Area Manager

Are you currently an Area Manager located in the Southeast Region ideally in or around the Dartford area looking for an exciting new opportunity to join a market leading brand?

Our client is seeking an experienced Area Manager, ideally from a Trade Merchanting or construction background, who will be responsible for executing our clients brand and regional strategy across a portfolio of branches, driving revenue growth, profit improvement, good stock management, and compliance with SHEQ and operational policy, process, and procedure.

You may be asked to cover holidays, sickness, and other operational needs across the region.

*Please note that this role requires extensive travel. *

This role will offer a highly competitive salary, with either a company car or car allowance which will be discussed upon application.

Reporting to the Regional Manager (RM), you will be expected to support the management team to ensure policy, procedures and processes are adhered to. During periods where cover is not required you will help branch teams to deliver their branch improvement plans.

Key Accountabilities:

General:

• Ensure each branch has an active rolling improvement plan. Support and lead branch teams in delivering their actions in a timely manner. Improvement plan to cover sales, margin, pricing, operations, stock, and safety.
• Drive Daily / Weekly / Monthly conversations with branches around actions and exceptions arising from IQ control desk, e.g., Price Compliance and Achievement, Credit activity, Stock Actions, Customer Data.
• Provide operational cover for branches across the region.
• Ensure that banking is completed daily, and all cash is secure at close of business each day. Banking to be deposited as per company procedures.

People:

• Induct BMs and monitor their eLearning.
• Support training of IQ, product knowledge, and sales processes. Maintain a high personal knowledge of IQ.
• Coach and develop trade counter team members to positively engage with customers to deliver an exceptional customer experience.
• Set performance standards for branch teams and monitor progress against them.

Sales:

• Ensure branch-responsible sales actions are actioned, e.g., enquiry and quote follow-up, lapsed account follow-up, account opening, outbound prospecting
• Support Field / Inside sales teams in prospecting for new business, follow up with existing customers, resolving ongoing issues, and helping clear aged debt.
• Work with and within branches to identify cross and up-sell opportunities, and margin improvement opportunities.
• Support team members to practice new techniques to increase sales and gross profit.
• Monitor GP and pricing, drive improvements.
• Ensure the showroom area is to the best possible standard for that branch, and that all POS and literature is up to date.
• Ensure all product categories are well represented within branches.

Operations:

• Monitor master data. Ensure maintained to right standard.
• Monitor stock levels across branches and balance stock levels to achieve availability without creating an aged stock issue.
• Oversee regional supplier orders for redistribution to branches.
• Monitor logistics & deliveries across region. Optimise & balance workload.
• Ensure branch compliance with:
• All SOPs
• HR policy and procedure (incl absence management and disciplinaries)
• General housekeeping & documentation standards
• PIs.

Key Interfaces:

• Regional Manager
• Branch Managers and teams
• KAMs / BDMs / Inside Sales
• Credit control (various across banners)
• Accounts payable and receivable
• Finance Managers (various)

Desirable Skills, Qualifications and Experience Required:

• Effective communication and organisational skills.
• Self-motivated and driven, with a good understanding of customer service requirements.
• PC literate and able to understand and operate the company sales platforms, IT systems and other company systems.
• Proven career development within trade merchanting leading others to deliver high levels of performance.
• Sales experience within the building envelope arena, with a track record of winning new business and retaining customers.
• Knowledge and experience within the cellular and building plastics industry, fenestration sector or construction trade counter environment desirable.

Personal Attributes:

• Leadership strong, consistent, clear, inspire others, integrity, ability to drive through change
• Empowering Others Delegation of trust, correct controls, feedback, communicate accountability and responsibility
• Action orientated Able to deal with problems in appropriate time frames
• Driven by results Decisive, confident addressing problems and opportunities, challenging activities to improve performance, demonstrate willingness to challenge accepted methods and standards
• Effective communication Clear concise written and spoken, ability at all levels, customer, supplier and internal
• Strategic agility recognition of a changing need and speed of response, rapid reaction to challenges
• High Standards demonstrating a motivation to improve standards and thereby making a real difference, challenging inadequate solutions
• Integrity and trust demonstrating a sense of commitment to openness, honesty, loyalty, and high standards in undertaking the role
• People management demonstrating commitment to working and engaging constructively with internal and external stakeholders