Regional General Manager - Chemical Industry

Job Masters; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 1 200 000 - 1 800 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the chemical industry seeks a Regional General Manager in Johannesburg to oversee operations across Gauteng and surrounding regions. The role involves strategic leadership, ensuring compliance, and managing logistics, procurement, and production. The ideal candidate will possess strong financial acumen and leadership skills to inspire a large team, driving performance while maintaining service quality. This position requires a leader with proven experience in high-pressure environments, focusing on operational excellence and continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• Proven experience managing sales, logistics, manufacturing, and distribution environments.
• Strong financial acumen, including budgeting, forecasting, and cost control.
• Ability to perform under pressure and make sound, timely decisions.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of approximately 80 employees.
• Develop and execute branch strategies to drive sustainable growth.
• Ensure compliance with labour legislation and internal policies.
• Identify operational bottlenecks and lead continuous improvement initiatives.

Skills

Leadership

Financial acumen

Stakeholder management

Logistics management

Conflict resolution

Organizational skills

Job description

The Regional General Manager (GM) will lead the companys operations and report directly to the CEO and Board. This branch is a critical, multi-functional hub responsible for sales, distribution, and manufacturing across Gauteng, North West, Mpumalanga, and key African export markets. The operation also manufactures stock for branches in Cape Town, Bloemfontein, Cato Ridge (Durban), and the Limpopo agent.

The GM is accountable for delivering strong commercial performance, world-class service levels, and consistent product quality while fostering a high-performance culture and operational excellence. The role has full accountability for branch performance and oversight of Logistics, Procurement, Production, Health & Safety, Finance (branch level), Sales Support, and Administration.

Key Responsibilities:

Leadership & People Management:

Lead, mentor, and develop a multidisciplinary team of approximately 80 employees.

Build a culture of accountability, teamwork, operational discipline, and alignment with company values.

Ensure the organisational structure remains fit for purpose and recommend improvements where required.

Uphold the companys responsibilities toward customers, suppliers, and employees.

Branch Strategy & Performance

Develop and execute branch strategies that protect company assets, drive sustainable growth, and manage financial and operational risk.

Set, manage, and monitor annual performance targets across sales, production, distribution efficiency, and cost control.

Deliver profitable performance and consistently meet or exceed budgeted KPIs.

Support the regional sales team in driving growth across Gauteng, North West, Mpumalanga, and African export markets.

Ensure exceptional customer satisfaction through reliable delivery, product availability, and service quality.

Collaborate with Sales Management to resolve key customer issues, strengthen relationships, and identify new business opportunities.

Conduct and maintain competitive market analyses and implement strategic responses.

Logistics & Distribution Management

Oversee daily distribution operations, including fleet utilisation, routing efficiency, and on-time delivery performance.

Ensure tight co-ordination between warehouse, receiving, and dispatch teams.

Maintain accurate stock levels through strong warehouse controls and inventory discipline.

Production & Manufacturing Oversight:

Lead manufacturing operations supplying Johannesburg, regional markets, and other branches.

Ensure production schedules are consistently met with optimal utilisation of labour, materials, and equipment.

Uphold high standards of product quality, cost efficiency, compliance, and safety.

Procurement & Supply Chain Management

Ensure raw material procurement is timely, cost-effective, and aligned with production and sales requirements.

Strengthen supplier relationships and proactively manage supply chain risk and continuity.

Compliance, Health & Safety & Risk Management:

Ensure compliance with labour legislation, industry regulations, and internal company policies.

Maintain a safe working environment across production, warehouse, and logistics operations.

Lead and co-ordinate risk assessments and audits, implementing mitigation measures to protect people and assets.

Own and manage the branch budget, cost controls, expense approvals, and financial reporting accuracy.

Support month-end close processes and contribute to financial planning and forecasting cycles.

Drive continuous cost-saving and efficiency initiatives without compromising quality or service levels.

Continuous Improvement & Operational Excellence:

Identify operational bottlenecks and inefficiencies across departments.

Lead initiatives that improve processes, systems, productivity, quality, and safety.

Drive regional growth while ensuring operations remain lean, efficient, and scalable.

Regularly review operational performance and strategic direction with the CEO.

General Leadership & Strategic Execution:

Maintain a comprehensive understanding of the business, including customer engagement, contracts, procurement, manufacturing, pricing, and staffing.

Ensure effective execution of Board and CEO decisions.

Protect long-term business value by evaluating risks and returns across strategic alternatives.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):

Monthly sales budgets achievement | Stock exception to budget

Minimum 90% of orders supplied within four working days

Stock-take variance and damages to budget

Key expenses to budget (payroll, overtime, fleet/fuel, equipment repairs & maintenance)

Strong leadership presence with the ability to inspire and align multidisciplinary teams.

Proven experience managing sales, logistics, manufacturing, and distribution environments.

Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and conflict resolution skills.

Solid understanding of manufacturing operations, supply chain management, warehousing, and customer service.

Strong financial acumen, including budgeting, forecasting, and cost control.

Ability to perform under pressure and make sound, timely decisions.

Excellent organisational, planning, and prioritisation skills.

Regional General Manager Chemical Industry JHB • Johannesburg, South Africa