Senior NAM Grocery Channel

Laura Naidoo Recruitment; Kildare; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Laura Naidoo Recruitment represents a leading FMCG client seeking a Senior National Account Manager to grow one of its key grocery channels. You will lead planning and execution for Musgrave & Convenience, develop two direct reports, and drive collaborative retailer relationships.

Responsibilities include creating Joint Business Plans, negotiating trading terms, ensuring flawless execution of launches, optimizing promotions, and coordinating with Marketing, Finance and Supply Chain to deliver

Qualifications

• 5+ years' experience managing top-3 grocery accounts with people management.
• Experience in category management, revenue growth management or trade marketing.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop NAM and NAE to deliver key business objectives.
• Create and implement Joint Business Plans and trading terms.
• Plan and coordinate customer-specific business plans with shopper insights.
• Develop customer relationships and manage escalations to protect key accounts.
• Drive best-in-class visibility, promotions, and product launches at customer level.
• Mentor and coach the NAM and NAE in negotiation and account management.

Skills

Line management

Sales skills

Communication

Analysis

Teamwork

Education

Graduate calibre

Job description

Our client, home to some of the world's best loved food brands, is looking to hire a Senior National Account Manager to grow and develop one of its key grocery channels. This is a great opportunity to join a high performing team as it continues on its journey of growth and market acceleration.

Job Purpose

Accountable for leading, planning and delivering the channel's business plans across Musgrave & Convenience. Lead, coach and develop a National Account Manager (NAM) and National Account Executive (NAE) to support delivery of key business objectives, using consumer insight to delight the shopper at point of purchase and unlock collaborative retailer relationships.

Full implementation of the corporate strategy and calendar, aligned with customer strategy and calendar.

Development, coordination and negotiation of Joint Business Plans (JBPs) and trading terms.

Acts as the primary point of escalation for account-related issues, ensuring prompt and effective resolution and protecting the wider customer relationship.

Dimensions

• Categories: All categories
• Channel: Musgrave & Convenience
• Team: 2 direct reports (NAM, NAE), with additional coaching responsibility for wider team members

Responsibilities & Accountabilities

Business Planning

• Generate customer/channel-specific business plans through:
• Generation, development and implementation of a joint business plan
• Use of bespoke shopper insight
• Full understanding of business performance and key performance drivers
• Development of profit-based account plans and budgets, including identifying the customer's key volume and profit drivers
• Development of customer-specific promotional calendars in line with the corporate calendar
• Monitor customer promotional effectiveness via company toolkit/reporting systems and feed learnings into Revenue Growth Management and Commercial Finance
• Develop account-level Joint Business Planning and trade terms
• Manage customer product mix and align with strategic brand and category guidelines
• Build and maintain accurate sales and gross profit forecasts, course-correcting where necessary
• Support wider sales and other departments with development and understanding of systems and reporting

Business Execution

• Drive best-in-class visibility and availability of product ranges within the customer
• Negotiate new listings
• Implement new product launches at customer level
• Own the retail environment and plan customer merchandising support / field sales communication
• Plan, coordinate and execute price increases
• Leverage the multi-functional team (Marketing, Category, Revenue Growth Management, Finance and Supply Chain) to identify and resolve customer and broader business issues
• Improve customer performance by applying the expertise of marketing, revenue growth management and category management
• Develop and own the customer relationship
• Manage customer queries and DSO/deductions within guidelines and terms
• Mentor and coach the NAM and NAE in negotiation and account management practice, while acting as the senior escalation point in customer negotiations and relationship development to protect and strengthen key account outcomes
• Line management, training and development of 2 direct reports, and coaching of other team members within the sales and wider business teams

Key Interfaces

• Sales, Marketing, Revenue Growth Management, Finance and Supply Chain
• Customer buying, supply chain, category and finance teams
• Field sales

Qualifications & Experience

• Graduate calibre
• 5+ years' experience managing top-3 grocery accounts, with people management experience within a blue-chip FMCG organisation
• Some category management, revenue growth management or trade marketing experience

Knowledge & Skills

• Line management experience – previous experience managing and developing people
• Sales skills – structured selling process; able to conduct/lead a major negotiation and orchestrate a senior business review
• Communication – influential; builds effective links with senior management, both internally and with the customer
• Analysis and decision making – understands data search techniques and can interpret/use them to commercial advantage; able to scenario-plan against internal budgets and understand key cost drivers; sees reality and takes the appropriate decision/action decisively
• Teamwork – able to coach a team and develop individuals