Exceptions and Returns Processor

Location

4910 Tiedeman Road, Brooklyn Ohio

Between 7:30am & 5:00pm ET Monday - Friday.

Monday
- Friday 10:30am - 7:30pm ET

Based in Cleveland OH or Albany NY - Hybrid: in office 2 days per week, usually on Wednesday and Friday

Under limited supervision, the Senior Specialist, Return Items is responsible for overseeing the accurate and timely processing of returned transactions across multiple payment channels (ACH, checks, and electronic payments). This role serves as a subject‑matter expert, handling complex and high‑risk exceptions, ensuring regulatory compliance, and providing guidance to lead specialists while supporting process improvement initiatives. The Senior Specialist is responsible for following established guidelines to identify and resolve problems, escalating issues as needed, and contributing to workflow or process change and redesign.

Individuals in this position should form a strong understanding of bank operations.

• Review, research, and process returned items including ACH returns, check returns, electronic payment reversals, etc.
• Handle complex, aged and high‑risk return items requiring advanced investigation and judgment.
• Ensure return processing meets regulatory requirements, bank policies, and network rules (e.g., NACHA, Reg CC, UCC).
• Monitor queues, aging, and service level agreements (SLAs) to ensure timely resolution.
• Review and ensure proper documentation or procedures are used for complex activities and check the work of less experienced employees.
• Identify and resolve complex issues that do not have established guidelines. May provide service in relation to complex billing inquiries, service requests, suggestions and complaints from customers.
• Recommend and implement programs to solve complex issues, contribute to workflow or process change and redesign, and form a strong understanding of the specific product or process.
• Work independently, fully proficient in duties and works under limited to no supervision.
• Seen as a subject‑matter expert across the line of business and deliver subject‑matter expertise to customers and Lead Specialists.
• Perform other duties as assigned; duties, responsibilities may change, or new ones may be assigned at any time with or without notice.

• High School Diploma or GED (required)
• Bachelor's Degree or equivalent experience (preferred)

• Minimum 3 years of operations experience (required).
• Minimum 5 years of experience in bank operations, with significant experience in return items, exceptions, or payment processing preferred.
• Experience working with core banking systems and workflow tools.

• Working knowledge of ACH, check processing, and payment return rules is strongly preferred.
• Proven ability to research complex transactions and make sound decisions.
• Extensive experience with customer service concepts and techniques; ability to meet or exceed customer needs and expectations and provide excellent service in a direct or indirect manner.
• Working knowledge of back‑office operations; ability to implement the practices, processes, technologies, and applications associated with banking transaction processing and transaction management.
• Extensive experience with the importance of meeting or exceeding established targets; ability to drive critical activities to completion.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Extensive experience with approaches, tools, techniques for recognizing, anticipating, and resolving organizational, operational or process problems; ability to apply knowledge of problem solving appropriately to diverse situations.
• Extensive experience with successful approaches and techniques for dealing with change; ability to adapt to a changing environment and be comfortable with change.
• Extensive experience with collaborative techniques; ability to work with a variety of individuals and groups in a constructive and collaborative manner.
• Basic understanding of processes, tools and techniques for assessing and controlling an organization's exposure to risks of various kinds; ability to apply knowledge of risk management appropriately to…