Product Manager: Retail

Position Overview

Title: Product Manager – Retail
Location: National (any Herotel office)
Reporting to: Head of Product and Digital

About the Role

The Product Manager: Retail is responsible for the full lifecycle ownership of Herotel's Retail product portfolio, targeting residential customers across South Africa. This includes Tier 1 (monthly subscription) and Tier 2 (prepaid) fibre products, as well as adjacent offerings such as mobile, VAS, cybersecurity, loyalty, and customer apps.

The role drives product ideation, research, commercial planning, scope development, and go‑to‑market execution for the retail residential segment. The Product Manager: Retail ensures that Herotel's retail products are competitive, commercially viable, and successfully activated across group commercial and digital channels including website, portals, and direct sales platforms.

Key Performance Areas

Product Strategy & Roadmap

• Develop and manage the retail product roadmap for Herotel's residential fibre portfolio (Tier 1 monthly and Tier 2 prepaid) and associated services including mobile, VAS, cybersecurity, loyalty, and customer apps.
• Conduct ongoing market research and competitor analysis to identify opportunities and gaps in the South African residential broadband and digital services market.
• Translate market insights, customer feedback, and commercial objectives into a prioritised product backlog and development plan.
• Define product positioning, segmentation strategies, and differentiation for the residential market.
• Engage with the Enterprise Product Manager during roadmap planning to assess which enterprise technologies (e.g., cybersecurity, managed Wi‑Fi) are candidates for consumer‑grade adaptation, incorporating these insights into the retail product pipeline.

Product Development & Commercials

• Lead the end‑to‑end product lifecycle from concept and business case development through to launch, optimisation, and retirement.
• Develop and own the commercial model for each product including pricing, packaging, bundling, and promotional strategies to maximise ARPU, margin, and customer retention.
• Define product scope in collaboration with technology, network, and operations teams, ensuring feasibility and scalability.
• Build compelling business cases and financial models to motivate new product investment and inform pricing decisions.
• Manage the product P&L for retail offerings and track performance against commercial targets.

Go‑to‑Market & Channel Execution

• Develop detailed go‑to‑market plans for all new and refreshed products, including messaging, channel strategy, promotional mechanics, and enablement materials for commercial and digital teams.
• Partner closely with the group's commercial team and digital channels (website, portals, CRM) to ensure seamless product availability and visibility.
• Define product content requirements, digital journeys, and self‑service capabilities in partnership with the digital experience team.
• Drive customer activation, acquisition, upsell, and retention through well‑designed product offers and digital touchpoints.

Retention, Loyalty & Digital Services

• Design and manage retention‑focused products and programmes including loyalty, rewards, digital wallets, and payment solutions for the residential customer base.
• Define and monitor retention metrics and proactively develop interventions to reduce churn within the retail fibre segment.
• Oversee customer app product features related to the retail segment, ensuring an intuitive and engaging customer experience.

Stakeholder Engagement & Cross‑Functional Collaboration

• Act as the primary product owner for the retail segment, collaborating across technology, marketing, finance, legal, and commercial teams.
• Present product plans, business cases, and performance updates to senior leadership and key stakeholders.
• Manage relationships with third‑party vendors, content providers, and technology partners as required.
• Work closely with the Head of Product & Digital to ensure alignment with the broader product and digital strategy.
• Partner with the Enterprise Product Manager to co‑develop and pilot enterprise‑grade products — such as cybersecurity, SD‑WAN, and managed services — that can be fractionalised or adapted for the residential consumer market, enabling Herotel to leverage shared infrastructure and accelerate innovation across segments.

Performance & Reporting

• Define and track key product performance metrics including subscriber growth, ARPU, churn, activation rates, and NPS.
• Provide regular reporting on product performance to the Head of Product & Digital and relevant business stakeholders.
• Use data and customer insights to drive continuous product improvement and inform future roadmap decisions.

Key Outputs

• Product Profitability: Deliver a profitable retail product portfolio aligned with agreed margin targets and ARPU growth objectives.
• Customer Growth & Retention: Achieve defined subscriber activation targets and reduce churn through well‑executed retention programmes.
• Lifecycle Governance: Ensure every product has a defined business case, commercial model, roadmap, and performance tracking.
• Digital Activation: Deliver seamless product experiences across website, app, and CRM channels with measurable conversion improvements.
• Cross‑Segment Innovation: Deliver at least one annually agreed consumer‑adaptable enterprise product in collaboration with the Enterprise Product Manager, with a defined POC outcome and commercial recommendation.

Experience / Skills

• Minimum 5 years' experience in product management, with a proven track record of owning products from ideation through to commercial launch.
• Experience in the telecommunications or ISP sector is strongly preferred; telco background (particularly in fibre or broadband) is highly advantageous.
• eCommerce product experience, with an understanding of digital‑first customer journeys and online product management.
• Demonstrated experience in customer retention programmes, digital rewards, loyalty schemes, wallet and payments products, and customer‑facing apps.
• Strong commercial acumen with the ability to build financial models, define pricing strategies, and manage a product P&L.
• Experience working closely with digital channels (website, app, CRM) and commercial/sales teams to activate products effectively.
• Highly analytical, data‑driven approach to product decisions with strong business intelligence and reporting capability.
• Excellent stakeholder management, communication, and cross‑functional collaboration skills.
• Proven ability to manage multiple products and work streams simultaneously in a fast‑paced environment.

Education Requirements / Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in Business Administration, Information Systems, Digital Marketing, Commerce, or a related field.
• A postgraduate qualification (Honours, …)
• Product management certification (e.g., AIPMM, Pragmatic Institute, or equivalent) is beneficial.

Application Instructions

If interested and you meet all requirements, please submit your CV with contactable references and copies of related qualifications.

Please Note

• Preference will be given to Previously Disadvantaged Individual candidates, in line with Herotel's Employment Equity Plan.
• Submission of your CV provides Herotel with your express consent for us to process your personal information contained therein, for purposes of processing your application.
• Please refer to our Privacy Policy on our website for further information on how we process personal information.
• If you do not hear from us within 3 weeks, please deem your application as unsuccessful.