UWG Bookstore Manager

Job Summary

The Bookstore Manager provides on-site leadership for UWG Outfitters, the University's self-operated campus store and primary provider of academic course materials, ensuring students receive timely, accurate, and affordable access to required materials while maintaining effective retail, logistics, e-commerce, inventory, customer-service, and administrative operations.

Responsibilities

• Course Materials and Academic Service Oversight:

  • Direct and maintain accountability for multimillion dollar course material operations to ensure students receive timely, accurate, and affordable access to required materials in print, digital, inclusive access, and other formats.
  • Serve as the Course Materials Manager and establish expectations for faculty adoptions, vendor coordination, system setup, ordering, billing support, auditing, fulfillment, returns, and academic-term readiness.
  • Maintain independence in resolving escalated student, faculty, vendor, billing, or system issues; and direct corrective action to ensure course materials remain the bookstore's highest operational priority.

• Store Operations, Organizational Leadership and Staff Development:

  • Serve as the bookstores on-site operational leader, accountable for coordinated performance across course materials, retail, logistics, and administrative functions.
  • Directly supervise approximately 4-5 full-time staff with indirect oversight of 12-20 student employees.
  • Establish priorities and performance expectations; assign and direct work; hire, evaluate, discipline, and develop employees; and hold each functional area accountable for established standards.
  • Maintain a visible, engaged presence and sufficient working knowledge of each function to ensure continuity during vacancies, absences, and peak periods, providing frontline assistance, when necessary, without becoming the routine executor of staff work.

• Retail Performance and Customer Experience Oversight:

  • Direct and maintain accountability for the Retail Manager's execution of merchandise purchasing, product assortment, vendor relationships, sales-floor presentation, pricing, promotions, marketing, social media, sales performance, and customer service staffing.
  • Review sales results, merchandise plans, inventory productivity, and customer feedback to ensure alignment with financial goals and university branding requirements.
  • Approve purchasing, pricing, markdown, and promotional actions within delegated authority; direct corrective action when standards are not met; and ensure the physical and online retail experience remains welcoming and responsive.

• Logistics, Administrative Controls and Campus Readiness:

  • Direct and maintain accountability for the Logistics Manager's execution of receiving, deliveries, web-order fulfillment, inventory control, student hiring, onboarding, scheduling, and event logistics, ensuring readiness for academic rush periods, graduation, and campus events.
  • Oversee the accuracy of administrative functions including invoicing, cash handling, reconciliations, purchasing documentation, and operational reporting.
  • Enforce policies and internal controls; review performance and exception reports; resolve escalated operational matters; and coordinate with university departments and vendors to maintain continuity and implement improvements.

Qualifications

• Education:

  • Bachelor's Degree Required

• Experience:

  • Minimum of three years of progressively responsible retail and/or management experience, including supervisory or management responsibility for staff.
  • Must demonstrate responsibility for directing daily operations through assigned staff; hiring, training, evaluating, and disciplining employees; establishing performance expectations; managing customer service, inventory, sales, merchandising, or related operational functions; exercising independent judgment; reviewing operational or financial information; and using point-of-sale, inventory-management, or comparable business systems.

• Skills:

  • Ability to exercise independent judgment and make timely operational, personnel, and customer-service decisions within delegated authority.
  • Ability to lead through subordinate managers and functional staff while maintaining visibility, engagement, and accountability throughout the operation.
  • Ability to manage competing priorities, coordinate interdependent functions, and maintain continuity during academic rush periods, events, staffing shortages, and unexpected disruptions.
  • Ability to interpret operational and financial information, recognize risks or deficiencies, and implement corrective action.
  • Ability to establish effective working relationships across diverse constituencies, resolve escalated concerns, and communicate complex information clearly.
  • Ability to learn and apply changing course material models, retail technologies, institutional requirements, and industry practices.
  • Ability to work in retail, office, stockroom, and event environments; move throughout the store for extended periods; and occasionally bend, reach, stand, walk, and lift or move materials associated with bookstore operations.
  • Ability to work adjusted schedules, including occasional evenings and weekends, during academic rush periods, inventories, graduation, and campus events.

Knowledge

• Course Material Operations:

  • Academic course-material operations, including adoption cycles, sourcing, print and digital formats, inclusive-access programs, pricing, fulfillment, returns, billing coordination, and academic-term readiness.

• Retail Management Principles:

  • Mercadising, purchasing, inventory control, e-commerce, sales performance, customer service, loss prevention, and cash-handling controls.

• Supervisory and Performance Management:

  • Hiring, training, work assignment, employee development, performance evaluation, and disciplinary processes.

• Financial and Administrative Controls:

  • Invoicing, reconciliations, purchasing documentation, audit requirements, and operational reporting.

• University Policies and Procedures:

  • Personnel, procurement, financial accountability, accessibility, information security, and retail operations.

Salary

$57,056 to $68,000 annually. Paid on a monthly basis.