Retail Assistant Manager - Campus Services at University of Birmingham

Role Summary

• As the Assistant Manager, you will support the Store Manager in effectively leading and managing the daily operations of a university-run convenience supermarket. Your role will involve driving sales, managing inventory, ensuring compliance, upholding standards, and leading a team of supervisors and retail assistants to deliver outstanding customer service. In the absence of the Store Manager, you will be the senior manager on shift, taking full responsibility for store operations, safety, staff supervision, and resolving any issues that arise. This position requires strong leadership skills, sound judgment, operational expertise, and the ability to inspire and motivate your team. To make the best use of resources, you may also be asked to work in other areas of the department or across the wider University.

Main Duties

• Ensure that areas within your area of responsibility are set up and operated adhering to Standard Operating Procedures or Brand Guidelines.
• Prepare for operational and standards audits, ensuring everything is in order to ensure a successful audit. 
• Provide proactive assistance in supporting your manager to deliver financial targets. This will include:
• Contributing to the creation and delivery of sales plans to achieve the sales targets;
• Ensuring all costs are controlled: staffing costs, gross profit percentages, consumables, maintenance and repairs, and any other controllable costs;
• Carrying out, and acting on results of monthly stocktakes, suggestion improvements to ensure gross profit percentage is met;
• Delivering all event activity on time and within budget constraints;
• Monitoring all cash handling and till / system functions to ensure accuracy and consistency, dealing with any anomalies.
• Ensure that shifts within your responsibility are managed in a safe & efficient manner.
• Ensure compliance with the sale of alcohol and all age restricted products.
• Audit the units on a regular basis to address any potential or developing problems as they arise and become more serious. 
• Ensure that all facilities are maintained and operational. You will be expected to deal with most issues yourself, but you will be able to escalate where appropriate to your manager. 
• Support the Store Manager with daily operational oversight including opening, closing, floor management and acting as Duty Manager.
• Ensure the store environment is clean, well merchandised, safe, and compliant with agreed planograms and brand standards. 
• Oversee stock accuracy and availability, ensuring timely replenishment, correct rotation, and effective waste and shrinkage control. 
• Monitor and manage equipment issues (e.g., refrigeration, display units, handheld devices) and escalate or resolve as appropriate.
• Support the implementation of seasonal campaigns, promotions, and retail initiatives to maximise sales and customer experience. 
• Review sales and stock data to identify trends, highlight risks, and recommend improvements to the Store Manager.
• To adhere to and ensure that the team follow all work rules and codes of practice including:
• Health & Safety codes of practice 
• Control of substances hazardous to health (COSHH)
• Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) hygiene and allergen recording systems.

Manual Handling

• Ensure that all Admin and paperwork is completed in a professional & timely manner.
• You will ensure that goals and objectives are set for your staff and that you develop organisational capability by coaching the team. 
• You will display a “customer comes first” attitude by ensuring excellent service, training and supporting staff to ensure they deliver the same approach. 
• Proactively evaluate customer needs; reviews working environment and key business indicators to identify problems, concerns and opportunities for achieving operational goals.
• Provide continued training of staff, both regular and casual members, as new guidance is released as well as ensuring the level of service is maintained via effective training and regular refreshers for all staff. This will include on the job training and delivering training sessions as required by your manager.
• Carry our regular job chats and PDR’s with the team, ensuring compliance with the Universities policies and procedures.
• To deputise for the Manager as required, ensuring that your area of responsibility runs effectively and compliantly in your absence. 
• Supports equality and values diversity, moderating own behaviour to avoid unfair discriminatory impact or bias on others.

Customer Service

• Lead the team in delivering excellent customer service, ensuring all customers receive prompt, courteous, and knowledgeable assistance.
• Manage the escalation of customer issues, complaints or complex queries, resolving them professionally.
• Monitor service standards throughout the day and address issues immediately.
• Encourage a pro‑customer culture by coaching staff in product knowledge, communication, and service behaviours.

Commercial Performance

• Support the Store Manager in achieving sales, margin, waste, and shrinkage targets.
• Identify opportunities to increase sales, enhance product availability, improve merchandising or optimise operational efficiency.
• Monitor product performance and customer demand, feeding back insights to management to inform ordering and range decisions.
• Ensure timely implementation of promotions, pricing changes, and point‑of‑sale materials.

Operational requirements

• Hours as required based on a 35 hour week 7/365 operation (BH and Closure days) on a rota basis, includes weekend and evening work activities to align with Campus Services and University.
• To participate in the BOPS duty management rota (7/ 365). 
• To undertake works activities across all UoB campuses as requested that are commensurate with the grade and role activities to support the Division and wider UoB activities.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

• Literacy and numeracy skills which may be evidenced by Mathematics and GCSE grade C or 4 (or other equivalent level 2 qualifications). 
• Significant experience in a retail or supermarket environment, ideally in a supervisory or team leadership capacity.
• Full, clean driving license is desirable as your role may involve driving University vehicles.
• Current Personal License holder for the sale of alcohol, or be willing to obtain said license with training and support.
• Confident decision‑making skills and ability to manage operational challenges independently
• Ability to contribute to the planning, organising and development of sales and service plans to grow and advance current business levels in all areas. 
• Knowledge of the Health and Safety at Work Act, HACCP, COSHH, waste disposal and other regulatory guidance is essential as is knowledge of Fire procedures. 
• Proficiency with Microsoft suite of programs. 
• Clear and concise communication skills are essential as you will be in regular communication with managers, staff and customers, good interpersonal skills are also essential with the ability to demonstrate a friendly and courteous manner toward both internal and external customers. 
• Excellent organisational skills with the ability to work within a team environment and to deadlines. 
• Highly motivated, team player able to engage across multiple student and staff groups with the ability to work under pressure and to timelines. 
• An understanding of the importance of equality and diversity in the workplace.
• The ability to identify and respond to equality and diversity issues in line with relevant policies and procedures.
• Ability to present in a smart way – uniform will be provided for this purpose.

End Date: 29th April 2026