Customer Care Technical Manager - Luxury Watches

About the Role

A leading retail group specializing in luxury watches seeks an experienced Customer Care Technical Manager. This role commands full oversight of customer care and technical operations within the luxury watch segment, ensuring excellent service delivery and operational efficiency.

Key Responsibilities

• Direct end-to-end customer service and technical workshop operations to uphold superior customer satisfaction and operational quality.
• Manage customer care processes, ensuring issues, escalations, and service exceptions are swiftly and effectively resolved.
• Enforce adherence to company policies, brand standards, regulatory guidelines, and workshop protocols.
• Supervise repair workflows, allocations, turnaround targets, backlog handling, and SLA compliance.
• Oversee all technical workshop activities ensuring conformity with manufacturer quality benchmarks.
• Enhance repair procedures through adopting best practices tailored to the luxury watch industry.
• Organize daily workshop tasks by evaluating technician skills and workload distribution.
• Track and drive productivity, repair quality, efficiency, rework rates, and resource utilization, implementing improvements as necessary.
• Guarantee quality control checks on all serviced watches before customer delivery.
• Assess watchmaker skills and determine ongoing technical training needs.
• Advise Customer Care teams with technical expertise, aiding in complex customer communications.
• Maintain full operational status of workshop tools, testing devices, and calibration instruments.
• Monitor usage of spare parts and workshop consumables to optimize inventory.
• Lead investigations into recurring technical issues and enforce remedial/ preventive measures.
• Drive customer satisfaction programs through feedback analysis, service recovery strategies, and retention efforts.
• Handle VIP customer cases, complex disputes, and manage second-level escalations.
• Conduct audits and compliance checks, implementing corrective strategies.
• Lead workforce planning, scheduling, coaching, performance management, and succession plans.
• Provide operational insights via reports, KPIs, and management dashboards.
• Collaborate closely with retail operations, brand partners, regional offices, and suppliers as a key liaison.
• Authorize goodwill gestures, discounts, replacements, and exceptional service requests within set authorities.
• Drive operational enhancements, system upgrades, and process automation initiatives.
• Ensure health and safety compliance as well as excellent workshop housekeeping standards.

Required Knowledge and Skills

• Comprehensive understanding of luxury watch after-sales service operations and workshop management.
• In-depth theoretical and hands-on knowledge of Swiss watchmaking techniques.
• Expertise in repair protocols, quality assurance, warranty handling, and service recovery measures.
• Proficient with workshop tools, diagnostic equipment, and testing instruments.
• Experience using ERP and service management software.
• Advanced analytical abilities and proficiency with MS Office reporting tools.
• Strong leadership, workforce planning, and continuous improvement acumen.

Personal Qualities

• Effective leader with robust people management and coaching skills.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
• Highly organized with strong planning and execution capabilities.
• Customer-focused mindset paired with commercial insight.
• Exceptional problem-solving and decisive action-taking skills.
• Positive outlook and commitment to continual development.
• Resilience, sound judgment, and strong commercial awareness.
• Ability to handle multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment efficiently.

Experience and Education

• 10 to 15 years of experience in luxury watch after-sales service, customer care, or technical service center operations.
• Proven background managing a large-scale, process-oriented Swiss watch service center for prestigious brands.
• Extensive involvement in customer care operations, workshop leadership, technical support, and quality assurance.
• At least 8 years in a management position leading service professionals, supervisors, and watchmakers.
• Preferred credentials include Technical Certification (WOSTEP)/Diploma in Watchmaking and a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Management, Engineering, or related fields.