Manager: Relationship Management at The South African Revenue Service (SARS)

Job Purpose

• To provide an effective interface between SARS, Taxpayers, Tax practitioners or Representatives and Institutions through establishing relationships, pro-actively identify inefficiencies and ensure efficient processes are in place to enable compliance.

Education and Experience

Minimum Qualification & Experience Required

• Bachelor's Degree / Advanced Diploma in Tax Law/International Tax/MComm. SA & International Tax (NQF 7) AND 8-10 years' experience in PIT and Trust environment, of which 3-4 years ideally at junior management level OR 
• Senior Certificate (NQF 4) AND 15 years’ experience in PIT and Trust environment.

Job Outputs:

Process

• Act as a point of entry to resolve Taxpayer queries and collaborate with relevant SARS business units including internal and external stakeholders where applicable.
• Be accountable for the overall quality of taxpayer service experience within the value chain activities and processes.
• Continuously educate taxpayer and focus on ensuring the taxpayer is compliant in all aspects and escalate to the relevant business unit where applicable.
• Contribute to the closure of the tax gap and an improved hit rate in terms of compliance activities in area of accountability.
• Developing SLAs with the taxpayer up front around issues like the reduction of cycle times and response times to queries.
• Establish and maintain relationships and look at ways of innovating processes in dealing with client problems and challenges.
• Take part in integrated engagement sessions with taxpayers, provide inputs and solutions in order to ensure all taxpayer needs are proactively addressed.
• Understand taxpayer needs and pay attention to their interests and/or rights.
• Act as the bottom-line drivers of tactical implementation within the context of business unit excellence and performance improvement.
• Direct, control, coordinate and optimise budgeted resources to meet specific objectives and deliver agreed results and productivity requirements.
• Ensure the development and implementation of a practice in alignment with operational policy and procedural frameworks.
• Implement tactical strategy and delivery plans through the development of operational activities, ensuring the achievement of operational targets.
• Proactively identify interconnected problems, determine its impact, and use to develop best fit alternatives, implementing best practice solutions.
• Provide periodic reports on performance against plan & progress on short-term initiatives & use to realign tactical plan and objectives appropriately.
• Use the insights gained through integrated business reports to measure success & realign tactical strategy implementation objectives appropriately.
• Plan for handling work outputs, pull together interdependent activities & specify priorities, standards & procedures to ensure tactical implementation.
• Recommend changes to optimise processes, systems, policies, and procedures, and execute the implementation of change and innovation initiated by the organisation.
• Timeously communicate top-down policy and associated single practice area modification, objective achievement progress and critical success factors to impacted stakeholders.

Governance

• Implement governance, risk, and compliance policy in own practice area to identify and manage governance and risk exposure liability.
• Manage and or advise on the translation and application of policy in a specific functional area.

People

• Encourage and enable teamwork, by enabling collaboration with others and commitment to pursuing set goals.
• Develop and maintain a team that is capable for operating to their full capability and provide appropriate skills, knowledge and experience.
• Create a positive work climate & culture to energise employees & give meaning to work, minimise work disruption and maximise employee productivity.
• Translate performance expectations into specific metrics and goals to identify and provide effective services, solve problems, and achieve objectives.
• Plan & implement enhanced organisational efficiency by identifying and addressing development requirements & providing tools for people resources.
• Develop & implement appropriate people capacity plans in line with delivery & efficiency targets, on budget & in partnership with specialised area.

Finance

• Implement and monitor financial control, management of costs and corporate governance in area of accountability.
• Draw up a budget aligned to tactical delivery plans, monitor planned vs. actual, minimise expenditure and report on cost efficiency.

Client

• Build strong relationships and implement service level agreements that promote SARS with internal and external stakeholders.
• Build and maintain relationships with clients and internal and external stakeholders that promote cross functional process delivery solutions.
• Understand taxpayer affairs to enable effective engagements, identification of non-compliance and valuable inputs and advice.
• Manage an integrated service excellence culture, which builds rewarding relationships and provides opportunity for feedback and exceptional service.
• Develop and ensure implementation of practices which builds service delivery excellence and encourages others to provide exceptional client service.

Behavioural competencies

• Problem solving capability (Fundamental)
• Accountability
• Fairness and Transparency
• Relationship Management and Networking
• Customer Service
• Honesty and Integrity
• Conceptual Thinking
• Championing the Mandate
• Influencing Others
• Mobilising Teams
• Driving for Excellence
• Leveraging Diversity
• Accurate Understanding
• Developing Others
• Trust
• Respect
• Problem Solving and Analysis
• Service Delivery Innovation
• Creativity
• Building Sustainability
• Delightful ethos experience

Technical competencies

• Functional Policies and Procedures
• Situation Analyses
• Tax Knowledge
• Managerial Budgeting
• Customer Relationship Management
• Effective Business Communication
• Problem Analysis and Judgement
• Planning, Management and Measurement
• Decisiveness
• Business Acumen
• Practice and process facilitation skills
• Relationship Building

Compliance Competency

• GOC Confidential