Business Unit Head Food Service

f'real; Andover; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading food company in the UK is seeking an experienced professional to lead the Food Service Distributors channel. This role involves strategy design, customer management, and P&L accountability, ensuring business growth and delivering on KPIs. The ideal candidate has strong interpersonal skills, a solid reputation in the grocery industry, and the ability to manage complex business plans. The role offers a dynamic work environment and the chance to shape market strategies.

Qualifications

• Experience in the grocery industry with a focus on customer needs.
• Ability to manage internal stakeholders at all levels.
• Reputation for delivering against customer needs.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Food Service Distributors channel across the UK.
• Design and implement the UK strategy for growth.
• Build market insights that deliver on AOP targets.

Skills

Expert interpersonal and relationship management skills

Ability to build complex business plans

Expert level of commercial management

Job description

Rich’s, also known as Rich Products Corporation, is a family-owned food company dedicated to inspiring possibilities. From cakes and icings to pizza, appetizers and specialty toppings, our products are used in homes, restaurants and bakeries around the world. Beyond great food, our customers also gain insights to help them stay competitive, no matter their size.

PURPOSE STATEMENT

Lead the Food Service Distributors channel across the UK and where appropriately internationally dependent on the nature of the contract. This role has P&L accountability for all production competencies of Rich products including those that may be available from other markets across customer brand and branded business. Delivery of a set of sales and profit KPI’s and share where recordable. This role has responsibility for market strategy, commercial choices and overall delivery of the business unit with a responsibility for ensuring the right approach is taken across channels.

Key Accountabilities/Outcomes

• Design, execution and delivery of the UK strategy for growth across the UK food service network (internationally if required) as well as the creation of new routes to market and delivery for our total portfolio across Bakery, TCCS, Pizza.
• Where there is F’real opportunity to support growth in Food service, work in conjunction with the BU Head F’real to build and deliver the right commercial approach.
• Create and implement the go-to-market strategy across all customers in Food service that delivers a clear return, leading the customer delivery against agreed AOP targets.
• Building with the cross-functional team the customer and market insights that deliver the short and long-term strategy against the customers AOP.
• Creating a set of leads and targets in partnership with the Customer Development Manager to ‘hunt’ as well as ‘farm’ those customers that need to deliver against AOP agreements.
• Leadership of the cross-functional business team and delivery of outcomes across all areas of responsibility, building a cross-functional high-performing team.
• Build a clear multi-level cross-functional contact strategy across customers, between Head of and Customer teams that ensures delivery across the full portfolio.
• Being the best in market at understanding our competition, their advantages and how we will counteract against their market approach.
• Build a clear ‘trusted partnership’ strategy that solves customers' problems and delivers for Rich’s.
• Being seen as the best in market custodian of our total portfolio.

Knowledge/Skills/Experience

Critical:

• Expert interpersonal and relationship management skills.
• The leader among the leadership group on customer insight and creating action to deliver return.
• Ability to build complex business plans, including future capital plans and ROI models.
• Building market insights through the team that creates actions across total category and customers.
• Has built a reputation in the grocery industry for delivery against customer needs whilst delivering a clear commercial plan.
• Manages internal stakeholders at all levels to ensure we are aligned against customer needs.
• Expert level of commercial management with tried and tested approach to customer JBP and business development.
• Ability to operate at pace in a fast-moving environment.

Desirable:

• Contacts and network across associated marketplace.
• Ability to manage complex capital ROI projects.
• Extensive knowledge of the food industry.
• A leader in JBP development and can create transformational change with customers through those JBP’s.
• Owns and understands the customer needs, is close to the customer voice and can ensure our plans relate to our plan for growth.

Rich Products Corporation welcomes and encourages applications from people with disabilities. Accommodations are available on request for candidates taking part in all aspects of the selection process.