Regional General Manager Operations | Retail | Marks & Spencer MENA

The Regional General Manager Operations drives business profitability by maximizing sales, managing costs, and ensuring an exceptional customer shopping experience. He/she supports team growth to maintain high retail standards and exemplary customer service across all stores, ensuring a brand-aligned customer experience that delivers our customer promise.

What you will do

Drive sales, maximize profit and Business Steering

• Develop and execute strategic plans to achieve top-line growth and bottom-line profitability.
• Drive the retail agenda in line with commercial priorities, taking a fully integrated cross-functional view to secure the long-term business direction of the markets and contributing insights in order to secure the overall performance of the business.
• Contribute to the Business overall direction, business plan process, business transformation and change agenda, with the M&S Leadership team.

Deliver retail agenda

• Lead retail strategy to maximize daily commercial opportunities, driving both sales growth and profitability aligned with business objectives.
• Drive operational excellence and efficiency across all stores to enhance customer experience and performance.
• Ensure consistent adherence to high operational standards and compliance with local regulations in all store operations.
• Oversee and implement Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to meet market/region specific commercial compliance and process requirements.
• Implement operational strategies to optimize resources and enhance business operations.
• Establish KPIs for monitoring performance and driving continuous improvement.

Customer Experience, Marketing, VM

• Champion a customer-centric approach to enhance and maintain high standards in the in-store experience.
• Strengthen brand representation by increasing Blue presence across all stores.
• Ensure a seamless, positive customer experience across all channels, consistently aligning with the M&S customer promise.
• Set clear, ambitious targets for all marketing activities, monitor performance, and adapt plans based on insights.
• Collaborate to gather insights and refine strategies for effective marketing and branding of new and existing products.

Corporate & Brand Management

• Foster brand values and consistent practices across all stores, ensuring alignment with M&S standards and corporate governance.
• Collaborate closely with the brand principal to strengthen partnerships, address challenges, and drive commercial priorities.
• Set and uphold operational standards across stores, maintaining brand integrity and adapting customer experience strategies to local market needs.

Team Management

• Benchmark people KPIs with HR to drive productivity and hold line managers accountable for performance and continuous improvement.
• Ensure succession for General Manager role is a key responsibility, by identifying critical roles and developing talent.

Desired Candidate Profile

Required skills to be successful

• Strategic, analytical and tactical abilities.
• Proven leadership abilities and lead by example.
• Budget management skills with a focus on value for money/return on investment.
• Working knowledge of data analysis and performance/operation metrics.

What equips you for the role

• Experience of leading retail and commercial operations in a sizeable retailer with extensive technical knowledge and related experience in Food, Clothing.
• Strong commercial knowledge in Clothing and Food.
• In-depth knowledge of diverse business functions and principles (e.g., buying, supply chain, finance, customer service, etc.).
• Ability and experience in setting, monitoring and reporting against targets to key internal and external stakeholders.
• Managed to deliver Best in Class Customer Service/Store Standards & Operational Excellence.