National Key Account Manager

Vaco Recruiter Services; Louisville (KY); On-site; USD 85,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Vaco Recruiter Services in Louisville seeks a Senior Key Account Manager to manage and grow strategic customer relationships in the food and beverage manufacturing sector, serving as the primary contact for key accounts, driving revenue growth, and coordinating cross-functional teams to fulfill commitments.

The ideal candidate will have 6+ years in key account management, strong negotiation and presentation skills, experience with QuickBooks and CRM, and a proven track record expanding service

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Sales, Food Science, or related field; equivalent experience may be considered.
• 6+ years of key account management, business development, or sales in food and beverage manufacturing or related industries.
• Proven track record of growing strategic customer relationships and achieving revenue targets.
• Experience managing large retail, distributor, foodservice, grocery, or wholesale accounts.
• Strong financial acumen and ability to analyze sales and profitability data.
• Hands-on experience with QuickBooks.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Office, particularly Excel.
• Excellent negotiation, communication, and presentation skills.

Responsibilities

• Manage a portfolio of strategic and high-value customer accounts.
• Develop and maintain strong, long-term relationships with key decision-makers.
• Serve as the primary escalation point for customer concerns and service issues.
• Conduct regular business reviews to assess performance, identify opportunities, and strengthen partnerships.
• Identify opportunities to increase sales, introduce new products, and expand offerings within existing accounts.
• Develop account growth strategies and annual business plans for assigned customers.
• Collaborate with customers on forecasting, promotional planning, and product launches.
• Achieve revenue, margin, and profitability targets.
• Support contract negotiations, pricing discussions, and renewal activities.
• Monitor market trends, analyze sales performance, and maintain forecasts.
• Generate regular account performance reports and business insights.
• Partner with production, supply chain, quality assurance, logistics, and customer service teams.
• Ensure timely product availability, order fulfillment, inventory planning, and delivery schedules.
• Work with finance on pricing, invoicing, and collections; reconcile accounts as needed.
• Maintain accurate customer and sales records within QuickBooks and CRM systems.

Skills

Key account management

Relationship management

Sales strategy

Negotiation skills

Forecasting

Communication

Presentation skills

Cross-functional collaboration

Financial acumen

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Sales, Food Science, or related field

Tools

QuickBooks

CRM systems

Excel

Microsoft Office

Job description

The Senior Key Account Manager is responsible for managing and growing strategic customer relationships for a food and beverage manufacturing company. This role serves as the primary point of contact for key accounts, ensuring customer satisfaction, driving revenue growth, identifying expansion opportunities, and coordinating internally to meet customer expectations. The ideal candidate will possess strong relationship management skills, experience within the food and beverage manufacturing industry, and a proven ability to successfully manage high-value accounts from contract negotiation through fulfillment.

Essential Responsibilities

Account Management & Customer Relations

• Manage a portfolio of strategic and high-value customer accounts.
• Develop and maintain strong, long-term relationships with key decision-makers and stakeholders.
• Serve as the primary escalation point for customer concerns and service issues.
• Conduct regular business reviews with key customers to assess performance, identify opportunities, and strengthen partnerships.
• Ensure high levels of customer satisfaction and retention.

Business Development & Revenue Growth

• Identify opportunities to increase sales volume, introduce new products, and expand service offerings within existing accounts.
• Develop account growth strategies and annual business plans for assigned customers.
• Collaborate with customers on forecasting, promotional planning, and product launches.
• Achieve revenue, margin, and profitability targets.
• Support contract negotiations, pricing discussions, and renewal activities.

Sales & Market Analysis

• Monitor market trends, customer purchasing behaviors, competitor activity, and industry developments.
• Analyze sales performance data and prepare recommendations for leadership.
• Maintain accurate forecasts and sales pipelines.
• Generate regular account performance reports and business insights.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with production, supply chain, quality assurance, logistics, and customer service teams to ensure customer requirements are met.
• Coordinate product availability, order fulfillment, inventory planning, and delivery schedules.
• Work closely with finance regarding pricing, invoicing, collections, and account reconciliations.
• Participate in strategic planning and continuous improvement initiatives.

Financial & QuickBooks Responsibilities

• Utilize QuickBooks to monitor customer transactions, review account activity, support invoicing processes, and generate financial reports.
• Review account profitability and sales trends.
• Assist with pricing analysis and margin management.
• Partner with finance teams to resolve billing discrepancies and payment issues.
• Maintain accurate customer and sales records within QuickBooks and CRM systems.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Sales, Food Science, or related field; equivalent experience may be considered.
• 6+ years of key account management, business development, or sales experience in food and beverage manufacturing, consumer packaged goods (CPG), or related industries.
• Proven track record of growing strategic customer relationships and achieving revenue targets.
• Experience managing large retail, distributor, foodservice, grocery, or wholesale accounts.
• Strong financial acumen and ability to analyze sales and profitability data.
• Hands-on experience with QuickBooks.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Excel.
• Excellent negotiation, communication, and presentation skills.

Preferred

• Experience working with private label, co-packing, or food manufacturing environments.
• Familiarity with food safety regulations and manufacturing processes.
• Experience supporting national or regional account portfolios.

Physical Requirements & Travel

• Ability to travel up to 25-40% as required for customer meetings, trade shows, and industry events.
• Ability to work in an office, manufacturing, and customer-site environment.
• Occasionally lift up to 25 pounds when attending events, trade shows, or product demonstrations.