National Accounts Manager - UNFI

Smithfield Packaged Meats Sales Corp; Minnesota; On-site; USD 105,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation package

Job summary

Smithfield Foods is seeking a National Accounts Manager in Minnesota to lead strategic direction for national corporate accounts, expanding relationships with key customers and cross-functional teams. You will drive sales programs, secure placements, and organize broker partnerships to fuel long‑term growth.

You will collaborate with Marketing, Finance and Operations to optimize pricing, forecasting, and logistics, while developing category strategies and launching new items.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree plus 8+ years in retail or foodservice meat trade.
• 2+ years of team management or project leadership.
• Strong understanding of food business dynamics and retail channels.
• Experience with data sources like IRI, Nielsen, and Perishable Group data.
• Excellent written and verbal communication and adaptability.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic direction for national corporate accounts aligned with Smithfield’s goals.
• Guide sales professionals and broker partners to deliver results across categories.
• Collaborate with Marketing, Finance, and Operations to optimize the customer relationship.
• Develop category management strategies and launch new items for growth.
• Foster a positive employee experience through development and coaching.

Skills

Strategic vision

Sales leadership

Customer relationships

Cross-functional collaboration

Negotiation

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

SAP

Job description

Have a seat at our table.

When you join Smithfield, you become part of something special – a company that’s sustainably feeding people around the world, producing good food the right way with respect for our people, animals, communities and planet. With opportunities across locations and functions, a culture grounded in our Core Four values – gratitude, communication, respect and accountability – and a strong commitment to learning, collaboration, and innovation, Smithfield offers challenging and rewarding careers where you can grow, contribute and make a real impact.

THE VALUE YOU’LL BRING:

The position summary states the general nature and purpose of the job. Overall accountabilities are defined in this section. Are you a driven and motivated Sales professional who thrives in a fast‑paced environment, building relationships with customers, collaborating with great internal teams, being innovative to achieve business results? Join one of the country’s top consumer packaged goods companies, Smithfield Foods! We have built a culture that places value on our employees, our animals, the environment and the communities we all share. Smithfield Foods and our Sales teams are consistently evolving and looking for individuals that can help foster relationships and achieve results to impact our bottom line! As a Sales Team member, your primary responsibility would be introducing and placing new products with customers, executing organizational initiatives, and driving sales on key items with strategic customers for long‑term growth. Whether it is bacon, ham, fresh pork or another product category you will work directly with the customers and cross‑functional with everyone from Business Management to Plant Operations to deliver the service and products to our customers and consumers. As a National Accounts Manager, you're the driving force behind maintaining and expanding national chain accounts. You collaborate closely with marketing, business, and trade teams to craft compelling and impactful sales programs. You’re the one who introduces new products to our customers, secures placements, and brings sales initiatives to life. With strategic vision, you build programs that boost sales of key items and fuel long‑term growth with top‑tier customers. You develop and manage broker relationships. You ensure flawless execution of our sales initiatives in retail or in foodservice. When it comes to your key customers, you make things happen.

WHAT YOU’LL DO:

• Lead with Strategic Vision: You drive the strategic direction for national corporate accounts, aligning Smithfield’s goals with customer objectives. Your leadership ensures that initiatives are implemented effectively across the organization, fostering long‑term partnerships and sustainable growth.
• Empower High‑Performing Sales Teams: You guide and support a network of sales professionals, including Divisional Directors, Regional Managers, and broker partners. Through clear communication and aligned execution, you create a unified approach that delivers results across processed and fresh pork categories. You create links between national and divisional sales teams, ensuring consistent messaging and execution with operator and multi‑unit businesses. Your efforts expand Smithfield’s presence across critical segments like Healthcare, Education, Hospitality, and Convenience Stores.
• Collaborate Across Functions for Impact: You work hand‑in‑hand with Business Management, Marketing, Finance, and Operations to ensure every aspect of the customer relationship is optimized. From pricing and forecasting to innovation and logistics, your cross‑functional collaboration drives profitability and performance.
• Drive Category Excellence and Innovation: You lead the development of category management strategies that balance branded and distributor portfolios. By identifying optimal product mixes, rationalizing SKUs, and launching new items, you ensure Smithfield remains competitive and responsive and introduction of product mix to ensure key product are identified.
• Leadership: Drives a positive employee experience through leadership by way of employee development and coaching.

WHAT WE’RE SEEKING:

• Education & Experience: Bachelor’s degree from an accredited four‑year college or university and 8+ years’ relevant experience in retail or foodservice meat trade; or equivalent combination of education and experience, required.
• Leadership: 2+ years of demonstrated experience in team management/development or project leadership is required.
• Industry Knowledge: Strong understanding of the dynamics of the food business industry or retail channels.
• Demonstrated experience of customer‑focused and fact‑based selling, including IRI, Neilsen and Perishable Group data.
• Strong critical thinking and problem solving skills.
• High level of written and verbal communication skills, organizational planning, and adaptability.
• Ability to work well with others in fast paced, dynamic environment.

OTHER SKILLS THAT MAKE YOU STAND OUT:

• Existing customer contacts with large National chain accounts
• Understanding of product cuttings including knowledge of product attributes
• Knowledge and experience with SAP

PHYSICAL DEMANDS & WORK ENVIRONMENT:

The physical demands described here are representative of those an employee should possess to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee may encounter while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Capable of sitting for extended periods of time. Occasionally lift and/or move up to 25lbs. Frequently required to sit; stand; walk; reach with hands and arms. Specific vision abilities required include close vision, distance vision, peripheral vision and depth perception. Able to travel 50-75% of the time Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

The expected pay range for this position is $105,000 - $140,000 annually.

Relocation Package Available Yes

Relocation Package Available Yes

EEO Information

Smithfield is an equal opportunity employer committed to workplace diversity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, gender identity, protected veterans status, status as a disabled individual or any other protected group status or non‑job characteristic as directed by law. If you are an individual with a disability and would like to request a reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment selection process, please call us at 757-357-1595.

At Smithfield, good food starts with good people. \"Good food. Responsibly.®\" is more than just our tagline; it's what we do. We provide good jobs. We take good care of our animals. We are good stewards of the environment. We do good in our local communities. Smithfield is proud to offer robust, flexible and affordable benefit plans and programs to support our team members and their loved ones, and with out‑of‑pocket costs, on average, 20 percent less than plans offered by other employers. Beyond our medical plans, our Be Well programs offer tools and resources to enhance your quality of life, at no additional cost. These programs are uniquely tailored to our Smithfield team and provide support for elective surgeries, weight loss, mental health, cancer, kidney disease, diabetes, smoking cessation, asthma, maternity management and more. Our company invests in your future. We offer comprehensive training and professional development programs designed to help you reach your full potential. Through LinkedIn Learning, employees can access on‑demand courses, professional certificates, and skill‑based training to build capabilities aligned with career and business needs. Our partnership with Guild supports your continuing education with tuition assistance covering English language learning, high school completion, and degree programs, while our leadership development initiatives nurture high‑potential talent. We also offer unique benefits like our Smithfield Scholarship Program for employees’ children.

Headquartered inSmithfield, Virginia,since 1936,Smithfield Foods, Inc. is an American food company with a leading position in packaged meats and fresh pork products. With a diverse brand portfolio and strong relationships with U.S. farmers and customers, we responsibly meet demand for quality protein around the world. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com. We believe in the power of protein to end food insecurity and have donated hundreds of millions of food servings to our communities. Smithfield boasts a portfolio of high‑quality iconic brands, such as Smithfield®, Eckrich® and Nathan's Famous®, among many others.

For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com and connect with us on Facebook, X, formerly known as Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

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