Business service manager to back office specialist
A business service manager already meets 19% of what the back office specialist role asks for. The move turns on 14 required skills not yet in the profile.
76.1/ 100
1 How much of what a back office specialist is expected to do is already part of a business service manager’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the back office specialist role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A back office specialist role treats 3 of its required skills as things a business service manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- manage administrative systems
- office administration
- perform clerical duties
What stands in the way is 14 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 7 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A back office specialist role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a business service manager background worth leading with.
- already held office administration business, administration and law
- already held maintain contract administration information skills
- already held manage administrative systems management skills
- already held perform clerical duties management skills
- already held apply company policies assisting and caring
- already held manage contracts communication, collaboration and creativity
All 7 carried skills, including the 3 the back office specialist role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 28 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn coordinate operational activities required
- still to learn handle paperwork required
- still to learn manage financial aspects of a company required
- still to learn process payments required
- still to learn use office systems required
- optional, not held manage loan administration optional
- optional, not held handle financial transactions optional
- still to learn banking activities required
- still to learn business processes required
- still to learn financial management required
- optional, not held principles of insurance optional
- optional, not held project management optional
- optional, not held financial products optional
- optional, not held securities optional
- still to learn offer financial services required
- still to learn provide financial product information required
- optional, not held advise on financial matters optional
- optional, not held communicate with banking professionals optional
- optional, not held present reports optional
- still to learn maintain records of financial transactions required
- still to learn monitor company policy required
- optional, not held obtain financial information optional
- optional, not held provide support in financial calculation optional
- optional, not held trace financial transactions optional
- still to learn comply with legal regulations required
- still to learn office software required
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a back office specialist role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 offer financial services practise this
- 02 banking activities study this
- 03 business processes study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 7 skills that carry over
- already held manage administrative systems skill
- already held office administration knowledge
- already held perform clerical duties skill
- already held apply company policies skill
- already held maintain contract administration skill
- already held manage contracts skill
- already held manage staff skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held statistics optional
- optional, not held use spreadsheets software optional
14 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held manage loan administration optional
- optional, not held principles of insurance optional
- optional, not held project management optional
- optional, not held advise on financial matters optional
- optional, not held communicate with banking professionals optional
- optional, not held financial products optional
- optional, not held handle financial transactions optional
- optional, not held obtain financial information optional
- optional, not held present reports optional
- optional, not held provide support in financial calculation optional
- optional, not held securities optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
- optional, not held trace financial transactions optional
- optional, not held use spreadsheets software optional
35 held skills the back office specialist role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role analyse staff capacity skill
- not needed by the target role apply system organisational policies skill
- not needed by the target role assist in developing practices for well being of employees skill
- not needed by the target role budget for financial needs skill
- not needed by the target role carry out strategic research skill
- not needed by the target role coach employees skill
- not needed by the target role communication knowledge
- not needed by the target role communication principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role company policies knowledge
- not needed by the target role conclude business agreements skill
- not needed by the target role consult with business clients skill
- not needed by the target role contract law knowledge
- not needed by the target role control financial resources skill
- not needed by the target role develop business plans skill
- not needed by the target role ensure compliance with purchasing and contracting regulations skill
- not needed by the target role facilities management in the organisation knowledge
- not needed by the target role human resources department processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify clients' needs skill
- not needed by the target role identify necessary human resources skill
- not needed by the target role implement strategic management skill
- not needed by the target role implement strategic planning skill
- not needed by the target role keep personal administration skill
- not needed by the target role maintain professional administration skill
- not needed by the target role make strategic business decisions skill
- not needed by the target role manage budgets skill
- not needed by the target role manage physical resources skill
- not needed by the target role negotiate sales contracts skill
- not needed by the target role negotiate service with providers skill
- not needed by the target role organisational policies knowledge
- not needed by the target role plan facilities management policies skill
- not needed by the target role programme work according to incoming orders skill
- not needed by the target role promote facilities management services skill
- not needed by the target role recruit employees skill
- not needed by the target role strategic planning knowledge
- not needed by the target role write work-related reports skill
9 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn banking activities required
- still to learn business processes required
- still to learn financial management required
- still to learn office software required
- optional, not held principles of insurance optional
- optional, not held project management optional
- optional, not held financial products optional
- optional, not held securities optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
Common questions about this move
Can a business service manager become a back office specialist?
Yes, and it is a career change move. A business service manager already covers 19% of what a back office specialist is expected to do: 7 skills carry over, 3 of which the back office specialist role treats as required.
What skills does a business service manager need to become a back office specialist?
14 required skills are missing, plus 14 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is offer financial services.
How hard is the move from business service manager to back office specialist?
Its learning distance is 76.1 out of 100, which is the career change band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.