Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

Our client based in KwaZulu-Natal is seeking a CEO/COO who will be responsible for running the company and will be accountable to the board of directors. You will be responsible for day-to-day operational management decisions and for implementing the company’s long-term and short-term plans. The ideal candidate should have sufficient experience in a similar decision-making role, and ideally have worked in a manufacturing and sales business environment.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Business strategy and management:
   • Developing the company’s strategy and objectives whilst having regard to the company’s responsibilities to its shareholders and wider stakeholders including customers, suppliers and employees.
   • As the leader of the business and with the assistance of the rest of management and shareholders, design and implement strategic measures aimed at preserving company’s assets, driving growth and profitability, and managing financial risks.
   • Recognize opportunities for moat creation and for product/services differentiation.
   • Ensure the company is sales and marketing-focused while adding new products, services and solutions to its offering and ensuring the production of the company is efficient and sound.
   • Performance of competitive analysis and ability to implement attack plans on competitors as appropriate.
   • Execute on the growth plans internationally and in South Africa and expand the business in a lean environment.
   • Understand all facets of the business in detail, from customer interface, through to contract oversight and administration, purchasing of raw materials, manufacturing of the products, pricing and staffing.
   • Ensuring effective implementation of board decisions and the successful execution of strategy following approval by the board and shareholders.
   • Ensuring the company’s organisational structure is fit for purpose and recommending changes as appropriate.
   • Regularly reviewing the operational performance and strategic direction of the company.
   • Recommending to the board an annual budget and ensuring implementation following board approval.
   • Ensuring all company policies and procedures are followed and conform to the highest standards.
   • Safeguarding the future value of the business by critically examining the risks and expected returns on different strategy alternatives.
   • Examining major capital expenditure and material contracts.
   • Growing the international business through sales including approving major proposals or bids.
   • The CEO must be commercial and financial and have a thorough understanding of manufacturing, with most important skill being able to help scale the business while ensuring the economics and fundamentals of the business remain sound.
2. Managing the Company’s risk profile in line with the categories of risk identified as acceptable by the board:
   • Ensuring appropriate internal controls are in place.
   • Managing and mitigating the company’s emerging and principal risks including financial risks and health and safety performance, in line with the assessment made by the board and the company’s risk management and internal control systems.
   • Ensuring the long-term sustainability of the business.
3. Communication:
   • Keeping the board informed on all important matters.
   • Ensuring the shareholders and the board receive accurate, timely and clear information to enable them to discharge their duties.
   • Leading effective engagement and communication with shareholders and other relevant stakeholders.
4. Other:
   • Leading by example to promote the desired culture and communicate to the workforce the expectations of the board in relation to the company’s culture, values and behaviour.
   • Approving Human Resources policies, including management development and succession planning for the senior executive team, whilst having regard to diversity of gender, social and ethnic backgrounds, cognitive and personal strengths.
   • Promoting, and conducting the affairs of the Company with the highest standards of integrity, probity and corporate governance.

Requirements:

• Proven experience in a manufacturing and sales business environment.
• Understanding of a manufacturing business, detailed understanding of capital allocation and managing a sizeable staff compliment.
• Proven experience as a CEO (or similar leadership role), coming from a manufacturing or a business space which is entrepreneurial.
• Career experience in managing sales and marketing functions focused on the B2B market.
• Demonstrated success in managing a P&L and driving financial performance.
• Willingness to do execution tasks while managing a mid-sized business with opportunity to scale significantly.
• Highly analytical mindset and a data-driven approach to decision-making.
• Effective communicator across all levels of the organization.
• Worked in a business with global operations.
• A minimum of 3 years in an executive leadership position.

The candidate must live in KZN and be willing to travel to offices.

The candidate will be expected to travel to see customers both locally and internationally.

If you meet all of the above, please apply directly here OR send your CV to hr@pronel.co.za. Please note due to high volume responses, only candidates that meet the advertised criteria will be contacted.