Depot Liaison Manager – Fuel & Transport Logistics
Location: Johannesburg, Gauteng (Preferred)
Salary: R35,000 – R45,000 gross per month (negotiable up to R50,000 for exceptional candidates)
Employment Type: Permanent, Full-Time
Travel: Frequent national travel required
Job Overview
We are seeking an experienced, commercially driven Depot Liaison Manager to manage and strengthen relationships with fuel depots across South Africa.
The successful candidate will be responsible for negotiating competitive fuel purchasing prices, maintaining strong relationships with depot owners and operators, ensuring service excellence, and identifying opportunities to improve depot coverage and commercial performance.
This is a hands-on, field-based commercial role requiring a solid understanding of the fuel industry, transport logistics, supplier negotiations and operational service delivery.
The ideal candidate will be a confident negotiator, an effective relationship builder and someone who understands the commercial and operational requirements of fuel depots and transport operators.
Key Responsibilities
Depot Relationship Management
- Build, maintain and strengthen commercial relationships with existing fuel depots.
- Conduct regular on-site visits to depot owners, managers and operational teams.
- Monitor depot service delivery and ensure agreed service improvements are implemented.
- Resolve depot-related operational and commercial issues in collaboration with internal teams.
- Escalate unresolved matters to senior management where necessary.
- Ensure depot partners adopt and effectively utilise the company's technology solutions.
Commercial Negotiations & Supplier Management
- Negotiate competitive fuel purchasing prices and favourable commercial terms with depot operators.
- Identify opportunities to improve supplier agreements and reduce fuel procurement costs.
- Analyse fuel pricing, purchasing volumes and service performance across transport routes.
- Recommend commercial improvements based on operational data and market conditions.
- Maintain strong supplier relationships while ensuring commercial competitiveness.
Depot Network Development
- Evaluate depot coverage across existing transport routes.
- Identify geographical coverage gaps and potential new depot partners.
- Recommend the addition, replacement or removal of depots based on commercial and operational performance.
- Coordinate commercial onboarding and supplier due diligence for new depot partners.
- Facilitate the handover of newly onboarded depots to technical and operational teams.
- Promote new depot locations and improved commercial offerings to relevant stakeholders.
Compliance & Administration
- Ensure supplier service level agreements (SLAs) remain current and compliant.
- Maintain accurate supplier due diligence and Know Your Supplier (KYS) documentation.
- Monitor fuel testing documentation and relevant depot compliance records.
- Work closely with Finance and Operations to resolve supplier-related issues.
- Provide regular commercial and operational updates to management.
Minimum Requirements
- Relevant experience in fuel distribution, fuel depot operations, transport logistics, supplier management or a closely related industry.
- Demonstrated experience negotiating supplier pricing and commercial agreements.
- Proven ability to build and maintain relationships with suppliers and operational stakeholders.
- Sound understanding of commercial pricing, purchasing volumes and service delivery performance.
- Experience managing supplier agreements and resolving operational service issues.
- Strong analytical, negotiation and problem-solving abilities.
- Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
- Ability to work independently and manage relationships across multiple locations.
- Own reliable vehicle.
- Willingness and availability to travel frequently throughout South Africa.
Preferred Experience
- Previous experience working with fuel depots, fuel distributors, transport operators or fleet-related businesses.
- Established relationships within the fuel supply or transport logistics industry.
- Experience negotiating fuel purchasing rates or similar volume-based commercial agreements.
- Understanding of transport routes, fuel consumption patterns and depot network requirements.
- Experience with supplier onboarding, due diligence and service level agreements.
- Familiarity with technology-enabled fuel management or depot operating systems.
Key Competencies
- Commercial Negotiation & Supplier Management
- Fuel Industry & Transport Logistics Knowledge
- Relationship Building & Stakeholder Engagement
- Commercial Analysis & Cost Optimisation
- Depot Network Development
- Operational Problem-Solving
- Contract & SLA Management
- Independent Field-Based Management
- Communication & Reporting
Package & Remuneration
- Gross monthly salary: R35,000 – R45,000.
- Exceptional candidates may be considered up to R50,000 per month.
- Business-related travel and accommodation expenses reimbursed.
- Potential performance-based bonus linked to commercial achievements and depot service improvements, subject to finalisation.
Ideal Candidate Profile
The ideal candidate is a commercially minded professional with practical exposure to the fuel or transport logistics sector.
They should be comfortable engaging directly with depot owners, negotiating pricing and commercial terms, analysing operational performance and travelling extensively to build and maintain supplier relationships.
We are particularly interested in candidates who can demonstrate measurable improvements in supplier pricing, commercial agreements or service delivery.
Applications: www.sassoconsulting.co.za/jobs
Manatal Job Classification
Job Title: Depot Liaison Manager – Fuel & Transport Logistics
Location: Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
Employment Type: Permanent
Work Arrangement: Field-Based / National Travel
Industry: Oil & Energy / Fuel Distribution / Transport & Logistics
Job Function: Operations / Supplier Relationship Management / Commercial Management
Seniority Level: Mid-Senior Level
Salary Range: R35,000 – R45,000 gross monthly (up to R50,000 for exceptional candidates)