Benefits Processing Supervisor

Fund administration oversight

• Prepare accurate monthly reports and statistics for the Claims Processing Manager, including SLA turnaround, claims backlog, ageing of unpaid and unclaimed benefits, and exception analysis.
• Maintain statistical records of members, prepare the monthly EXCO submission, and reconcile statistics to the pension administration system, payroll and the Fund’s financial records.
• Ensure audit controls are in place and track internal audit, external audit and FSCA findings to closure.
• Oversee quality assurance of claim forms and supporting documents, validate exit claims against exit movements, and verify member options against Fund Rules and legislation.
• Validate manual tax directives and manually calculated Final Average Emoluments, ensuring tax directives are obtained from SARS and correctly applied, including lump sum tax tables and IRP5 reconciliations.
• Ensure ill-health and disability benefit applications are captured and actioned timeously, including validating medical evidence, obtaining medical adviser/Board approval and periodic re-assessment of disability pensioners.
• Ensure unclaimed benefits are traced within SLA timeframes and reported in line with the Pension Funds Act and FSCA requirements.
• Monitor pensioner information and daily maintenance of personal detail changes before payroll close, including verification of existence, suspension and reinstatement of benefits, and recovery of overpayments after date of death.
• Review and approve benefit payments within delegated authority, ensuring segregation of duties, dual authorization and payment within prescribed timeframes.
• Oversee the processing of Two-Pot savings withdrawal benefits, including tax directive requests and compliance with withdrawal rules.
• Apply fraud-prevention controls to claims and payments, including FICA-compliant member verification, bank account verification and proof-of-life checks.
• Manage member, pensioner and beneficiary complaints and escalations, including Pension Funds Adjudicator and FSCA queries, and report operational risks, incidents, errors and POPIA-related breaches.

Member and pensioner data integrity

• Ensure data updates are authorized before payroll close through the workflow process, with no changes processed without supporting documents and maker-checker authorization.
• Follow up on exception reports, including those arising from the monthly contribution update.
• Ensure the correct procedure is followed for Section 14 transfers in, including verification of transfer values.
• Check and monitor divorce settlement calculations and DSD adjustments in line with Fund Rules.
• Monitor system and website outputs, member benefit statements, tax certificates and deferred pensioner estimates.
• Ensure monthly and annual reconciliations between the administration system, payroll and general ledger are completed and exceptions resolved, and that personal information is handled in compliance with POPIA.

Contribution handling

• Manage the allocation and reconciliation of member contributions, and monitor receipt from participating employers within the statutory period (Section 13A of the Pension Funds Act), escalating late or non-payment for FSCA reporting.
• Investigate and resolve contribution exceptions, unallocated contributions and employer/pay point discrepancies.

People leadership

• Plan resource requirements, allocate and monitor workloads, and manage backlogs and SLA performance.
• Build a high-performing team through coaching, one-on-one sessions, performance reviews, development plans and succession cover for critical roles.
• Train and assess the team on Fund Rules, legislative changes, fraud awareness and POPIA, and maintain a skills matrix for benefit types (exits, retirement, death, disability, divorce and Two-Pot).
• Manage disciplinary and labour relations matters in line with the Labour Relations Act and Fund policies.

Projects, policy and stakeholder support

• Participate in Fund projects such as Defined Contribution conversion, business process re-engineering, system enhancements, automation initiatives and Rule amendments, including drafting reports and user acceptance testing.
• Keep abreast of legislative changes, recommend process improvements, and ensure procedure manuals, process maps and user guides are reviewed at least annually.
• Assist internal and external auditors and regulatory inspectors (e.g. FSCA), and liaise with employer HR, Member Services and Accounts on data maintenance.