We are a Supply Chain and Sales & Merchandising partner adding value to your business through a fully integrated, temperature-controlled network in Southern Africa.

But we are also more than that. We are people serving people. While we boast the best in tech and infrastructure, our people are our greatest resource. With our skilled, curious, can-do people at the forefront, our assets become your assets, our service your solutions.

Vector’s vehicle fleet includes a food industry first in ‘multi-temperature’ vehicles enabling the company to service business across frozen, chilled and ambient temperature zones on a single delivery.

Job Purpose

• To provide direct commercial
  support and insight to the finance and customer teams internally,
  as well principals and customers externally.
• To facilitate the development of
  commercial engagement with the rest of the business.
• To deliver enhanced customer and
  business profitability and assist in focused strategic decision-making.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Contribution

• Participate in the formulation and implementation of the national
  customer/commercial strategy, based on a 2-to-5-year view of requirements.
• Ensure that assigned and agreed
  strategic targets are operationalized and achieved.

Customer Pricing and Contract Management

• Calculate and provide accurate pricing information for the annual price negotiations.
• Together with the Customer team, review
  customer and principal pricing contracts and manage the annual pricing
  negotiations and formula-based adjustments and agree pricing with customers and
  principals.
• Ensure related profitability objectives
  are achieved.
• Conduct regular performance reviews and
  highlight opportunities for the business and its customers/principals relating
  to, among others, rate reductions and improved
  efficiencies.
  Provide continuous pricing support
  regarding profitability to ensure that costs are managed against targeted
  margins.
• Drive commercial conversations with and
  answer related queries from customers and principals.
• Ensure that the Finance Support Team is
  informed of the correct pricing for customers and principals.
• Manage and monitor the allocation of
  charges to customers and principals to ensure that they conform to the agreed
  rates.
• Draft new contracts and service level
  agreements in consultation with the Vector legal team and manage the process in
  consultation with the Customer and Financial teams to the point of formal sign
  off by the parties concerned.
• Monitor the contract terms of all
  existing customer and principal contracts including
  notice periods and schedule renewal discussions accordingly.

Budgeting and Forecasting

• Compile and review results of the
  budgeting and sales forecasting processes, including volume and distribution
  revenue analysis.
• Provide insight and interpret the
  impact of key revenue drivers on profitability.
• Compile the monthly reports
  detailing customer and principal sales and performance.
• Conduct regular commercial strategy reviews and report to the Exco
  on:
  - current and historical revenue performance
  - market positioning and relevance
  - competitor analysis and pricing
  - growth strategy and opportunities
  - margin improvement opportunities.
• Complete annual “tail cutting” reviews focusing on
  unprofitable customers and principals.

Profitability Analysis

• Provide meaningful profitability
  information and recommend ways to optimise customer, principal and business profitability.
• Support the customer team in the
  use of system tools regarding pricing and profitability.
• Provide support and regular feedback on performance to the customer, sales and account managers.

Billing

• Ensure accurate and complete monthly billings to principals and customers.
• Support the customer team in
  reviewing and signing off revenue.
• Recommend strategies for simplification and automation of revenue billings and customer communication.

Reporting

• Drive enhanced customer and
  business profitability and performance information designed to unlock margin opportunities and influence improved
  contributions.
• Identify opportunities for value
  added reporting to improve the quality and content of reporting and message management.
• Provide sustained support to
  customers and principals, particularly those who raise specific queries.

Commercial Insight and
Technical Expertise

• Provide calculations, detailed
  analysis and associated recommendations emanating from any and all queries that arise as a result of
  changes in business operations, the economic climate or potentially might offer more
  profitable solutions.
• Provide expertise in management
  team meetings to internal clients and colleagues and recommend solutions based on insights and findings.
• Provide practical commercial
  expertise and insights to external customers and principals as part of regular engagement and ad hoc requests.

Staff Management

• Lead and develop staff within the
  context of the Labour Relations Act, Employment Equity Act, Basic Conditions of Employment Act and the Skills
  Development Act.
• Monitor staff performance and
  provide regular feedback.
• Manage staff activities, ensuring
  service levels are met and protocols are adhered to.
• Coach and support staff where
  necessary to achieve objectives.
• Manage staff leave and general
  time management issues in line with organisational deliverables and standards.
• Manage and deliver on succession
  plans to enable the development of a future generation of leaders and specialists and ensure optimal
  turnover and retention levels are maintained.
• Champion staff training and
  development through the utilisation of available training
  opportunities or contributing to the development of new training
  solutions in collaboration with national training specialists.
• Conduct regular performance
  appraisals with subordinates.
• Establish sound staff and labour
  organising and communication structures and systems.
• Lead the team towards meeting the
  strategy and targets through regular communication and utilisation of the full organisational talent
  management tool set.
• Develop and manage high
  performance multidisciplinary teams in order to solve problems within the commercial arena.
• Conduct regular meetings and
  ensure that records are kept and shared across the team and that action plans agreed to within team meetings are
  delivered upon.

KPI’s

• Timeliness and accuracy of
  pricing information.
• Achievement of profitability
  targets.
• Accuracy and relevance of
  profitability analysis.
• Value added reporting components.
• Quality of advice, insight and
  recommendations to customer team, customers and principals.
• Outcome of pricing negotiations.
• Timeliness and accuracy of
  reporting.

Key Relationships

Internal

• Customer team.
• Operations management.
• Sales team.
• Wider finance team.
• Procurement.
• IT Team.

External

• Legal representatives.
• Auditors.
• Existing and potential customers.
• Principals/Suppliers.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience Required for the Job

Qualifications and Experience

• Must have Matric (Grade 12).
• BCom degree and/or similar experience.
  
• CA or CIMA is preferred.
• 3-5 years’ experience, including
  commercial and front-end experience and people management.
• SAP experience would be
  advantageous as would exposure to a supply chain/FMCG/ logistics environment.

Skills and Competencies

Leadership Standards

• Provide inspirational leadership.
• Create a culture of execution.
• Display business insight and
  innovate.
• Develop customer service
  obsession
• Develop commitment through
  engagement.

Knowledge

• Commercial accounting principles
  and practices.
• Management accounting principles
  and practices.
• Marketing principles and
  methodologies.
• Supply chain and logistics.
• Commercial and contract law.
• Pricing strategies.
• Broad knowledge of Vector
  operations and systems.
• An understanding of multiple key
  performance indicators, inter-relationship and bottom line sensitivity.

Skills

• Financial modeling.
• Feasibility and appraisal methods.
• Verbal and written communication.
• Computer literacy (MS Office and
  especially proficiency in Excel).
• Report writing.
• Interpersonal and customer
  relations.
• Negotiation.
• Logical thinking.
• Problem solving.
• Decision-making.
• Analytical thinking.
• Presentation.
• Numeracy.
• Strategic influencing.
• Lateral thinking.
• Organisational awareness.

Attributes

• Diplomacy.
• Initiative and assertiveness.
• Tolerance of stress and pressure.
• Creativity.
• Proactivity.
• Attention to detail.
• Deadline driven.
• Able to interact at all levels of
  the organization.
• Able to plan ahead and manage
  time.
• Able to prioritise.

Vector Logistics supports the principles of Employment
Equity and is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace.
Preference will be given to candidates from designated groups in line with our
Employment Equity Plan.

If you have not heard from us within 3 to 4 weeks after
submitting your application, please consider your application unsuccessful on
this occasion. We truly appreciate your interest in joining the Vector team and
encourage you to stay connected for future opportunities that may align with
your skills and career journey.

We look forward to hearing from you!