Product Manager: Retail

Herotel is looking for a highly talented Product Manager to join our team. This role combines vision with execution.

Position: Product Manager: Retail
Location: National (based at any Herotel office)
Reporting to: Head of Product and Digital

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. This 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 activated across group commercial and digital channels including website, portals, and direct sales platforms.

• 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 enterprisetechnologies (e.g., cybersecurity, managed Wi-Fi) for consumer-grade adaptation and incorporate 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 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 residential customers.
  • 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 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 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.

• 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.

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

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

• Preference will be given to Previously Disadvantaged Individual candidates, in line with Herotel's Employment Equity Plan.
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