Retail Business Manager at bp

Job Purpose

• The Retail Business Manager is accountable for driving profitable growth and strengthening commercial performance across a portfolio of retail accounts in KZN. The role focuses on developing and executing account strategies, maximising customer profitability, and ensuring disciplined execution through strong partner engagement, commercial excellence, and stakeholder collaboration.

Key Accountabilities

Commercial Growth & Performance

• Delivering sales performance targets across assigned accounts, including volume, revenue, margin, and customer profitability.
• Develop and implement territory/account strategies that drive growth, strengthen customer retention, and increase market share.
• Support pricing execution and margin optimization in line with commercial frameworks.
• Provide accurate sales forecasting and demand planning inputs to support business planning and operations.

Account Strategy & Business Development

• Build and execute account development plans for strategically important customers/partners.
• Apply customer segmentation and customer profitability analysis to prioritize high-value opportunities and tailor commercial actions.
• Maintain strong competitor and market understanding to inform strategy, value propositions, and negotiations.
• Translate customer requirements into structured solution proposals and commercial terms.

Partner & Stakeholder Management

• Build and maintain effective relationships with retail partners and key stakeholders.
• Lead value-based negotiations to achieve sustainable commercial outcomes and protect business value.
• Collaborate cross-functionally (operations, supply, finance, marketing, HSSE) to ensure alignment and delivery of shared objectives.
• Manage complex stakeholder environments with professionalism, resilience, and strong interpersonal skills.

Execution & Retail Excellence

• Drive consistent execution of BP retail standards, brand requirements, and HSSE expectations across the assigned portfolio.
• Monitor performance KPIs, diagnose issues, and implement corrective actions to improve results.
• Maintain regular field/site engagement to support execution, performance follow-up, and relationship management.
• Promote agility and continuous improvement through structured problem solving and disciplined follow-through.

Essential Experience & Skills

Demonstrated experience in field-based sales, retail commercial management, or key account management.

• Strong capability in account strategy, business development, and customer value proposition building.

Sound commercial and analytical skills, including:

• Business analysis
• Customer and competitor understanding
• Customer segmentation
• Customer profitability analysis
• Forecasting
• Strong negotiation capability and ability to influence outcomes with internal and external stakeholders.
• Strong communication and relationship-building skills with a customer-first mindset.
• High level of emotional intelligence and resilience in a performance-driven environment.
• Confident using data and performance reporting to support decisions and track execution.

Education

• Matric + 3-year qualification (Degree or Diploma) required.
• Field of study is flexible; commercial and customer-facing experience is key.

Additional Requirements

• Valid driver’s license and willingness to travel regularly within the region.
• Strong English communication skills (written and verbal).