JOB PURPOSE:.
To oversee all aspects of Oxfam shop management and to be instrumental in the growth and development of the shop and our online business in line with our feminist principles and values. Through strong leadership you will lead and empower a team of staff and volunteers to deliver high levels of excellent customer service while offering support, direction and inspiration when needed. You will develop a strong sense of teamwork working together to deliver high levels of performance across the whole business. To be responsible for the financial management of the Oxfam shop and to be proactive in the overall strategic direction and development of the business and its people.
DIMENSIONS OF THE ROLE
• Managing resources within defined boundaries or a specialist area, including people, assets and budgets within the national framework.
•Providing support and advice to line on areas of work covered in their remit
•Ensures operational implementation of divisional strategy to agreed standards
•Assists with the development of solutions to diverse and complex problems and develops solutions to more routine problems
•Receives information in a variety of formats from a variety of internal sources as well as some information from external local sources.
•Flexibility to determine own work pattern within the departmental framework.
•Ability to analyse and interpret external and internal information and assess its influences on the department or local business area and then take appropriate and agreed action.
•Impact of this role is significant within the department and could have some impact on the division and/or the local retail environment.
•Contribute to and influence local operational or specialist planning.
•Providing team leadership to motivate, develop and to model a significant following culture.
•Play a key role in performance managing people resources to achieve divisional and departmental targets.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Volunteer Team Management
• Recruit, induct and retain an inclusive and diverse volunteer team, which is large enough in numbers and capable to maximise the shop’s income and profitability and guarantee the smooth running of the shop.
• Ensure that ongoing training and development is provided for your team, drawing on the skills of volunteer team members.
• Appropriately and consistently assess the skills and potential of the volunteer team and delegate accordingly.
• Maintain an empowered, motivated and engaged team.
• Manage change and conflict within Oxfam’s ‘Resolving Differences’ policies.
• Maintain excellent levels of communication for both the shop team and within the community, including regular shop team meetings and one to one meetings with volunteers.
• Connect the volunteer team with Oxfam’s work and help them to understand the value of their contribution.
• Provide a safe and healthy working environment and ensure that all team members are aware of and operate within Oxfam’s health and safety policies and procedures, including waste management and customer safety
• Adhere to and enforce Oxfam’s safeguarding policies including the Child Protection Policy Sales and Profit
• Develop an appropriate income/expense budget in collaboration with your area manager and team and be accountable for achieving it
• Monitor and be accountable for sales and category performance, as well as ensure that the team are aware of and engaged in the shop’s financial performance
• Foster a creative and entrepreneurial shop environment where team members seek to maximise income in new and innovative ways both within the shop and through a variety of channels, such as Ecommerce and community events
• Manage the team to maximise income from Gift Aid on donated products
• Ensure that all of Oxfam financial procedures are adhered to and executed in a timely fashion by the shop team
• Maximise the shop’s opening hours and ensure the shop is open and managed by the shop team in the manager’s absence
• Empower the volunteer team to work with local and national contacts to generate additional income as well as ensuring they are commercially aware
Shop Floor
• Be accountable for sourcing sufficient levels of donated stock locally in collaboration with the shop team
• Set high standards of cleanliness, display and merchandising
• Establish efficient and commercially successful stock processing systems (such as pricing, quality standards, consumer safety, stock density and culling stock), including backroom systems and ensure these are adhered to by the volunteer team. Ensure that all legal and Oxfam internal regulations regarding donated stock are adhered to
• Make sure that all procedures for the sale of new products are followed by the volunteer team (if applicable)
• Inspire the team to provide a great customer and donor experience, which enables Oxfam to attract new supporters every day. Ensure that feedback, including complaints is responded to within the agreed timeframes
• Empower the team to create original, appropriate and commercially successful visual merchandising displays, including shop windows
• Enable the team to promote seasonal/topical promotions as well as endorse national promotions
• Work with the property team to ensure our shops are in good condition, maximise their potential and are fit for purpose Staff Management
• Provide training, development and performance management of staff
• Work within Oxfam’s policies and procedures when dealing with problems at work
• Adhere to and enforce Oxfam’s safeguarding policies including the Child Protection Policy Being part of Oxfam
• Attend and contribute to all Area Meetings
• Play a key role in enabling the shop to represent Oxfam and increase the knowledge of the local community about Oxfam’s mission and work
• Be accountable for the integration of the shop into the local community in collaboration with the shop team
• Empower the team to respond to all appeals and fundraising opportunities.
Experience, Knowledge & Competencies
Essential
For this role, we have selected the most relevant feminist leadership practices which we will use for assessment purposes (which you can read more about here):
• Self-Awareness
• Enabling
• Mutual accountability
• Relationship building
In addition:
• Significant leadership qualities and experience.
• Ability to build, retain and develop a team.
• Strong drive to achieve results through others.
• Ability to delegate, coach and listen.
• Enjoys working with people and has a friendly and approachable manner.
• Ability to manage time under conflicting priorities.
• Ability to demonstrate resilience to the everyday pressures that come with the role.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Ability to motivate self and others.
• High level of motivation, enthusiasm and a sense of fun.
• Open and adaptable to change and able to support others through it.
• Ability to establish and maintain successful retail processes and merchandising.
• IT literacy and numeracy skills. (Using email systems and online resources; use and understand basic spreadsheets and word processing packages. Be aware of and be open to the role of social networking and ecommerce.)
At interview, shortlisted candidates will also be assessed on our values and organisational attributes, as outlined above.
Desirable
• Commercial awareness and judgement.
• Ability to understand and interpret basic financial reports
