Area Manager - West Region (Northern Ireland + Birmingham Area)

About Us

 

At Pets at Home we have an ambitious plan to become “The Best Pet Care Business in the world” and a key part of delivering this in a sustainable way will be our most cherished assets: our People and our Culture. We are a business built on strong values and behaviours which guide everything we do. These are our foundations which will help us to deliver Our Better World Pledge, to create a better world for pets and the people who love them. 

In a time where our mental, emotional and financial wellbeing is being tested more than ever, it’s imperative that we continue to support the wellbeing of our colleagues and reward and recognise our colleagues in ways that matter to them and to our pet care ecosystem.

The Pets at Home Group includes over 450 stores, over 310 Groom Rooms and 440 First Opinion Vet Practices. It’s fast-paced, innovative, fun and we put people at the very heart of everything we do. We are committed to developing a culture of inclusivity where everyone can come to work and be themselves, a culture which welcomes everyone irrespective of what makes us all unique.

We’re driven by the wellbeing of pets and we make sure we look after our people too. We depend on your commitment and innovation and reward it with competitive pay and comprehensive benefits. Together we’ll create the future of pet care.

 

About your role

We’re looking for an Area Manager, the role is field based covering our Stores/Salon in Northern Ireland and Birmingham area.

As an Area Manager you will be the principal contact for the Store Managers/Stores/Salons in your area and you’ll be accountable for influencing and supporting the overall performance of the Stores/Salons, with the aim of maximising the commercial potential and achieving profitability.

You’ll support around 20 Stores and Salons; you’ll act as the link between the overall group strategy and tactical delivery. This will involve not only working closely with your Store Managers but also key stakeholders from across the group including: Field and Support Teams, Grooming, People and Recruitment.

You’ll be a brand advocate who exemplifies the Pets at Home Group’s values and recommends solutions to drive enhanced commercial and cultural performance in Stores and Salons. Most importantly, you’ll play a leading role in, and get satisfaction from, seeing people and Stores/Salons, grow and develop.

This won’t be easy, you’ll have to have difficult conversations, work through complex issues, and consider the voices of many different colleagues. But the rewards are great as you’ll make a real difference to the people you support.

About your experience

You’ll ideally have experience of working in a field-based role supporting multiple operational sites to achieve their potential. Being commercially astute, you’ll have a track record of recognising business opportunities and working collaboratively to achieve results.

You’ll have a passion for both pets and people with demonstrable experience of supporting, coaching and communicating effectively with your colleagues to achieve success. You’ll be a change ambassador, not only delivering change but creating change for a better future.  You’ll build and maintain effective relationships that are based on mutual trust.

 

 

Key experience/skills required includes

• Experience of developing, coaching & investing in people
• Experience of understanding and analysing financial results
• Previous experience or exposure to people related challenges
• A high degree of personal impact and influence
• A high level of emotional intelligence, empathy, self-awareness, and resilience
• An ability to understand situations and establish a solution to the root cause
• Being articulate and confident, able to work effectively in challenging situations

 

Key responsibilities

 

Be Courageous

• Strive to deliver exceptional and world-class customer service through Tails and customer revolution driving customer loyalty as priority
• Drive “right people, right place, right time” & be ruthless on cost
• Lead, embrace and execute right first time to drive efficiency
• Exploit opportunities to grow share our of customer wallet – Drive basket growth
• Set clear expectations, influence, and challenge the status quo. Be a leader and catalyst of change and hold people to account.
• Use our data and be fanatical about VIP to better serve our customers   
• Always refocus and seek improvement with KPIs
• Be an opportunity seeker, solution finder and proactive with your area strategy, aligned to business strategy

Be Honest

• Actively always give honest feedback to drive the full performance management cycle ensuring both regular informal & formal reviews are in place at all levels across your stores to drive engagement and performance – great conversations
• Focused personal development plans to drive ownership and capability

Be Respectful

• Always lead by courtesy and respect to all, not tolerating disrespectful behaviour or actions
• Be selfless in sharing great ideas with your peers for “One way” working – One team
• Drive great communication across your area and empower your teams by bringing our group strategy alive, ensuring clarity around our vision and expectations, and understanding the “why” “what” and “how”.

Be Inspiring

• Be an inspirational leader for behaviours and ambassadors of our values to drive business growth through colleague engagement, reward, and recognition #bemorechris.
• Passionate about our own brand, kitten, and puppy club – driving high participation
• Bring our pet experience to life by being number one destination for pet events - #Bestlocal
• Explode Pet Care Plans, grooming productivity, and profitability through collaborative working – Joint KPIs
• Drive awareness, understanding and participation of our services proposition across your area through clear communication and ensure the vision is understood by all – 50% of our sales will come from services
• Build and grow personalised relationships through digital – lifetime loyalty

 

Be Supportive

• Set our people free to serve by investing, coaching & developing great people who deliver personalised customer experiences …and then some through robust succession, training, and customer service champion.
• Own and drive the engagement & wellbeing agenda in your area ensuring great local action planning from the we CARE survey which prompts action and drives engagement amongst your teams
• Drive all service and sales linked training programmes to ensure sufficient knowledgeable colleagues in areas such as SQP, puppy, nutrition etc.
• Keep abreast of wider retail trends to inform your thinking and drive competitor awareness

Please note that we reserve the right to close the vacancy prior to the application deadline/closing date once a sufficient number of applications have been received.