Customer Service 2IC

The Takealot Group, a powerhouse in the South African e-commerce landscape, is currently seeking a motivated and detail-oriented individual to step into the role of Customer Service 2IC (Second-in-Charge) at their Cape Town headquarters. This is an ideal position for a high-performing professional who is ready to transition into a supervisory role and wants to contribute to the ongoing success of Africa’s leading online retailer.

The company culture is known for being fast-paced and hyper-growth oriented. If you are looking for a desk job where every day is the same, this is likely not the environment for you. Instead, the team values individuals who are proactive, possess a strong sense of integrity, and are eager to tackle the unique challenges that come with supporting a massive, digitally-driven customer base.

About the role

As a Customer Service 2IC, you will act as a vital support pillar for the Team Leaders, ensuring that the daily operations of the service department run smoothly. You will be responsible for maintaining the high service standards that Takealot is known for, acting as a bridge between the front-line assistants and the management team.

You will need to have a firm grasp on the operational heartbeat of the contact centre. This includes monitoring response times, managing the distribution of incoming call volumes, and providing a safety net for staff when they encounter complex customer queries that require a more experienced hand to resolve. You will also take the lead on managing the floor during periods of absence by the Team Leaders and play a key role in maintaining stability and morale during the high-pressure festive season.

Your daily schedule will be varied, balancing administrative reporting with active floor management. Key responsibilities include:

• **Operational Oversight:** Managing the workload allocation for Online Shopping Assistants and monitoring live call flow to ensure efficiency.
• **Team Support:** Assisting with the coaching and professional development of team members, while serving as the first point of escalation for complex issues.
• **Reporting:** Preparing and submitting daily operational reports to leadership.
• **Problem-Solving:** Proactively identifying systemic issues or recurring customer pain points and proposing actionable solutions to resolve them.
• **Project Work:** Assisting Team Leaders with ad-hoc projects and handling Industrial Relations (IR) concerns by escalating them through the proper internal channels.

What they're looking for

To thrive in this role, you must be a current internal team member with specific operational knowledge of the Takealot environment. Requirements include:

• **Experience:** A minimum of 6 to 12 months of direct customer service experience within the Takealot organisation.
• **Educational Foundation:** A Senior Certificate or equivalent qualification.
• **Technical Literacy:** Proficiency in the MS Office suite, specifically intermediate skills in Excel, and basic proficiency in Word and PowerPoint.
• **Flexibility:** An absolute must is the ability to work rotational shifts, which includes weekends, public holidays, and flexible hours to accommodate the 24/7 nature of e-commerce.

For applicants stepping into a 2IC position, this role serves as a critical stepping stone toward becoming a full Team Leader or moving into higher-level contact centre management. In South Africa’s e-commerce sector, experience in a high-volume, tech-enabled service environment is highly transferable and positions you well for a long-term career in operations or client experience management. While compensation is always market-related and dependent on your specific employment history, roles of this seniority in the Cape Town retail hub often include a total remuneration package that balances a competitive base salary with performance incentives and the benefit of working for a major industry player.

• Senior Certificate or Higher
• Minimum of 6-12 months Takealot.com customer service experience in related positions
• MS Office suite - Word – basic; Excel – intermediate; and PowerPoint basic would be advantageous
• Flexibility to work shifts - able to work rotational shifts, Public Holidays, weekends and flexible hours as required by the business operation