Senior Operations Administrator – E-commerce

Senior Operations Administrator – E-commerce

Location: Capricorn Business Park, Muizenberg, Cape Town

Employment: Full-time, permanent, office-based

Hours: Monday to Friday, 08:00–17:00

Reports to: Managing Director

Gross salary: R20,000 per month for the first three months. This increases to R25,000 per month after the three-month probation review if you meet the agreed performance standards and can independently coordinate the role's day-to-day operations within your authority. The increase is conditional on demonstrated competence, rather than time served alone.

Start: As soon as possible; please state your notice period and earliest available date.

ABOUT THE ROLE

H2O Warehouse is a South African online retailer of water filtration, pumps, irrigation and related products. We need an experienced, hands-on operations administrator to take ownership of daily order administration, customer service, supplier coordination and fulfilment, while guiding junior administrators.

You will keep work moving, resolve routine problems, spot discrepancies and make sure customer commitments are followed through. This role suits someone who has coordinated a busy administration or order-processing function and is confident working across several business systems. Product and process training will be provided; strong operational judgement and computer skills must already be in place.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES

• Coordinate the daily order and customer-service workflow, allocate tasks and check completion.

• Oversee orders from quotation and payment-status checks through purchasing, collection, delivery and after-sales follow-up.

• Liaise with suppliers and courier partners about stock, pricing, purchase orders, dispatch and delivery exceptions.

• Handle escalated customer enquiries professionally; refer technical, commercial or financial decisions beyond your authority to the Managing Director.

• Check purchase orders, supplier invoices, delivery records and system entries; investigate discrepancies and prepare accurate records for the accounting team.

• Maintain visibility of backorders, outstanding quotations, delayed deliveries, returns and unresolved queries.

• Train and support junior administrators, document procedures and ensure another team member can cover each critical process.

• Provide a concise daily view of priorities, blockers and items requiring management decisions.

• Learn the product range and help the team find reliable information quickly without guessing technical answers.

• Support improvements to our dashboards, workflows and business systems, including testing changes and reporting issues clearly.

ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS

• At least three years of relevant administration, order management, customer operations or sales-support experience, including responsibility for coordinating a workflow or supporting junior colleagues.

• Demonstrable competence across business software: e-commerce/order systems, inventory or purchasing systems, accounting interfaces, courier portals and Microsoft 365 or comparable tools.

• Strong Outlook and Excel skills, including filters, basic formulas and comparing records to identify discrepancies.

• Confidence working across multiple dashboards, windows and browser tabs while maintaining accurate records and an audit trail.

• Ability to prioritise competing demands, follow up consistently and resolve routine issues without repeated prompting.

• Clear written and spoken English, professional customer communication, numerical accuracy and attention to detail.

• Ability to learn new software, product information and documented processes quickly.

• Matric or equivalent; a relevant further qualification is advantageous.

• Ability to attend our Muizenberg office Monday to Friday, 08:00–17:00, and legal entitlement to work in South Africa.

Experience with Shopify, Cin7 Core, Xero, BOBgo or comparable platforms is advantageous. You do not need experience in every named platform. Experience in online retail, distribution, technical products or a small business with varied responsibilities is particularly relevant.

HOW WE SELECT

Shortlisted candidates will complete a supervised practical exercise using fictional orders, supplier documents and customer enquiries. We will assess prioritisation, accuracy, written responses, discrepancy handling, system navigation and the ability to explain a process to a junior colleague.

APPLY

Apply through Indeed with your CV and a short introduction. Describe the operations you have personally coordinated, the systems you used, any experience training colleagues, your notice period and earliest starting date. Confirm that the office location, hours and salary structure suit you.

Applications will be reviewed as received until the position is filled. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Please do not telephone the office about applications.

Pay: R20 000,00 - R25 000,00 per month

Application Question(s):

• Can you reliably attend our Capricorn Business Park, Muizenberg office Monday to Friday, 08:00–17:00?
• How many years of relevant experience do you have? Describe a daily operations or order-processing workflow you personally coordinated and any colleagues you trained or supervised.
• Which e-commerce, purchasing, inventory, accounting and courier systems have you used? State the tasks you personally completed in each, including your Excel skills.
• Do you accept R20,000 gross per month for the first three months, increasing to R25,000 after the probation review if agreed performance standards and independent operational competence are met?
• What is your notice period and earliest available starting date?
• Have you completed Matric or an equivalent qualification, and are you legally entitled to work in South Africa?
• A customer reports a late order, the courier portal shows no collection and the supplier says it was dispatched. What would you check, what would you tell the customer, and how would you follow this through?

Work Location: In person