New structure for Punch's tenanted pubs division

Punch Taverns is to recruit 25 Operations Managers for its tenanted division in a major restructuring aimed at creating a closer and more supportive business relationship with its licensees.

The new posts create a new management tier as Punch reduces the number of regions from 16 to 12.

The Punch move is a positive one. It means that individual BRMs will receive much more day-to-day support from experienced managers​The PMA Team, MA deputy editor.

The new Operations Managers will each oversee a group of five or six Business Relationship Managers, providing them with day-to-day advice and support.

Effectively, Operations Managers become mini-regional directors overseeing around 360 pubs, with the Business Relationship Managers running around 60 pubs each.

The role of Regional Director at Punch is expected to become more strategic.

Punch is currently undertaking a 90-day consultation period on redundancies in the wake of the sale of 869 pubs to Admiral Taverns - it is due to be complete in mid-August. It has 165 business relationship managers, a figure which is expected to reduce to around 150 after the consultation process is complete.

The PMA Team, Morning Advertiser deputy editor comments:​ "The Punch move is a positive one. It means that individual BRMs will receive much more day-to-day support from experienced managers. ​

"The commonsense of this is that the best BRMs are likely to become Punch's new operations managers, offering their experience to more junior or less experienced BRMS.

"For BRMs, the new management tier will make a huge difference, making the BRMs job a less lonely one. You can imagine how unwilling BRMs might be to kick problems upstairs to Regional Directors for fear of being seen in a negative light.

"A newly promoted Operations Manager will be a much more accessible figure than a Regional Director.

"The creation of this new tier also provide BRMs with a sensible career progression route before they make the mighty leap to Regional Director.

"For licensees, it probably means the key meetings with their BRMs are attended by the local Operations Managers, a move that could be a positive one if procedures for contentious areas like rent reviews are strictly adhered to."