Training Manager

This role is critical to SouthStar Energy’s commitment to delivering exceptional customer experience, meeting regulatory requirements, and operational excellence. The primary purpose of this position is to design, develop, and maintain comprehensive customer service training materials that support over 550,000 customers across 13 Local Distribution Companies (LDCs) within the markets of GA, FL, IL, MI, OH, and PA. These materials are used by internal teams and multiple outsourced contact center vendors operating across various sites, ensuring consistency, quality, and alignment with SouthStar Energy’s strategic objectives.

Responsibilities

• Functional Expertise
  • Develop and execute learning strategies for SouthStar Customer Operations, identifying opportunities and collaborating with contact center vendors to drive operational excellence.
  • Manage training delivery for internal teams and outsourced providers across multiple locations, applying adult learning principles to enhance engagement and performance.
  • Strengthen vendor collaboration to ensure clear communication and alignment with vendors to meet mutual goals, while driving scalability and resource planning.
  • Optimize training material management by implementing a version control, storage, and delivery system to ensure accuracy and consistency.
  • Standardize operational guidelines by developing and maintaining business rules and standard operating procedures.
• Business Acumen
  • Align contact center operations with SouthStar Energy’s strategic goals, customer satisfaction, and overall growth.
  • Maintain expert knowledge of current and emerging regulatory standards to ensure compliance and proactively address changes.
  • Cultivate advanced expertise in SouthStar Energy’s business processes and operations to drive informed decision-making and continuous improvement.
  • Optimize vendor and operational expenses by tracking, analyzing, and reporting training costs while providing strategic insights for efficient business planning and budgeting.
  • Deliver results and transparency by tracking, measuring, and communicating performance results across all organizational levels.
• Engagement
  • Collaborate across teams to lead strategic and tactical planning for internal operations and vendor management.
  • Support marketing and pricing campaigns by working with teams to implement targeted campaigns and segmentation strategies.
  • Oversee call quality and adherence to scripting, providing actionable feedback to internal stakeholders.
  • Manage change effectively by coordinating with regulatory, legal, and cross-functional teams.
  • Champion customer advocacy by representing the voice of the customer within SouthStar Energy and vendor organizations.
  • Foster alignment with vendors by acting as a bridge between SouthStar Energy and vendors to achieve shared objectives.
• Driving Results
  • Analyze operational metrics daily, weekly, monthly, and annually to identify trends and opportunities for improvement.
  • Leverage telephony systems and artificial intelligence tools to identify training gaps, analyze root causes, and develop targeted action plans.
  • Address customer needs by identifying trends in customer inquiries and feedback, collaborating with internal teams to resolve concerns.
  • Optimize programs and partnerships by working with stakeholders to design new programs, refine existing initiatives, and phase out underperforming ones.

Requirements

• Education & Experience
  • Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience.
  • 8+ years of training content design, development, and delivery experience in a contact center environment.
  • Experience in consumer services or B2C-related industry.
• Preferred Experience
  • Certified Professional in Training Management (CPTM™).
  • Experience in the retail energy industry.
  • Experience with large-scale BPO agreements incorporating multi-towered services.
  • Experience with Microsoft Dynamics, Banner, Prime, or similar billing systems.

Skills

• Ability to develop training materials using different media and learning principles.
• Ability to conduct trending and data analysis.
• Excellent analytical skills.
• Microsoft Office proficiency.
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong organizational and problem-resolution skills.
• Ability to coordinate and manage multiple tasks effectively.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team with minimal supervision.
• Preferred: Operational knowledge of the deregulated natural gas market in Georgia.

Working Conditions

• Position occasionally requires prolonged standing or walking.
• Role sometimes necessitates reaching above shoulder level.
• Requires the ability to lift up to 10 pounds.
• Works on-site in an office environment 4 days per week, with one remote workday (schedule subject to change based on business needs).
• Occasional domestic and international travel (5-20%), which may require air travel and/or overnight stays.

Benefits

Southern Company invests in the well-being of its employees and their families through a comprehensive total rewards strategy that includes competitive base salary, annual incentive awards for eligible employees, and health, welfare, and retirement benefits designed to support physical, financial, and emotional/social well-being. This position may also be eligible for additional compensation, such as an incentive program. A summary of benefits can be found here.

About the Company

Southern Company Gas is a wholly owned subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE: SO), America’s premier energy company. Southern Company Gas serves approximately 4.2 million natural gas utility customers through its regulated distribution companies in four states and approximately 600,000 retail customers through its companies that market natural gas. Other nonutility businesses include investments in interstate pipelines and ownership and operation of natural gas storage facilities. Southern Company is a leading energy provider serving 9 million customers across the Southeast and beyond through its family of companies, committed to clean, safe, reliable, and affordable energy with a goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.