Client Services Associate recruitment

FTSE is a fast growing, high profile independent company owned by the London Stock Exchange Group.  Its mission is to provide investors globally with the best index and benchmarking solutions and decision making support tools.  The strategic intent of the company is to create an index business valued in excess of $3 billion by 2014-15, occupying a leadership position in all major developed and significant emerging markets.

FTSE is a leading provider of index data for institutional investors worldwide with over $3 trillion of assets benchmarked to FTSE indexes. Growing at over 20% each year, and working from a position of market leadership in the UK and Europe, FTSE’s strategy is to increase FTSE brand awareness globally and to continue to grow its business worldwide through acquisitions and partnerships as well as organic growth. 

FTSE is relied upon by financial markets globally, running the FTSE 100, FTSE MIB (Italy), Straits Times (Singapore), FTSE/JSE (South Africa) and FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI.  The company is at the forefront of indexes for the emerging market in China, operating the FTSE China A50 which supports the leading A Share ETF in Hong Kong. FTSE also works with the world’s biggest asset owners such as CalPERS, AP2, PGGM, AP3, AP7, ABN Amro, UBS, MPF and the Futures Fund, as well as the world’s largest passive fund managers, including Blackrock, State Street, Vanguard, Legal and General and UBS. 

FTSE operates from three major centres in London, New York and Hong Kong.  The company also has satellite offices in San Francisco, Paris, Milan, Dubai, Tokyo and Sydney.   FTSE also has a presence in China (Shanghai and Beijing) and India (Mumbai) as part of its strategy to establish a leadership position in major emerging markets. 

The Business Need

FTSE has established a very strong reputation within the market place for the quality and reliability of its index products and its expertise in dealing with unusual or complex stock events is widely acknowledged.  With a strong presence in the European financial markets, and a rapidly growing presence in the North American and Asian markets the company is now looking to increase its market share globally and become the number one provider of index client solutions globally. 

As a member of the Client Service Team, the Client Services Associate is at the hub of the business, responsible for working closely with clients by assisting with queries, delivering client training and supporting the team as a whole.

Key Functions and Responsibilities

Reporting to the Head of Client Services EMEA within the Client Services Department, and working within a team of 5, the individual will be responsible for assisting with the operation of the FTSE Client Service Help Desk.  Key areas of responsibility are:

• Operate FTSE’s Client Services Help Desk, dealing with general business enquiries, operational and data questions and service technical questions;

• Manage client expectations in relation to outstanding issues and enhancement/upgrade requests;

• Provide Sales Support as necessary to the regional sales team by answering client queries and providing sample data;

• Liaise with other members of FTSE where necessary and escalate issues to the Head of Client Services, EMEA;

• To assist with the dissemination of information regarding new products and services and enhancements to FTSE’s clients;

• To evaluate enquiries and pass potential sales enquiries to the Sales Department, or other relevant departments; 

• Retrieval of data from FTSE’s databases for ad-hoc data sales;

• Maintain client details on the customer sales account management system and ensure that details are up to date and accurate at all times;

• Provide specific product support to new/existing clients in the form of training;

Qualifications/Experience

It is expected with limited supervision the candidate will be able to deliver each of the key objectives of the role identified above. It is therefore expected that he or she will have:

• Experience within a Client Service/Account Management environment, supporting clients at different management levels preferably gained within the Financial Services sector.

• Educated to a minimum of ‘A’ level standard.

• Knowledge and understanding of Financial Markets and available products and services.

• First class communication and interpersonal skills, both verbal written.

• Strong Microsoft Office skills.  Proficiency in Excel is essential.

Type of Person

• Ability to work to tight deadlines and in a fast moving environment

• Highly motivated and proactive

• Ability to prioritize own workload

• Be able to operate independently and as part of a tea

• Ability to handle difficult situations with tact and understanding

• Database entry skills in regards to CRM systems

• Comfortable with shifts