Product Manager (Catalogue)

The Takealot Group, a dominant force in South Africa's e-commerce landscape, is seeking a skilled Product Manager to bolster its Catalogue team in Cape Town. This is an opportunity to shape the future of one of the company's core divisions, balancing ambitious commercial growth with the essential need for stringent regulatory compliance and risk mitigation.

At its heart, this role is about strategic vision and flawless execution within a dynamic, fast-paced hyper-growth environment. The successful candidate will immerse themselves in the intricacies of the Catalogue division, developing a comprehensive understanding of its strategic goals, operational workflows, existing technological infrastructure, and industry best practices.

About the role

Reporting to the Product Lead for Catalogue, the Product Manager will be instrumental in shaping and maintaining a product roadmap. This roadmap will serve as a blueprint for technical advancements, directly supporting the Catalogue Division's strategic aspirations. A key aspect of this role involves not just defining these developments but also rigorously measuring their success through the tracking of pertinent metrics. The focus will be on proactively improving these metrics by identifying, prioritising, and driving projects that yield tangible results.

Furthermore, the candidate will be responsible for articulating the strategic business requirements for technical systems development. This will involve leveraging data-driven insights to inform decision-making and ensure that projects align with overarching business objectives. Translating these business needs into actionable functional and technical IT user stories, along with detailed project specifications, will be crucial. A pragmatic approach to project phasing will ensure that immediate business benefits are realised while working towards long-term goals.

The scope of responsibilities extends across the entire product development lifecycle, demanding end-to-end project management. This includes the meticulous planning of timelines, the energetic driving of project schedules, and the leadership of cross-functional development teams from the initial design phase through to successful release and production launch. Effective stakeholder communication is paramount, ensuring that all relevant parties are involved in the prioritisation of the Product Roadmap and are kept informed of its progress. Managing the engineering backlog, through appropriate sprint prioritisation and planning, will also be a core function.

Essentially, you will be the bridge between business strategy and technical implementation, ensuring that the Catalogue division's technological capabilities evolve in lockstep with its commercial ambitions and regulatory obligations. You will champion a culture of continuous improvement, using data to identify opportunities and translate them into impactful product initiatives.

What they're looking for

The ideal candidate will possess a proven history of delivering results in high-velocity settings. Strong commercial acumen, coupled with robust analytical capabilities, is a must. Proficiency in SQL for data retrieval and analysis will be essential, enabling you to derive and apply insights for informed decision-making. A highly structured thought process, with a keen eye for detail, is vital for navigating the complexities of this role.

A solid technical understanding and practical experience with development processes is expected. Excellent project management and communication skills are indispensable, enabling effective collaboration with diverse stakeholders, particularly the engineering team, to ensure projects meet specifications and deadlines. Adaptability and a flexible mindset are crucial in a rapidly evolving digital commerce space. Previous experience with projects focused on system scalability and automation will be advantageous. Ultimately, the ability to harmonise rapid business expansion with the maintenance of rigorous compliance and quality control mechanisms is key.

In South Africa, Product Manager roles, especially within the tech and e-commerce sectors, can offer competitive remuneration packages. These positions are often found within large online retailers, established tech companies, and innovative startups. Career progression typically involves moving into more senior product leadership roles or specialising in specific product verticals.

• A proven track record of delivering results, in a fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrates strong commercial acumen with analytical capabilities, proficient in SQL for obtaining and analysing data, and effectively leverages insights to drive informed decision-making.
• Highly structured thinker with strong attention to detail.
• Strong technical understanding & experience with the development process.
• Strong project management and communication skills – able to effectively manage cross-functional stakeholders (in particular the engineering team) to ensure projects are delivered according to specifications on time.
• A flexible and adaptable mindset.
• Proven experience with system scalability and automation projects.
• Ability to balance rapid growth with robust compliance and quality control mechanisms.