General Manager (GM)
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Job Summary
Position: General Manager (GM)
Department: Senior Management
Reports to: Chief Visionary
Location: Tatu City Nairobi (with regular travel to Mombasa Nakuru Kisumu and key retail/dealer locations)
Direct Reports: Head of Sales Service Manager Warehouse Manager Marketing Manager Financial Controller (dotted line to Chief Visionary)
Job Type: Full-Time Permanent
About the Role:
The General Manager is the on-the-ground commander of the "Vision Plus 2026 Integrated Business Strategy: Profitable Precision." This role exists to transform the strategic document into a daily reality. The GM will personally drive the companys pivot from "growth-at-all-costs" to profitability-first focusing on operational excellence channel mastery and ruthless execution of the 80/20 Fortress.
The primary mandate is to achieve the KES 1.1B realistic revenue target (stretching to KES 1.5B) while turning the -5% net margin into a positive 3% to 5%. This is a turnaround role requiring a hands-on leader who can fix broken operations (11-day TAT 86% OTIF) manage a lean KES 100M operating budget and align siloed departments into a single accountable unit.
Key Measures of Performance:
The performance of this role holder will be assessed on the basis of the achievements made on:
1. Operational Excellence (40% of scorecard)
Turnaround Time (TAT): Average repair TAT reduced from 11 days to 3 days by Q2 / 1 day express by Q4.
On-Time In-Full (OTIF): OTIF rate improved from 86% to 95% by Q2 / 97% by Q4.
Inventory Turnover: Achieve 6x per year (60-day maximum age for any SKU).
Stock-Out Days (Hero SKUs): Zero stock-out days per month for VP8832SW and VP8843SW.
Spare Parts Fill Rate: 90% fill rate for top 20 failure-prone parts.
2. Sales Effectiveness (30% of scorecard)
Total Revenue: Achieve KES 1.1B (realistic) / KES 1.5B (stretch).
Revenue by Channel: Retail (KES 400M) D2C (KES 300M) Luthuli (KES 350M).
Top 10 Customer Concentration: Reduce from 65% to 50% by Q4.
TV Soundbar Bundle Attach Rate: Achieve 40% of TV sales.
3. Marketing Efficiency (15% of scorecard)
Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): Maintain
Net Promoter Score (NPS): Achieve >50 (industry benchmark is 40).
D2C Website Conversion Rate: Increase from 0.5% to 1.5%.
Website Traffic: Sustain 50000 visits/month.
4. Financial Discipline (15% of scorecard)
Net Margin: Improve from -5% (2025) to 3% (realistic) / 5% (stretch).
Credit Note Volume:
Aging Inventory (>60 days): Zero aging inventory entering 2027.
In-Warranty Resolution <48 Hours: 80% of cases resolved within 48 hours.
5. Team Alignment & Culture (qualitative reviewed quarterly)
Leadership Meeting Attendance: 95% attendance at weekly Monday 8am sync.
Cross-Functional Blocker Count: Zero unresolved blockers >48 hours.
Employee Sentiment (Pulse Check): Average score >7/10 from leadership team.
Strategic Health Check Status: No "Red" status for 3 consecutive weeks.
Organization Reporting Structure:
Key Responsibilities (Aligned to the 5 Pillars): -
1. Pillar 1 & 2: Product & Portfolio Execution (TV Fortress & Audio Cash Engine)
Lead the Hero SKU Strategy ensuring 80% of resources are focused on VP8832SW VP8843SW and VP8850KV to hit the KES 900M TV revenue target.
Execute the SKU Pruning decision immediately discontinuing the 14 identified under performers (e.g. VPSG1 VP2060TS) and clearing all aging inventory by Q4 2026.
Own the TV Soundbar Bundle launch (Home Cinema Starter Family Entertainment Ultimate Experience) driving a minimum 25-30% attach rate.
Oversee the successful launch of 4 new high-margin audio SKUs (Entry Soundbar Dolby Atmos Bluetooth Speaker) ensuring they meet the >25% margin threshold.
2. Pillar 3: Operational Excellence (The Foundation)
Lead the "24-Hour Promise" turnaround: Reduce average TAT from 11 days to 3 days by Q2 and achieve 1-day express service in Nairobi by Q4.
Drive OTIF from 86% to 95% by implementing documented SOPs cycle counting and a penalty/reward system in the warehouse.
Enforce financial discipline by leading the monthly SKU profitability review (Kill/Keep/Fix framework) and controlling the "credit note hemorrhage" (requiring CFO approval for any >KES 50000 credit note).
Manage working capital ruthlessly ensuring inventory velocity (<60 days for any SKU) and extending supplier payment terms.
3. Pillar 4: Channel Mastery & Revenue Growth
Personally oversee the Top 10 customers (65% of revenue) to prevent churn while leading the diversification strategy to reduce this concentration to 50% by Q4.
Drive channel prioritization: Allocate sales effort 70% to Tier 1 (Retail/D2C/Luthuli) 20% to Tier 2 (Corporate/Online) and 10% to Tier 3 (Govt/Brand Stores).
Triple D2C conversion rates (from 1.2% to 3.6%) by executing the website UX overhaul Lipa Later integration and WhatsApp commerce.
4. Pillar 5: People & Culture & Strategic Alignment
Break down silos by chairing the mandatory 90-minute Weekly Leadership Sync (Mon 8 AM) and enforcing the "One Vision Plus" Scorecard (all leaders compensated on company revenue net margin and their departmental KPI).
Lead the Q1 hiring sprint to onboard 4 critical roles (2 Regional Sales Managers Financial Analyst Service Coordinator Digital Marketing Specialist) within the KES 14M budget.
Institute the Weekly Strategic Health Check using the 5 diagnostic questions to assess Market Fit Operations Finance Competition and Team Alignment triggering the escalation protocol when red flags appear.
Champion the "Ownership Mindset" (NO BCE) conducting blameless post-mortems and celebrating cross-functional wins.
5. Business Intelligence & Execution Cadence
Operate the BI Dashboard as the single source of truth reviewing Tier 1 (Executive) metrics daily and Tier 2 (Functional) metrics weekly.
Lead the Daily Huddle (15 min) Weekly Leadership Sync (90 min) Monthly Business Review (3 hours) and Quarterly Strategy Review (full day) as defined in Section 12.4.
Track leading indicators (website traffic dealer order frequency service backlog) religiously to predict and prevent problems.
Academic and Professional Qualifications:
8 years in General Management Operations or Commercial leadership.
Must have P&L experience turning around a low-margin business (Consumer Electronics FMCG or Retail preferred).
Proven track record managing supply chain complexity (importing/inventory) and service operations.
Mindset:
"Ownership" over "Blame." You hate excuses (No BCE: No Blaming Complaining Excuses).
80/20 Mentality: You are allergic to complexity; you prioritize 2 hero SKUs over 20 losers.
Resilience: You understand that TAT reduction from 11 days to 3 days will be painful before it works.
SEZ operations knowledge
Proven experience in a turnaround or high-growth capital-constrained environment.
Track record of improving TAT OTIF and inventory turnover in a multi-channel distribution business.
Experience managing China-Kenya supply chains and working with contract manufacturers.
Technical Skills:
Deep understanding of supply chain (import export warehousing last-mile logistics service center management).
Highly data-literate: Google Data Studio (or Power BI) ERP systems (Zoho or similar) and Excel modeling.
Familiarity with SKU profitability analysis and demand forecasting (day rolling).
Knowledge of 6S Lean or Kaizen methodologies.
Physical Requirements:
Able to spend significant time on the warehouse floor service center and in the field (not just desk-based).
Willing to travel to Coast Riftvalley Mt. Kenya and Nyanza regions at least once per quarter.
Soft Skill | Why It Matters |
Radical Accountability | Own failures publicly drive blameless post-mortems hold team accountable without excuses. |
Calm Under Pressure | Respond to Red alerts (TAT spikes stock-outs) with systematic problem-solving not panic. |
Cross-Functional Bridge-Building | Align Sales Service Warehouse and Finance around shared KPIs (revenue AND margin). |
Ruthless Prioritization | Say "no" to distractions kill pet projects focus 80% of resources on hero SKUs. |
Data-Driven Decisiveness | Make decisions with imperfect but actionable data; insist team does the same. |
Operational Empathy | Understand front-line realities (technicians pickers drivers) and solve root causes. |
Change Management Agility | Lead team through pivot from "growth-at-all-costs" to "profitability first." |
High-Stakes Communication | Deliver hard truths to CVO and board with clarity solutions no defensiveness. |
AI Mindset | Leverage AI to drive decisions and streamline workflows |
Resilience & Grit | Recover quickly from setbacks; keep team focused on long game. |
Other Job Requirements:
Key Contacts Internal & External
Internal: CVO Head of Service Head of Warehouse Head of Production Head of Sales Marketing Manager Financial Controller.
External: Chinese supplier partners logistics service providers (G4S Wells Fargo Sendy Glovo) key retail buyers and online vendors (Naivas Quickmart Carrefour Jumia Masoko etc) Luthuli dealers KRA/KAM representatives SEZ Officials.
Financial Responsibilities
Steward of KES 100M operating budget (approval authority up to KES 5M per item; above requires Chief Visionary approval).
Accountable for inventory value (working capital) and margin protection.
Joint responsibility (with CFO) for credit notes control and pricing discipline.
Academic and Professional Qualifications:
8 years in General Management Operations or Commercial leadership.
Must have P&L experience turning around a low-margin business (Consumer Electronics FMCG or Retail preferred).
Proven track record managing supply chain complexity (importing/inventory) and service operations.
Mindset:
"Ownership" over "Blame." You hate excuses (No BCE: No Blaming Complaining Excuses).
80/20 Mentality: You are allergic to complexity; you prioritize 2 hero SKUs over 20 losers.
Resilience: You understand that TAT reduction from 11 days to 3 days will be painful before it works.
SEZ operations knowledge
Proven experience in a turnaround or high-growth capital-constrained environment.
Track record of improving TAT OTIF and inventory turnover in a multi-channel distribution business.
Experience managing China-Kenya supply chains and working with contract manufacturers.
Technical Skills:
Deep understanding of supply chain (import export warehousing last-mile logistics service center management).
Highly data-literate: Google Data Studio (or Power BI) ERP systems (Zoho or similar) and Excel modeling.
Familiarity with SKU profitability analysis and demand forecasting (day rolling).
Knowledge of 6S Lean or Kaizen methodologies.
Physical Requirements:
Able to spend significant time on the warehouse floor service center and in the field (not just desk-based).
Willing to travel to Coast Riftvalley Mt. Kenya and Nyanza regions at least once per quarter.
Soft Skill | Why It Matters |
Radical Accountability | Own failures publicly drive blameless post-mortems hold team accountable without excuses. |
Calm Under Pressure | Respond to Red alerts (TAT spikes stock-outs) with systematic problem-solving not panic. |
Cross-Functional Bridge-Building | Required Skills: Academic and Professional Qualifications: 8 years in General Management Operations or Commercial leadership. Must have P&L experience turning around a low-margin business (Consumer Electronics FMCG or Retail preferred). Proven track record managing supply chain complexity (importing/inventory) and service operations. Mindset: Ownership over Blame. You hate excuses (No BCE: No Blaming Complaining Excuses). 80/20 Mentality: You are allergic to complexity; you prioritize 2 hero SKUs over 20 losers. Resilience: You understand that TAT reduction from 11 days to 3 days will be painful before it works. SEZ operations knowledge Proven experience in a turnaround or high-growth capital-constrained environment. Track record of improving TAT OTIF and inventory turnover in a multi-channel distribution business. Experience managing China-Kenya supply chains and working with contract manufacturers. Technical Skills: Deep understanding of supply chain (import export warehousing last-mile logistics service center management). Highly data-literate: Google Data Studio (or Power BI) ERP systems (Zoho or similar) and Excel modeling. Familiarity with SKU profitability analysis and demand forecasting (day rolling). Knowledge of 6S Lean or Kaizen methodologies. Physical Requirements: Able to spend significant time on the warehouse floor service center and in the field (not just desk-based). Willing to travel to Coast Riftvalley Mt. Kenya and Nyanza regions at least once per quarter. Soft Skills (Desirable) Soft Skill Why It Matters Radical Accountability Own failures publicly drive blameless post-mortems hold team accountable without excuses. Calm Under Pressure Respond to Red alerts (TAT spikes stock-outs) with systematic problem-solving not panic. Cross-Functional Bridge-Building |
