experience (see "required work experience")

OR

11 total years required work experience.

Required Work Experience:

7 years I/T related experience to include experience in client relationship management, I/S marketing, and process/product improvement.

Required Skills and Abilities:

• •Exceptional communications (verbal and written) skills with assertive yet customer-focused style.
• •Strong leadership, teamwork skills and the ability to communicate with all management levels.
• •Strong technical knowledge along with strong analytical and conceptual skills.
• •Understanding of information systems, business processes, and the key drivers and measures of success for the business unit and the organization.
• •Knowledge of the company’s business practices and direction along with the assigned business area’s products and processes.
• •Understanding/knowledge of technological trends used to bring solutions to business units.
• •Strong business analysis experience across multiple lines of business.
• •Strong LOB experience to include working closely with I/T in the development/implementation of systems.
• •Demonstrated competency in strategic thinking with strong abilities in client management and relationship building/management along with a service attitude.
• •Demonstrated competency in management of resources to meet goals and multiple projects.
• •Participation on multidiscipline, high-performance work teams.
• •Ability to negotiate terms and scope of work documents.
• •Ability to prepare and present formal presentations.
• •Effective problem solving and conflict resolution skills.

Required Software and Tools:

Microsoft Office.

We Prefer That You Have the Following :

• •Prior IT project management, IT Business Analysis, IT Account Management, IT Solutions, IT Operations or similar experience.
• •Knowledge of Commercial Healthcare Claims.

Our comprehensive benefits package includes the following:

We offer our employees great benefits and rewards. You will be eligible to participate in the benefits the first of the month following 28 days of employment.

• •Subsidized health plans, dental and vision coverage
• •401k retirement savings plan with company match
• •