Relationship Specialist - Bristol - OPENLANE

At AFC (Automotive Finance Corporation) w e fuel the entrepreneurial dream in our community. For more than 30 years, we've been committed to making dreams come true for independent car dealers. AFC's finance solutions work with more than 12,000 independent dealerships across North America freeing up cash flow to give them more time to focus on building their business. Our solutions amplify purchasing power so dealers can stock their dealership lot with vehicles their customers seek.

AFC is proud to be a subsidiary of OPENLANE. AFC's core business complements the other business units within the OPENLANE group of companies. For more information, visit .

Location: This role will be primarily focused on the Bristol, Tennessee area.

What We Offer:

• Competitive pay

• Medical, dental, and vision benefits with employer HSA contributions (US)

• Immediately vested 401K (US) or RRSP (Canada) with company match

• Paid Vacation, Personal, and Sick Time

• Paid maternity and paternity leave (US)

• Employer paid short-term disability and life insurance

• Employer paid Leap into Service Day to volunteer

• Tuition Reimbursement for eligible programs

• Opportunities to expand your skill set and share your knowledge ross a publicly traded, global organization

• Company culture of internal promotions, diverse career paths, and rapid advancement

We're Looking For :

AFC is seeking a Relationship Specialist who enjoys and is energized by building relationships through meaningful interactions with both with current and prospective customers. The Relationship Specialist is instrumental in elevating customer relationships and attracting new business. The Relationship Specialist will grow AFC revenue by increasing the number of customers, expanding the diversification of the branch portfolio, and driving greater penetration of AFC's financial products. Portfolio management, loss prevention, and risk management are core job functions. The Relationship Specialist will spend approximately 30% of their time securing new business. The remaining 70% of time will be spent servicing customer portfolios. This person will have a strong understanding of portfolio management, risk, and new business development .

You Are:

• Focused on Elevating Relationships : you believe integrity and honest y build long lasting relationships ; c onnect ing deeply with y our customers, celebrating their wins, and supporting them through their struggles .

• Powered by Passion : you are obsessed with customer service and help ing our customers realize their u nlimited potential. You understand o ur dealer ' s success is built upon the commitment and perseverance of your efforts .

• Vision-Driven : you focus on u nderstanding your customers' future needs and are dedicated to continuous improvement ; making it easier for customers to do business while preparing for what's to come.

• Dedicated : you have an unwavering "people-first" commitment to ensure success and provide support to your customers and team.

You Will :

• Grow the portfolio organically while providing an excellent customer experience.

• Promote AFC's vision by leading prospecting, growth and robust development of the portfolio. The Relationship Specialist will also assist in promotional efforts to new and existing accounts and execution of product campaigns.

• Be proficient in utilizing AFC dealer reporting tools like Salesforce and Tableau to identify leads, growth opportunities, and risk issues.

• Develop relationships with internal stakeholders and external partners to provide strong lead generation for both groups.

• Understand industry, assigned geographic area, and individual dealer operations to be able to better forecast opportunities and challenges.

• Understand the operational needs of dealers and be able to provide solutions.

• Analyze data to determine best courses of action for business development opportunities and risk mitigation measures.

• Use critical thinking to assess business and risk situations and make decisions. The Relationship Specialist will have strong decision-making skills without direct oversight of management.

• Possess strong negotiation skills.

• Effectively promote other OPENLANE businesses' products and services to customers.

• Be responsible for all credit and contract functions, including small credit presentations and assisting with platinum deals.

• Utilize all available customer relationship management (CRM) tools and work queue task assignments to effectively service our customers while developing a more complete understanding of their needs. Review these tools for quality assurance and customer satisfaction.

• Onboard new customers and help find areas of opportunity and growth for their businesses.

• Manage and request temporary credit increases and line modifications for customers.

• Work across major functional areas such as Credit, Contracting, Collections, Training, and Operations teams to drive portfolio performance.

• Where necessary, the Relationship Specialist will cross train with Relationship Associates and/or Business Processing Associates to cover responsibilities as needed.

• Understand and operate within compliance of all applicable laws and codes for their assigned geographic area.

• Perform other duties, as assigned.

Must Have's :

• T hree (3) or more years relevant experience

• A v alid driver's l icense

• Willingness to travel locally to support our customer base

• Attention to detail and ability to prioritize and stay organized

Nice to Have 's :

• One year in sales or sales support

• Previous auto i ndustry experience

• Experience with Microsoft Suite, Salesforce, and CRM familiarity

Sound like a match? Apply Now - We can't wait to hear from you!