About this role.
Affirm is seeking a senior director to own strategy, governance, performance, and transformation for its global customer-operations vendor and BPO network. The role leads Vendor Managers and In-Country Vendor Managers while improving customer experience, compliance, resiliency, operational efficiency, and cost-to-serve. It requires close partnership with Product, Engineering, Analytics, Risk, Compliance, Workforce Management, QA, and Training to deploy AI-enabled servicing and automation at scale. The successful candidate will manage executive vendor governance, recover underperforming relationships, lead network redesigns and migrations, and build a high-accountability global operating culture. This is a remote-first Canadian leadership opportunity requiring extensive experience in global outsourced operations and financial-services or fintech customer operations.
Role DNA
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Job Complexity
5/5Pace & Pressure
5/5Autonomy Level
5/5Communication Load
5/5Salary analysis
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Core skills
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Sample interview questions
I would begin with a fact-based assessment of current vendor capabilities, performance, geographic concentration, customer journeys, compliance exposure, and unit economics. I would then define a target operating model with clear segmentation of work, vendor roles, network redundancy, performance thresholds, and investment priorities. The strategy would be governed through measurable scorecards and quarterly business reviews, with explicit decision rights and remediation plans for vendors that do not meet standards.
I first validate the root cause through operational data, quality reviews, agent feedback, process mapping, and leadership discussions rather than assuming the issue is solely vendor execution. I establish a time-bound recovery plan with specific metrics, owners, milestones, escalation paths, and executive visibility. If sustained improvement is not achieved, I prepare a controlled contingency plan that may include work reallocation, additional vendor support, or transition activity while protecting customers and regulatory obligations.
I would prioritize use cases based on customer impact, operational value, implementation feasibility, risk, and the quality of available data. High-value opportunities commonly include agent assist, knowledge retrieval, quality monitoring, forecasting, workflow routing, and automated resolution for simple, low-risk contacts. Each initiative should have defined success metrics, robust human oversight, privacy and compliance review, controlled pilots, and a plan to scale only after demonstrating measurable results.
I would use a balanced scorecard covering customer outcomes such as CSAT and resolution quality; operational measures such as SLA attainment, productivity, backlog, handle time, and forecast accuracy; risk measures such as compliance defects and audit findings; and financial measures such as cost per contact and cost-to-serve. I would also monitor resiliency indicators, attrition, training readiness, and concentration risk. The key is to interpret metrics together so that efficiency gains do not come at the expense of customer experience or compliance.
I set shared goals, transparent performance expectations, regular operating rhythms, and consistent access to the context behind business decisions. Vendor leaders and front-line teams should be included in problem solving, customer-insight reviews, and improvement planning rather than treated only as recipients of directives. Recognition, clear accountability, leadership development, and direct feedback loops help reinforce that vendors are strategic delivery partners while maintaining appropriate governance and contractual discipline.
Affirm is reinventing credit to make it more honest and friendly, giving consumers the flexibility to buy now and pay later without any hidden fees or compounding interest.
We’re looking for a senior leader to join the Affirm Global Operations team as the Director, Vendor Strategy & Operations to lead Affirm’s global BPO and vendor operations program and serve as a true partner in reinventing how we serve customers at scale across our large global vendor network. This leader owns the customer operations vendor strategy, performance, and outcomes of our global servicing network vendor program — customer experience, compliance, operational excellence, resiliency, and cost-to-serve — across a rapidly growing and complex business. The role will be taking ownership and providing programmatic oversight of the vendor program for operations.
This is a senior leadership role for someone who thinks like an owner, not an administrator. The ideal candidate pairs deep expertise in fintech and financial-services customer operations and vendor programs with genuine fluency in applying AI and human call center culture to reinvent servicing across the vendor network. They are relentlessly customer-centric, dive deep into both the customer and front-line vendor agent experience, and know how to build a winning combination of culture and data-driven operations across vendors and our internal team. This role is scoped to grow: the right leader will expand into broader operational scope as our transformation matures and play a key leadership role in shaping the future of Affirm Operations and customer centric company culture.
You’ll lead a team of Vendor Managers and In-Country Vendor Managers, partner closely with cross-functional stakeholders, and shape the future of Affirm’s global servicing network.
What You’ll Do
Strategy, Governance & Reinvention
- Define and execute the long-term strategy for Affirm’s global customer operations vendor network, balancing customer experience, operational efficiency, resiliency, compliance, and business continuity across all global vendors.
- Reinvent how we resolve customer issues and deliver experience across the vendor network, treating the BPO vendor network as an innovation hub rather than a cost center.
- Establish governance frameworks, performance standards, and accountability mechanisms across the global vendor ecosystem.
- Lead executive-level vendor governance forums, including Quarterly Business Reviews, strategic planning, and escalation management.
- Partner with Financial Partnerships on vendor selection, expansion, remediation, and network design, evaluating capabilities, geographic footprint, and concentration risk to inform future-state decisions.
AI & Operational Innovation
- Partner deeply across product, engineering and operations teams to deploy agent and customer facing AI and automation across servicing workflows within the vendor network — agent assist, quality, forecasting, and customer resolution — to reinvent cost-to-serve and elevate vendor agent and customer experience.
- Bring an experimentation mindset, using AI in everyday problem-solving to reimagine the vendor operating model and program, not just optimize the current one.
Performance & Operational Excellence
- Own overall vendor network performance across servicing functions, including CSAT, SLA, compliance, QA, productivity, and efficiency outcomes.
- Build mechanisms for vendor performance management, escalation handling, and vendor accountability, and drive systemic improvements across vendors and functional PODs.
- Lead recovery efforts for high-risk or underperforming vendor relationships.
- Drive target cost optimization programs across all global vendors.
Analytics & Decision Enablement
- Partner with Analytics to define vendor reporting requirements, scorecards, and operational health metrics.
- Translate operational trends into actionable recommendations for senior leadership, ensuring decisions are grounded in data and measurable outcomes.
Cross-Functional Leadership
- Build a global “one team” mentality that treats the vendor network as strategic partners rather than order-takers.
- Serve as the primary operational leader for vendor-supported servicing functions, partnering with Product, Engineering, Workforce Management, QA, Training, Risk, and Compliance.
- Lead large-scale initiatives — vendor migrations, specialization efforts, operating-model transformations, and regulatory implementations.
- Act as the executive escalation point for complex vendor, operational, and customer-experience issues.
People Leadership
- Lead and develop a team of Vendor Managers and In-Country Vendor Managers, embodying a customer-centric culture and Affirm’s values by example.
- Establish role clarity, operating rhythms, and performance expectations across the organization.
- Coach leaders to strengthen analytical rigor, strategic thinking, vendor-management capability, and cross-functional influence.
- Build a high-performing organization anchored in accountability, ownership, and continuous improvement.
What we look for
- 15+ years in customer operations — including large-scale global vendor BPO program management, operations strategy, or consulting for fast-paced, multi-million-customer businesses using vendor networks (or demonstrated equivalent leadership trajectory).
- 10+ years leading managers and/or complex global operational and vendor organizations.
- Proven success managing large-scale outsourced operations and global vendor networks across multiple international geographies.
- Experience leading and optimizing supply and demand management with global work force management teams.
- Demonstrated experience deploying AI or automation to improve customer operations or BPO environments at scale.
- Strong analytical background, using data to drive strategic decisions and operational outcomes.
- Track record leading large cross-functional initiatives with measurable business impact.
- Deep cultural fluency across global geographies — a proven ability to lead and motivate diverse international teams and to build a customer-centric, high-performing culture across varied call-center and BPO environments.
- Exceptional communication, executive presence, and stakeholder management.
Preferred Qualifications
- Industry background in fintech, technology, or financial services, or other high-growth operational environments.
- Knowledge of consumer facing compliance-heavy functions such as Fraud, Payments, Compliance, or Financial Operations.
- Experience building operating models, governance frameworks, and scalable service-delivery organizations.
- Experience designing vendor network strategies that balance performance, resiliency, scalability, and risk.
- Leading in fast paced rapid growth environments.
Pay Grade – S
Equity Grade – 7
Employees new to Affirm typically come in at the start of the pay range. Affirm focuses on providing a simple and transparent pay structure which is based on a variety of factors, including location, experience and job-related skills. Base pay is part of a total compensation package that may include monthly stipends for health, wellness and tech spending, and benefits (including 100% subsidized medical coverage, dental and vision for you and your dependents). In addition, the employees may be eligible for equity rewards offered by Affirm Holdings, Inc. (parent company).
CAN base pay range per year: $199,000 – $279,000
This posting is for an existing vacancy.
#LI-Remote
Affirm is proud to be a remote-first company! The majority of our roles are remote and you can work almost anywhere within the country of employment. Affirmers in proximal roles have the flexibility to work remotely, but will occasionally be required to work out of their assigned Affirm office. A limited number of roles remain office-based due to the nature of their job responsibilities.
We’re extremely proud to offer competitive benefits that are anchored to our core value of people come first. Some key highlights of our benefits package include:
- Health care coverage – Affirm covers all premiums for all levels of coverage for you and your dependents
- Flexible Spending Wallets – generous stipends for spending on Technology, Food, various Lifestyle needs, and family forming expenses
- Time off – competitive vacation and holiday schedules allowing you to take time off to rest and recharge
- ESPP – An employee stock purchase plan enabling you to buy shares of Affirm at a discount
We believe It’s On Us to provide an inclusive interview experience for all, including people with disabilities. We are happy to provide reasonable accommodations to candidates in need of individualized support during the hiring process.
[For U.S. positions that could be performed in Los Angeles or San Francisco] Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance and Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, Affirm will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.
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