Category Lead: Motors

SUMMARY:
Industrial Specialist looking for strong Electric Motors candidate to join operations in Jhb.

POSITION INFO:
The Category Lead: Motors owns supply chain and product performance for the electric motor portfolio. In this role, you act as the central bridge between sales demand and stockholding. You will review regional sales pipelines to filter out soft demand, build accurate stock forecasts, and manage factory orders. You will also lead the platform strategy - buying versatile base motor frames alongside conversion kits to keep stock levels lean while meeting On-Time-In-Full expectations.

Responsibilities:

• Demand Planning: Review sales pipelines with regional managers to separate solid opportunities from soft estimates. Build and update a rolling 12-month demand forecast.
• Capital Management: Create data-backed proposals for executive approval to invest in high-demand motor stock and premium-efficiency units.
• Factory Relations: Manage the direct relationship with Techtop factories. Negotiate order allocations, lead times, and payment terms.
• Modular Strategy: Drive a "base frame + modification kit" strategy (flanges, shafts, accessories) to reduce local stock risk while maintaining off-the-shelf availability.
• Import Optimisation: Work with the logistics team to consolidate shipping containers and balance sea versus air freight to protect profit margins.
• Tender Support: Serve as the technical filter for high-value tenders. Compare competitor spec sheets to select the correct equivalent motors.
• Engineering Collaboration: Partner with the Head Office engineering team on complex technical checks, such as speed-torque curve evaluations.
• Aftersales Oversight: Set quality standards for basic in-house motor modifications. Manage service level agreements and quality checks with external repair partners.

• Education: National Diploma or Degree in Industrial Engineering, Supply Chain, Logistics, or a related technical field.
• Experience: 10+ years of hands-on experience in the South African electric motor or rotating equipment industry.
• Product Knowledge: Solid understanding of electric motor configurations, standard IEC frame sizes, and mountings.
• Planning & Systems: Proven experience running Sales & Operations Planning processes, working with ERP inventory tools, and building models.
• Commercial Acumen: Clear understanding of working capital, import freight costs, and total cost of ownership.
• Communication & Mindset: Confident and assertive. Able to constructively challenge sales teams on pipeline data and present realistic supply chain facts. Working with and managing relations with factories in different languages.