Senior Debt Operations Manager

Job summary

Do you have the leadership skills to drive high-performing financial operations teams?

Can you drive innovation and process improvements across financial operations?

Then we have a role just for you!

Reporting to the Head of Debt Management, the Senior Debt Operations Manager leads the operational delivery of Companies House financial penalty schemes. The role owns performance of the third-party debt contract, drives data-led improvements to debt strategy and works closely with Enforcement, Finance and cross-government partners to ensure effective, value-for-money debt recovery.

The debt management function is part of the Core Finance team within the Finance and Commercial directorate. Working closely with our Finance Systems and Data team and the Compliance and Enforcement team to ensure that the penalty schemes are effectively managed operationally. The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act (2023) will reform the role of Companies House and improve transparency over UK companies and other legal entities. The Act introduces the biggest changes to Companies House since corporate registrations were established in 1844 and enables us to play a much stronger role in making the UK a great place to do business. This has resulted in Companies House using its powers to issue new financial penalties.

Companies House offers a flexible and welcoming culture that promotes a healthy work life balance as well as a proactive approach to wellbeing that allows us to be our best at work. We recognise that people are the key to our success so offer a fantastic benefits package including flexible working with no core hours, 30 days annual leave, 8 bank holidays and 1 privilege day as well as enrolment into the Civil Service Pension scheme with a contribution rate averaging 28%.

Find out more about what a great place Companies House is to work

Please note - Companies House cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign.

Job description

As Senior Debt Collections Manager, you will lead the financial operations of the Companies House penalty scheme, ensuring efficient, compliant, and high-performing debt collection processes. This role combines strategic oversight with hands-on leadership—managing supplier performance, driving continuous improvement, and maintaining robust internal controls. You’ll work closely with internal teams, commercial partners, and government bodies, influencing operational decisions and shaping debt strategy to deliver optimum outcomes.

In this role you will:

• Lead operational delivery of Companies House financial penalty schemes

Provides direct leadership to the penalty scheme operations team, setting clear direction, supporting high performance and ensuring consistently high standards of service delivery across all debt collection activity.

• Own third-party debt collection contract performance

Lead the management of the external debt collection contract, using management information (MI) and performance data to monitor, challenge and optimise supplier delivery. Regularly review KPIs to ensure value for money and strong outcomes for Companies House.

• Stakeholder engagement and collaboration

Build and maintain strong relationships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders. Advise on, and implement, the operational impacts of business change and legislative developments. Key stakeholders include Finance Systems and Data, Compliance and Enforcement teams, operational colleagues, commercial suppliers and cross-government partners.

• Risk Management and Internal Controls

Implement, monitor and periodically review internal controls to ensure debt collection activity is effective, compliant and well-governed. Support the ongoing review and development of the Companies House Debt Strategy.

• Drive Continuous improvement

Identify opportunities to improve processes, controls and ways of working. Lead and embed improvements that enhance efficiency, effectiveness and customer outcomes across the debt management lifecycle.

• Cross-government engagement

Represent Companies House in cross-government debt forums and working groups, sharing best practice and ensuring alignment with Government Debt Functional Standards.

Person specification

We’re looking for the following skills and experience which will be assessed at sift and interview stage.

• Demonstrated understanding of the debt recovery process with significant experience gained in a senior operational role in private or public sector.
• A strong stakeholder manager you will have the ability to build and establish positive relationships with a range of stakeholders to support the delivery of an effective debt management strategy.
• Good interpersonal skills and communication skills.
• Desirable for the individual to be experienced in managing the effectiveness of a contract with experience of establishing and reviewing KPI’s to give optimum outcomes for CH.
• This role may particularly appeal to those with previous exposure to accountancy environments or studies

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Leadership
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Making Effective Decisions

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £46,744, Companies House contributes £13,541 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

We believe that our success is driven by the well-being and satisfaction of our team members at all levels of the organisation. At Companies House we’re committed to providing a comprehensive benefits package that goes beyond the ordinary, ensuring your career journey with us is not only fulfilling, but also rewarding. We pride ourselves on offering a quality work-life balance with our employee wellbeing being central to our working practices.

Head to Our benefits - Working for us - Recruitment (companieshouse.gov.uk) to find out more about the fantastic benefits package we have at Companies House.

We celebrate diversity...

As an equal opportunity employer, we celebrate diversity, being committed to ensuring we’re representative of the citizens we serve and creating an inclusive environment. Everyone in Companies House brings something different, and so will you. To fulfil our commitment to recruiting and attracting diverse talent we welcome applications from underrepresented groups. We also welcome applications from Welsh speakers.

We are proud to be a disability confident leader. Our recruitment process is fully inclusive and we can make adjustments as needed through our process. These could include having an interview buddy, extra time at interviews/assessments and receiving interview questions in advance, to name a few.

If you require any reasonable adjustments at application stage, or if you'd like to discuss any person-centred adjustments, please contact us by emailing recruitmentCH@companieshouse.gov.uk.

Read our 'Applying under the Disability Confidence Scheme (DCS)' guide to find out how to successfully complete an application under the Disability Confidence Scheme (DCS).

Where will you be working?

You will be aligned to our Cardiff office, where you will be expected to attend on a regular basis. We are currently using a hybrid approach to the way we work which provides opportunities for you to be adaptable in the way you work so that you can achieve a healthy balance between your work and home life. The degree of choice you have will depend on your role and your day-to-day work activities. Your manager will agree regular patterns of attendance with you, however you may be required to make yourself available to attend the office more frequently when required to meet business needs.

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.

What will the process look like?

Sift:

• Provide a CV - tell us about your employment history, including key responsibilities and achievements. Please also detail any qualification you have.

• Personal Statement - we’d like you to write a personal statement totalling 1,000 words.

This section should demonstrate your suitability for the role and include the following skills:

1. Demonstrated understanding of the debt recovery process with significant experience gained in a senior operational role in private or public sector.
2. A strong stakeholder manager - you will have the ability to build and establish positive relationships with a range of stakeholders to support the delivery of an effective debt management strategy.
3. Good interpersonal skills and communication skills.

We'd encourage you to use the full word count, and to give us clear examples and evidence of the different elements of the essential minimum criteria.

We’re committed to being diverse and inclusive, so please make your application anonymous by removing all identifying personal information (such as your name and age) from your personal statement.

Once the advert has closed, we will sift applications - this involves reading through them all, please bear with us as this can take some time.

We may raise the score required if we receive a high number of applications.

At sift we may choose to take through the highest performing candidates to the next stage. If, after the final stage is completed and roles are unfilled, we may proceed to invite lower scoring candidates to interview.

Stage 2 – Interview

• Successful candidates from the sift stage will be invited to a virtual interview.
• As part of your interview, you will be asked to complete a task. This will be a presentation which successful candidates will be asked to prepare in advance. It will further assess your experience of the debt recovery process.
• Details of the task will be sent to candidates after they have booked their interview slot.
• The lead criteria to distinguish between tied candidates will be scores from the Strength based questions.
• A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles.
• All offers will be made in merit order.

Our recruitment process is underpinned by the principle of recruitment based on fair and open competition with decisions made on the basis of merit, as outlined in the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles.

Key Dates (dates are indicative only and could be subject to change)

• Closing date:8th February 2026
• Sifting: w/c 9th February 2026
• Interviews w/c: 26th February 2026

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Sponsorship

Companies House cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign. Companies House holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles and this campaign does not qualify. Should you apply for this role and require sponsorship, your application may be rejected, and any provisional offers of employment withdrawn.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Leane Whelan
• Email : lwhelan@companieshouse.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : recruitmentch@companieshouse.gov.uk

Further information

We welcome applications in Welsh / Rydym yn croesawi ceisiadau yn y Gymraeg. Selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit, on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. In accordance with the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles, our recruitment and selection processes are underpinned by the requirement of appointment on the basis of merit by fair and open competition. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact infopoint@companieshouse.gov.uk in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive you can contact the Civil Service Commission .

info@csc.gov.uk

Civil Service Commission, Room G/8, 1 Horse Guards Road SW1A 2HQ