Account Manager - Kolkata

Novonesis; Maharashtra; On-site; INR 1,800,000 - 3,000,000; Full time

Job summary

Novonesis in Kolkata seeks an Account Manager to cultivate strong customer relationships and drive sales of cultures and enzymes in the dairy sector.

You will work with customers to uncover needs, manage expectations, and coordinate with Technical, Marketing and Lab teams to deliver value, while maintaining visibility of sales and forecasts. This role emphasizes strategic account planning and cross-functional collaboration. Willingness to travel up to 50% is essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Dairy Technology, Dairy Science or Food Science.
• 10+ years of overall experience, with at least 5 years in sales.
• Strong dairy and food industry knowledge and commercial acumen.
• Proven ability to build and manage relationships with large corporate customers.
• Excellent communication, negotiation and presentation skills.

Responsibilities

• Own sales activities for assigned customers and meet annual sales budgets.
• Develop three-year strategic account plans to grow relationships.
• Maintain monthly reporting on sales, forecasts and projects (Salesforce).
• Coordinate with Technical, Marketing and Lab teams to support accounts.
• Travel up to 50% of the time.

Skills

Customer relationship management

Sales

Key account management

Cross-functional collaboration

Communication

Negotiation

Presentations

English proficiency

Education

Bachelor's or Master's degree in Dairy Technology / Dairy Science / Food Science

Tools

SAP

Salesforce

BI databases

Job description

Account Manager - Kolkata

Join Novonesis in a commercial role focused on developing strong customer relationships and driving sales of cultures and enzymes within the assigned area of responsibility. You will work closely with customers to understand both stated and unarticulated needs, manage expectations, identify opportunities and help strengthen long-term partnerships.

The role & your impact

In this role, you will be responsible for developing customer relationships and delivering the agreed sales objectives for accounts in your region. You will combine your knowledge of the dairy and food industry with strong commercial capabilities to create value for customers and grow the business.

You will work cross-functionally with Technical, Marketing, Business Development and local laboratory teams, while maintaining visibility of sales, forecasts and project progression.

Your key responsibilities will include

• Own sales activities for assigned customers and deliver the agreed annual sales budget for accounts within the region.
• Map key accounts and develop and execute three-year strategic account plans to strengthen customer relationships and identify growth opportunities.
• Maintain accurate monthly reporting on account sales, forecasts and development projects, and track project progression in Salesforce.
• Build a thorough understanding of customers' stated and unarticulated needs, creating value while effectively managing customer expectations.
• Coordinate technical support and product training for customers in collaboration with local laboratories, and work closely with Technical, Marketing and Business Development teams.
• Monitor relevant market and competitor developments, support participation in relevant fairs and exhibitions, and effectively use Novonesis sales tools, including SAP, BI databases and Salesforce.

What you’ll need to be successful in this role

For this opportunity, you will need:

• A Bachelor's or Master's degree in Dairy Technology, Dairy Science, Food Science, or a related relevant discipline from a recognized institution.
• 10+ years of overall professional experience, including a minimum of 5 years of sales experience.
• Strong knowledge of the dairy and food industry, combined with commercial and sales capabilities.
• Demonstrated experience building and managing customer relationships, particularly with large corporate customers and relevant stakeholders.
• Strong business and financial acumen, with the ability to translate customer needs into commercial opportunities.
• Strong communication, presentation, negotiation, writing and follow-up skills.
• Good written and verbal communication skills in English.
• Ability to collaborate cross-functionally and influence stakeholders to achieve results.
• Willingness and ability to travel up to 50% of the time.
• A results-driven, collaborative mindset with a strong focus on relationship building, sales planning and excellence.

Additional Skills & Interests We Value

It would be an advantage if you bring:

• Previous work experience in a dairy or food production plant.
• An established understanding of distributor networks within the dairy industry.
• Experience working with cultures, enzymes or other ingredients used within dairy and food applications.
• Familiarity with Salesforce, SAP and business intelligence tools.

What We Offer You

You will have the opportunity to combine your dairy or food technology background with your passion for commercial development and customer engagement.

The role offers extensive collaboration across Sales, Technical, Marketing, Business Development and laboratory teams, giving you the opportunity to contribute to customer solutions while developing strategic, long-term business relationships.

Ways of working

• This is a customer-facing role involving regular engagement with customers and cross-functional internal teams.
• Travel of up to 50% is required.
• The role requires effective collaboration with Technical, Marketing, Business Development and local laboratory teams.
• All assigned duties are expected to be carried out safely.

Our purpose guides the way

In Novonesis, we know that solutions rooted in biology can help solve humanity’s biggest challenges. Since we began more than a century ago, this has been our guide. It’s how we've gotten so far. And it’s how we'll impact the future. Now, more than ever, the world needs change. And with biosolutions, the possibilities for transformation are endless.

Opportunities for everyone

We are committed to an inclusive recruitment process and equal opportunity for all applicants.

We make all employment decisions based on business needs and welcome candidates with a wide range of backgrounds, including ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, or veteran status.

Explore Other Openings

If this position isn’t the right fit, you may still find other opportunities with us. You’re welcome to explore open roles or create a job agent to stay connected with future opportunities at novonesis.com/Career.