National Operations Manager - Automotive Service Centres - Gauteng, Midrand

Select Motor Recruitment; Midrand; On-site; ZAR 1,200,000 - 2,400,000; Full time

Job summary

Select Motor Recruitment is seeking an experienced leader to build and scale a national mechanical workshop fast fitment network. You will own the operating model, drive efficiency, and ensure compliant, high-quality service across all sites.

The role requires deep experience in workshop operations, P&L management and team leadership, with travel across the network and a focus on performance improvement and customer outcomes.

Qualifications

• Minimum tertiary qualification in business, operations, engineering or automotive management.
• A trade or technical automotive qualification is advantageous.
• Experience leading multi-site workshop operations is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Define and improve the customer journey across booking to follow-up.
• Lead pilots, new-site openings and launch ramp-up.
• Own workshop capacity, technician productivity and turnaround time.
• Establish inspection standards, service schedules and quality checks.
• Drive right-first-time, warranty controls and root-cause actions.
• Set budgets, forecast revenue and manage cash and margins.
• Recruit and develop workshop leaders and regional teams.
• Maintain compliance with OH&S and automotive standards.

Skills

Workshop management

P&L management

Leadership

Safety/compliance

Education

Relevant tertiary qualification in business/operations/engineering/automotive management

Trade/technical automotive qualification (advantageous)

Tools

Workshop management systems

Diagnostics

Job description

Key Performance Areas:

Build and Own the Operating Model

Create the repeatable blueprint for launching and running a national mechanical workshop fast fitment network.

• Define and continuously improve the customer journey from booking or drive-in, through oil service and inspection, quotation, authorisation, repair, quality check, handover and follow-up
• Develop standard operating procedures, workshop controls, role definitions, labour models, operating hours and escalation routes appropriate to a mechanical service business
• Set clear boundaries, interfaces and service-level agreements between 2 of the businesses shared functions, preserving distinct accountability and culture of each
• Lead pilots, new-site openings and operational readiness, including people, equipment, tooling, parts, systems, compliance, marketing and launch ramp-up
• Create a scalable field-management structure and routines for performance reviews, store visits, audits and corrective action

Lead Workshop Operations and Technical Governance

Ensure safe, compliant, productive and technically credible workshop execution across all sites.

• Own workshop capacity, bay utilisation, technician productivity and efficiency, workflow planning, job allocation, work-in-progress control and vehicle turnaround time
• Establish inspection standards, service schedules, job-card discipline, diagnostic processes, repair authorisation controls and final quality checks
• Implement right-first-time, comeback and warranty controls; investigate recurring failures and drive root-cause corrective action
• Ensure fit-for-purpose tooling, diagnostic equipment, calibration, maintenance, housekeeping, waste-oil handling and environmental controls
• Maintain compliance with occupational health and safety, consumer requirements, OEM technical information, parts traceability and all relevant automotive regulations and standards
• Build a technical escalation network and ensure workshop leaders can coach technicians rather than relying on head-office intervention

Drive the Oil-Inspect-Advise-Convert Proposition

Grow revenue through credible advice and transparent inspection-led selling, never through unnecessary work.

• Make oil service the disciplined entry product: convenient, correctly specified, competitively positioned and consistently executed
• Embed a standard multi-point vehicle inspection with clear evidence, severity grading and customer-friendly explanation of findings
• Improve conversion of identified work into authorised services through accurate estimates, parts availability, advisor capability and trust-based communication
• Develop the service mix beyond oil in line with site capability, customer demand, technical competence, risk and margin
• Track the full funnel by site: oil-service volumes, inspections completed, findings, quotes, approvals, average repair order, declined work and follow-up conversion
• Set and enforce ethical selling standards and monitor complaints, refunds, warranty claims and customer outcomes

Deliver Commercial and Financial Performance

Own network and site economics, balancing growth with quality and cash discipline.

• Set annual budgets and rolling forecasts for revenue, gross profit, labour recovery, parts and consumables, payroll, operating expenses, capital expenditure and cash
• Manage site and network P&Ls; diagnose variance and implement timely recovery plans
• Optimise labour rates, service packages, product mix, procurement, stockholding and inventory turns without compromising quality or customer trust
• Control leakage, discounting, rework, waste, obsolete stock, shrinkage, fraud and unauthorised expenditure
• Build business cases for openings, refurbishments, equipment and new service categories; conduct post-investment reviews against plan
• Partner with finance, commercial, procurement and marketing to translate performance insight into action

Build the Organisation and Leadership Bench

Recruit, develop and retain the workshop, service and field leadership capability required to scale.

• Define workforce plans and competency standards for workshop managers, service advisors, technicians, apprentices and regional leadership
• Recruit leaders and technical talent with the right balance of customer orientation, commercial acumen and mechanical credibility
• Create structured onboarding, technical training, advisor training, certification, coaching and succession plans
• Set clear performance expectations and hold leaders accountable through regular reviews, recognition, performance improvement and fair discipline
• Build a practical, hands-on culture of safety, integrity, pace, ownership and continuous improvement
• Maintain constructive employee relations and ensure compliance with labour standards and company policy

Customer, Brand and Continuous Improvement

Make the business known for convenience, technical confidence, transparency and dependable service.

• Set service standards and monitor customer satisfaction, complaints, online reputation, retention and repeat visits
• Personally lead resolution of significant technical or customer escalations and convert learning into systemic improvement
• Benchmark OEM dealers, independent workshop groups and fast-service operators to identify relevant best practice
• Use operating data, field observation and customer feedback to test improvements and standardise what works
• Support fleet, dealer and partnership opportunities where the operating model can deliver consistently at scale

The job holder may be required to perform other reasonable duties consistent with the scope and seniority of the role.

Performance Scorecard

• Outcome: Illustrative measures
• Growth & conversion: Oil-service volume; inspection completion; quote and approval conversion; average repair order; repeat customer rate
• Workshop execution: Bay utilisation; technician productivity and efficiency; labour recovery; turnaround time; work-in-progress ageing
• Quality & trust: Right-first time; comeback and warranty rate; complaints; customer satisfaction / NPS; declined-work follow-up
• Financial: Revenue; gross profit; labour and parts margin; OPEX; EBITDA / contribution; cash and working capital
• Safety & compliance: Recordable incidents; audit scores; corrective-action closure; waste and environmental compliance
• People & scale: Critical vacancies; retention; training and certification; succession coverage; new-site readiness and ramp-up

Final measures and weightings will be agreed during launch planning. The role should be assessed across balanced commercial, operational, customer and people outcomes.

Minimum Requirements

• Relevant tertiary qualification in business, operations, engineering, automotive management or a related field
• Preferred Qualification
• A trade or technical automotive qualification is advantageous

Minimum Experience

• 10+ years' progressive automotive aftersales or workshop operations experience, including at least 5 years leading a multi-site network or sizeable regional operation
• Direct responsibility for mechanical workshops covering service, maintenance and repair — not solely tyre retail, parts retail or a single workshop
• Meaningful OEM franchised-dealer or vehicle-manufacturer aftersales experience, with strong understanding of dealer-grade workshop processes, technical standards, warranty, customer care and performance management
• Demonstrated success running multiple business units, sites or operating formats with full P&L accountability and a track record of improving underperforming operations
• Experience opening, integrating or scaling sites and translating a proposition into repeatable operating standards
• Evidence of leading technical and non-technical teams through workshop managers, regional leaders, technicians and service advisors

Competencies / Knowledge

• Strong working knowledge of workshop management systems, job costing, labour recovery, parts and inventory controls, diagnostics, OHS and environmental compliance
• Commercial fluency: able to read a P&L, build budgets and business cases, identify performance drivers and convert data into field action

Skills / Behaviour

• Builder's mindset: Comfortable creating structure, testing the model and scaling from pilot to network
• Mechanical credibility: Understands how a professional workshop works and can challenge technical and operating performance
• Multi-site leadership: Leads through standards, routines, capable managers and disciplined follow-through
• Customer trust: Balances conversion with transparency, evidence and the customer's right to choose
• Commercial judgement: Connects workshop activity to margin, cash, return on capital and sustainable growth
• Execution under pressure: Prioritises well, resolves issues quickly and remains visible in the field
• Talent developer: Builds technical and leadership capability rather than becoming the permanent problem-solver
• Integrity and courage: Handles cash, controls, safety, quality and people decisions consistently and honestly

Decision Making

• Accountable for operating standards, field execution, network performance, workshop quality, people deployment and corrective action within approved policy and delegated authority
• Recommends annual plans, budgets, capital investment, site openings, service-category expansion and senior operational appointments

Accountability

• Own area of responsibility: the end-to-end of the businesses operating model, including the customer journey, workshop standards, commercial performance and organisational capability across the network

Planning

• Own time and area of responsibility, including pilots, new-site openings, operational readiness and network scaling projects

Judgement

• Immediate: workshop, technical, safety and customer escalation decisions in the field
• Long term: investment, capital, network growth and organisational structure decisions

Communication / Audience

• The Retail Managing Executive, COO, CEO, EVP & Project Sponsor; Finance, HR, Commercial Dept, Procurement, Marketing, IT and Risk; TWT leadership where shared capabilities or interfaces are relevant
• Suppliers in conjunction with Commercial Dept, technical partners, OEM/dealer contacts, fleet customers, regulators and other external stakeholders

Types of communication

• Business cases, performance reviews, field visits, escalation management, meetings, e-mails and face-to-face

Special job requirements

• Hands-on build-and-scale role requiring substantial time in workshops and regular national travel
• Valid driver's licence and willingness to travel extensively across the network
• Must be available for launch periods, operational incidents and significant customer or technical escalations
• Appointment is subject to the company's standard integrity, reference and qualification checks