Job Description
About ROMEL
ROMEL General Trading PLC is an Ethiopian company with more than twenty years in the electrical sector, certified to ISO 9001 and audited by TUV Rheinland. We manufacture, import and distribute electrical products, lighting fixtures and wiring accessories, and we also operate in premium green coffee export and building materials. Our B2C division serves households, contractors, electricians, consultants and project clients through our showroom, trade counter and retail channel.
We are expanding this division and are looking for a qualified electrical engineer who can sell technically, lead a sales team, and raise the technical standard of the whole channel.
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Purpose of the role
This is a hybrid technical and commercial leadership position. You will be the technical authority of the B2C channel and, at the same time, the manager accountable for its sales performance. You will convince customers on technical grounds, transfer that knowledge to the sales team so they can do the same, prepare accurate proforma invoices and technical offers for project clients, and make sure the products the market demands are available on the shelf when customers ask for them.
Key responsibilities
1. Technical sales and customer advisory
Advise walk-in customers, contractors, electricians, consultants and project clients on the correct selection of switches, sockets, circuit breakers, distribution boards, cables, lamps, indoor and outdoor luminaires, decorative and chandelier lighting, and electrical accessories.
Explain and defend technical differentiators - protection rating, breaking capacity, current rating, luminous output and efficacy, colour temperature and rendering, driver quality, material and finish, standards compliance, warranty - in language the customer understands.
Handle price objections against low-cost, uncertified alternatives on the basis of safety, lifespan, total cost of ownership and after-sales support.
Carry out or supervise basic lighting layout and load calculations where a project client requires them.
Act as the escalation point for technical complaints and warranty cases, and coordinate the resolution with the supplier and the technical team.
2. Project and B2B quotations
Prepare complete, accurate and competitive proforma invoices and technical offers for project-based and institutional clients, including product substitution and value-engineering options.
Read bills of quantity and technical specifications and match them to our product range; identify where our products meet or exceed the specified requirement.
Follow up quotations through to closing, and maintain a record of issued offers, conversion and reasons for loss.
Work with management on pricing and discount decisions within the approved margin policy.
3. Leading and developing the sales team
Manage the day-to-day performance of the showroom and channel sales team; set individual targets, monitor them, and hold regular performance discussions.
Design and deliver structured product knowledge training on a regular schedule, and verify through assessment that the team has absorbed it.
Build practical selling tools for the team: product comparison sheets, objection-handling guides, cross-selling matrices, standard talking points for each category.
Coach on the floor. Observe live customer interactions and give direct feedback.
Motivate the team and administer the incentive and commission scheme fairly and transparently.
4. Sales target and channel management
Own the monthly, quarterly and annual sales target of the B2C channel and report performance against it.
Analyse under-performance properly - customer traffic, conversion rate, stock availability, pricing, competitor activity, individual skill - and act on the actual cause.
Monitor competitor products, pricing and promotions in the local market and report the implications to management.
Identify and develop new customer segments and channel partners for the division.
5. Product availability and demand planning
Forecast demand by product and category based on sales history, seasonality, project pipeline and market trend.
Raise replenishment requirements to procurement in good time so that fast-moving and demanded items are continuously available in the showroom and the channel.
Flag slow-moving and dead stock and propose action to clear it.
Give structured feedback to management on gaps in the product range and on new products the market is asking for.
Position
Sales Engineer - B2C Channel Manager (Electrical & Lighting Products)
Department
B2C Division - Showroom, Trade Counter & Retail Channel
Reports to
[ Sales Director / Managing Director ]
Direct reports
[ number ] showroom and channel sales staff
Location
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Employment type
Full time, permanent (with probation period)
Required number
One (1)
Salary
Negotiable and competitive, plus performance-based incentive [ specify or leave as is ]
Application deadline
[ date ]
Job Requirements
Minimum requirements
BSc in Electrical Engineering, Electrical & Computer Engineering, or Electromechanical Engineering from a recognised university.
Minimum five (5) years of relevant experience, of which at least two (2) years in technical sales, sales engineering or product management of electrical and/or lighting products.
Demonstrated experience leading, supervising or training a team - state the size of the team and the results achieved.
Solid working knowledge of low-voltage electrical products, lighting fixtures and wiring accessories, and of the applicable standards.
Proven ability to prepare technical offers and proforma invoices and to read bills of quantity and specifications.
Strong command of Amharic and English, written and spoken.
Computer literacy: Excel to a working level, and experience with an ERP or inventory system.
Preferred, but not essential
Experience in a showroom, retail or distribution environment as well as in projects.
Working knowledge of lighting design software such as DIALux, or of load and cable sizing calculations.
Existing relationships with contractors, consultants and electricians in the Addis Ababa market.
Formal training in sales, key account management or team leadership.
Driving licence.
What we look for in the person
Able to explain a technical subject simply, without either talking down to the customer or hiding behind jargon.
Comfortable being measured on a number, and comfortable holding other people to a number.
Honest about the limits of their own knowledge, and quick to close the gap.
Organized enough to run a forecast and a quotation log, not only a conversation.
Willing to spend time on the shop floor, not only in the office.
What we offer
A competitive salary, negotiable based on qualification and demonstrated experience.
A performance-based incentive linked to the achievement of channel targets.
Full ownership of a growing division within an established, certified Ethiopian company.
Direct access to management, and the authority to shape the product range, the team and the selling method of the channel.
Other benefits: mobile allowance, medical coverage, training, etc
How To Apply
Interested applicants who meet the above requirements should submit:
A CV, with the size of the teams you have led and the sales targets you have carried stated explicitly.
A short covering letter (maximum one page) answering one question: what would you do in your first ninety days to raise the technical selling standard of a retail electrical channel?
Copies of educational credentials and work experience letters.
Send your application to hr@romel.et with the subject line "Sales Engineer - B2C Channel Manager", or deliver it in person to ROMEL Building 3r Floor, within 15 working days of this announcement.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Shortlisted candidates will be asked to complete a short practical product and selling exercise and to present it in person.
ROMEL General Trading PLC is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
