Postmaster Non-Executive Director - City of London, Greater London, United Kingdom - Post Office Ltd

Description

Background

With over 11,500 branches, Post Office has the biggest retail network in the UK. 99.7% of the population live within three miles of a Post Office and 4,000 branches are open seven days a week. It is looking to modernise and transform its operations to keep pace with changing consumer preferences. Post Office's public ownership is founded on its social purpose and the requirement to maintain its network of branches. Post Office Limited is wholly owned by the Secretary of State for the Department of Business and Trade who holds a special share in the Company. The majority of its branches are run in partnership with retail partners on a franchise basis. It plays a key role in communities, often as a central hub for towns and villages, supporting local economies and small businesses and providing access to essential services and a meaningful source of social interaction, to more vulnerable members of society. Post Office offers a vast range of products and services, but it is simplifying its customer proposition with a focus on its cash and banking; mails and parcels; foreign exchange; and bill payment services. Post Office plays a key role on the high street, with research indicating that visits to the Post Office help drive another 400 million visitors to other shops, restaurants and local businesses. This adds up to an estimated £1.1 billion in additional revenue for High Street businesses. Post Office is working to resolve past failures and fundamentally reform its culture, practices and operating procedures, and forge an open and transparent relationship with the thousands of Postmasters providing customers with vital services in the UK's communities. Transformation is critical to the Post Office's future. You will join us at the outset of a hugely ambitious challenge to reshape our services in the face of rapid and fundamental shifts in consumer and business behaviour. We are under no illusions on the scale of this challenge, but see huge opportunity to evolve built on the foundation of our rich history. It is the only retailer with a presence in each nation and every community across the UK and it needs to adapt its branch network to reflect the way people live their lives today. Prioritising strong and trusting relationships with all Postmasters will be critical to this. Post Office is growing its network, making sure it has the right branches in the right locations nationwide. It is innovating in Mails, working with more carriers and delivering more of what customers want and small businesses need. The Post Office's Everyday Banking services in partnership with over 30 banks, building societies and credit unions mean that 99% of customers can access their High Street bank account securely and conveniently over the counter at their local Post Office for cash withdrawals, deposits and balance enquiries. Post Office is also committed to safeguarding 1,400 free-to-use ATMs across the UK, helping anyone who wants cash to get it which ever way is most convenient. Post Office will secure free, convenient and reliable access to cash in every community. It will build commercial partnerships to launch new products and services in branches and online. It will invest in new branch technology for Postmasters and online for their customers. And it will bring value for the Government Shareholder with a successful, profitable and efficient business. The Board The Post Office Board currently consists of the Chair, five independent Non-Executive Directors, two Postmaster representative Non-Executive Directors, a Shareholder appointed Non-Executive Director, a Chief Executive Officer and a Chief Finance Officer. In June 2021 Post Office Limited appointed two Non-Executive Directors from its Postmaster community for the first time. These appointments are part of our drive to involve Postmasters directly in the decision-making process. The Board now wishes to appoint successors for these two roles, as the current incumbents near the end of their terms. The Role The primary role of the Non-Executive Directors is to:

• Demonstrate commitment to Post Office's role as a commercial business that delivers a social purpose and is seeking to build a modern franchise in partnership with its Postmasters and multiple partners
• Participate in the development of Post Office's strategy and oversee its implementation
• Contribute positively to the Board's discussions and decision-making, applying intellectual rigour, considering the impact of decisions on different stakeholders and providing constructive challenge and support to management
• Bring knowledge, experience and expertise to shape how the business develops, demonstrating commercial acumen and a good understanding of the regulatory nature of the business.
• Provide oversight of and receive assurance on the operation of the business, its compliance with law and regulation, risk management and internal controls
• Provide leadership on the values and culture the company seeks to promote, including its engagement with Postmasters, clients, customers, employees, suppliers and shareholder
• Monitor the performance of management in meeting agreed targets and objectives
• Demonstrate the high standards of integrity and behaviour expected of a director of a government owned company (

Non-Executive Directors have legal duties and an overview of these can be found at Appendix 2 with a link to The Code of Conduct for Board Members of Public Bodies which sets out the standard of conduct required and issues that need to be considered when considering applying for the role. The Candidate The eligibility criteria for this role is for the candidate to be a permanent contracted current postmaster with at least 3 years of continuous service and high compliance with Post Office's standards of operational excellence. We want to bring direct retail knowledge, entrepreneurial vision and practical experience of running a Post Office to assist the Board's decision-making and setting Post Office's strategic priorities. This experience should be supported by personal competencies, qualities and beliefs, and we would highlight the following:

• Commitment to the role played by the Post Office and insight into the development of its future role
• Understanding of the retail market and trends with a commercially focused outlook and commitment to our social purpose
• Customer focus - understanding the importance of the customer and what excellent customer service is
• Deep knowledge of Post Office products and the strategy required to develop branches
• Strong analytical skills, excellent communication skills
• Resilience, humour, and enthusiasm, supporting the Post Office values of trust, reliability and customer focus
• Ability to listen to, and influence, key stakeholders, sometimes within challenging environments and experience of engaging with other Postmasters across the network
• Knowledge and awareness of key financial targets, financial risks and opportunities
• Demonstrable leadership qualities and/or people management experience

Non-executive experience is not a pre-requisite and a comprehensive induction programme will be provided. We want prospective candidates to play a full role on the Board and this will require being an effective team member, understanding the role of a Non-Executive Director, including taking decisions in the best interests of the company, supporting collective decision-making and high standards of conduct. By law directors must promote the success of the company as a whole and cannot represent just a sub- set of the Company. We are therefore not asking Postmaster Non-Executive Directors to be representatives for all Postmasters but we are asking them to bring their experience, wisdom and practical knowledge to help us in transforming Post Office into a modern franchise business that works in the interests of all its stakeholders. The Post Office is committed to having a well-rounded board that reflects society. We encourage candidates who can share varied perspectives that will bring insights and experiences to the board, so we are best able to meet the changing needs of our customers, Post Masters and shareholder. At Post Office our commitment to embracing diversity extends beyond just words, we actively foster an inclusive workplace culture that values the unique perspectives and contributions from all colleagues. We believe that Equity, Diversity and Inclusion is not only important but essential to our success and growth; our priority is building a business that represents the communities we serve across the nation. We are an equal opportunity employer and we embrace our employees differences; Post Office wants people from all walks of life working here and we welcome your application. Time Commitment & Fees There are eight or nine scheduled Board meetings a year with an estimated time commitment of around two days per month, these are conducted in person at our registered address. However, additional Board meetings may be convened and directors must devote such time as is necessary for the proper performance of their directors' duties. The fee rate is £35,000 per annum. Board dates for 2024 are listed in Appendix 3. Please email for copies of the Appendix. #J-18808-Ljbffr