Account Manager

Kerry Group; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

Kerry Group is seeking an Account Manager for the UK & I team within Meat & Meals. You will manage a portfolio of customer accounts, acting as the single face of Kerry and selling across taste, preservation and coatings. The role requires significant UK travel and is open to candidates anywhere in the UK.

The ideal candidate has a technical culinary background with customer-facing experience and a passion for food, with the ability to develop deep customer relationships and drive growth.

Qualifications

• Previous sales/account management in food industry; travel across UK/Ireland is expected.
• Technical culinary background is desirable for understanding Kerry products.
• Experience with private label customers is a plus.
• Strong knowledge of food science and product development.
• Excellent negotiation and closing skills.
• Good commercial sense, numbers and profitability focus.
• Strategic thinker with ability to prioritise and plan.

Responsibilities

• Day-to-day account management and pipeline development for selected customers.
• Leverage Kerry tools to understand customer needs and present Kerry value.
• Promote Kerry product collections and identify new opportunities.
• Develop and execute Key Account Plans with customers and internal teams.
• Collaborate with internal departments to secure resources for projects.
• Understand categories Kerry operates in, market dynamics and competitors.
• Grow revenue, margin and market share while delivering excellent service.
• Deliver above-market growth aligned with regional and group goals.

Skills

Sales experience

Food industry

Negotiation

Analytical skills

Teamwork

Technical culinary background

Job description

About the role

We have an excellent opportunity for an Account Manager to join our UK&I team within the Meat & Meals business.

The Account Manager is responsible for a portfolio of customer accounts, as the “one face” of Kerry to the customer and is responsible for selling all relevant Kerry technologies and products into the designated account portfolio – this includes taste, preservation and coatings.

This is an excellent opportunity for someone with a technical culinary background, who is passionate about food and has some existing customer-facing/account management experience, looking to take the next step.

This role requires significant travel to our customers across the UK and Ireland, however, we are open to candidates being based anywhere in the UK, as long as you are comfortable with the travel elements.

About Kerry

Kerry is the world's leading taste and nutrition company for the food, beverage, and pharmaceutical industries. Every day we partner with customers to create healthier, tastier, and more sustainable products that are consumed by billions of people across the world. Our vision is to be our customers' most valued partner, creating a world of sustainable nutrition. A career with Kerry offers you an opportunity to shape the future of food while providing you opportunities to explore and grow in a truly global environment.

Our Safety purpose: At Kerry, we work together in a caring culture where everybody goes home safely every day. We are committed to providing a safe working environment and ensuring that all safety protocols are strictly followed. Join us in creating a workplace where safety is everyone's responsibility.

What you'll be doing

• Day to day account mgmt., pipeline generation and execution
• Leverage relevant sales tools and business enablers at your disposal, in order to fully understand our customers’ needs and thereby effectively convey the Kerry value proposition in relevant EUMs.
• Effectively promote the Kerry products collections and identify and present opportunities for profitable new developments, through deep analyses of customers’ branding and positioning on their markets
• Manage and develop a pipeline of new business opportunities in order to grow business revenue, margin and market share
• Effectively collaborate with internal colleagues across all departments to ensure appropriate resources for all projects
• Develop a deep understanding of the categories in which Kerry operates, key manufacturers supplying them, the competitive mix and regulatory framework
• Create and implement Key Account Plans in alignment with internal stakeholders and in partnership with the customer(s)
• Strive to be our customers’ most valued partner by putting them at the centre of everything we do, thereby ensuring excellent service and sustainable growth
• Deliver above market growth in line with Country, Region and Group aspirations

What you can bring to the role

• Sales / customer-facing RDA experience, where your technical capability has actively contributed to winning new business.
• Experience in business development or selling in the Flavour / Food Industry
• Experience in managing private label customers would be a plus
• Good working knowledge of food science and how it relates to product development and its commercialization.
• Strong negotiating ability with clients to achieve successful outcomes for Kerry.
• Positive, driven, articulate and persuasive.
• Good head for numbers: understanding costs, margins, profit and delivering shareholder value.
• Strategic thinker and planner. Evidence of ability to clinically prioritise top important objectives and structure and deliver smart plans to achieve them.
• Demonstrated understanding of their market, consumer trends, key players and competitive landscape.
• Passion for food, taste and teamwork to create great food that consumer’s love and our customers can sell in volume profitably and sustainably.
• Excellent commercial skills around contract negotiations & closing skills.

What we can offer

At Kerry, we believe in giving talented, curious people the opportunity to make a difference.

We work as a team, searching for the best ways to inspire food and nourish life.

We are a community of innovators, working across disciplines to solve global food challenges with a fresh approach. We want you to achieve whatever you put your mind to.

Our recruitment, selection and assessment process are based on the skills and competencies of the specific roles and based entirely on merit. We are committed to and value Diversity and Inclusion in all recruitment processes within Kerry and do not discriminate based on gender, race, class, economic status, ethnic background, sexual orientation, age, political beliefs, veteran status, marital status, or any other protected characteristic.