VP Merchandising & Marketing

US Foods; Anchorage, Northern (AK, KY); On-site; USD 135,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

US Foods is seeking a senior Area Marketing and Category leader to develop and execute GTM strategies across the Area, including merchandising, pricing and product assortment. The role coordinates across multiple sites and leads virtual teams to drive sales and profitability.

A four-year business degree and at least 10 years in category management, marketing or purchasing are required, with proven leadership, negotiation and analytical skills.

Qualifications

• Four-year college degree in business or related field.
• Minimum of 10 years of category management, marketing and/or purchasing experience.
• Experience collaborating in a matrix environment and leading virtual teams across multiple sites.
• Overnight travel may be required for training, meetings or events.

Responsibilities

• Develop customized merchandising, marketing and category strategies for the Area.
• Oversee implementation of day-to-day initiatives within the Area, including product assortment changes and pricing changes.
• Monitor Area performance and align with national category strategy.
• Lead cross-site collaboration and share best practices to drive area growth.
• Manage area P&L and vendor relationships, and coordinate promotions with Sales.

Skills

Leadership

Negotiation

Analytical skills

Communication

Team collaboration

Education

Four-year degree in business or related field

Tools

Microsoft Word

Excel

PowerPoint

Outlook

Microsoft Access

Job description

ARE YOU A CURRENT US FOODS EMPLOYEE? Join Our Community of Food People! Fosters the development, implementation and successful execution of innovative category and “Go to Market” (GTM) strategies. Maintains lead role in implementing strategies, ensuring they adhere to overall national category strategies, while meeting Area needs. Oversees Area marketing activities. Facilitates and oversees customized pricing and product assortment for the Area based on customer needs. Identifies segment growth opportunities within the Area's market. Manages and oversees local needs and opportunities, marketing, brands management, culinary solutions and other specialists. Due to multiple sites within Area (including Hub and market DCs), this position requires virtual leadership in order to effectively cover the sales volume and labor force effectively.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Partner with corporate and region personnel on the development of customized merchandising, marketing and category strategies for the assigned Area Leadership of merchandising field support within the Area Hub based in the DCs and partnership with Area Replenishment leadership.
• This includes coordination and consistent execution of merchandising initiatives across multiple sites.
• Provide leadership and oversight with the implementation of day-to-day initiatives within the Area, including product assortment changes, marketing events, pricing changes, etc., aimed at driving Area sales performance and GP3 (purchase allowances + selling margin, less deviations).
• Closely monitor Area performance as it pertains to category initiatives, segmentation, sales performance, as well as localized and national market trends.
• Adjust strategy accordingly based on analysis, driving success and ensuring alignment with core US Foods strategies and local Area needs and strategies.
• Coordinate with Sr Dir Performance Optimization to oversee deployment of plays to, and turnaround of, poor performing markets.
• Share best practices from better performing markets to facilitate improvement.
• Monitor and direct department’s activities to ensure attainment of Area profit and loss (P&L) goals, including oversight on purchase allowances and cash discounts.
• Maximize profitable sales growth through assortment, pricing and marketing activities.
• Manage GTM strategies to drive sales, profit, and net new account growth.
• Manage prioritization of Area category initiatives, coordinating resources for execution and leading the overall Area-wide implementation.
• Manage relationships with Area-specific vendors and coordinate funding with region and local suppliers.
• Monitor and review Area product assortment across categories, with the aim of reducing duplicate and underperforming SKUs.
• Review and approve new-to-Area SKUs, as well as exception SKU's and provide feedback to region/RSC on SKU performance and opportunities.
• Ensure alignment with overall category strategy and drive EB penetration across Area customer base.
• Manage (Area Pricing Manager) and oversee deviation process; margin management, negotiate and/or assist with negotiation of vendor-funded deviations.
• Work closely with Sales to plan and facilitate local promotions, customer events and general marketing activities, including managing Area marketing communications and branding activities (aligned with national category strategy).
• Plan and review Area marketing budget and allocate funds across Area.
• Assist in the development, execution, and ongoing maintenance of the Area training schedule.
• Serve as key point of contact for new customer on-boarding, one-off-bids for existing customers, as well as coordinating requests through Area’s Save-Our-Sales (SOS) program.
• Coordinate new customer on-boarding and exit processes.
• Manage and coordinate sales-based activities and direction of sales’ solutions and other Area-specific Specialists, such as Chemical and Beverages, Culinary Equipment and Supplies, etc.
• Manage and direct the sales support team.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Education/Training: Four-year college degree in business or related field, or equivalent related field experience required.
• Related Experience/Requirements: Management experience and a minimum of 10 years of category management, marketing and/or purchasing experience required, preferably from foodservice or food manufacturing industries.
• Ideal candidate has experience that includes collaboration in a functional matrixed environment and virtual leadership across multiple sites.
• Overnight travel may be required to participate in training, meetings, or other company events.

Must possess the ability to operate successfully within a matrix organization, working effectively with multiple groups. Excellent management skills, negotiation skills, verbal and written communication skills, as well as solid quantitative and analytical skills required. Demonstrated history of utilizing skills of influence, persuasion, and effective negotiation to further goals required, as is the ability to work in a team setting, drive organizational transformations, and support change management within the organization. Must effectively provide fact-based recommendations across a variety of management levels resulting in buy-in and improvement in category performance. Must be self-directed and highly motivated, possessing a strong business acumen, sound interpersonal skills and excellent presentation skills, with the ability to efficiently communicate to multiple levels in the organization. Intermediate proficiency required in the use of Microsoft Office, especially Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook. Prior experience with Microsoft Access a plus. Proven leadership and experience managing direct reports required.

COMPENSATION

Compensation depends on relevant experience and/or education, specific skills, function, geographic location, and other factors as applicable by law (for example: state or local minimum wage thresholds). The expected base rate for this role is between $135,000 - $210,000

EEO

***EOE– Race/Color/Religion/Sex/SexualOrientation/Gender Identity/National Origin/Age/Genetic Information/Protected Veteran/Disability Status***

BILINGUAL & LANGUAGES

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US FOODS COMPANY

US Foods is one of America’s great food companies and a leading foodservice distributor, partnering with approximately 300,000 restaurants and foodservice operators to help their businesses succeed. With 28,000 employees and more than 70 locations, US Foods provides its customers with a broad and innovative food offering and a comprehensive suite of e-commerce, technology and business solutions. US Foods is headquartered in Rosemont, Ill., and generates more than $28 billion in annual revenue. Visit www.usfoods.com to learn more.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

US Foods may collect personal information from you in connection with the application process. US Foods complies with the California Privacy Rights Act of 2020, and its policy may be found here. US Foods, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other basis prohibited by applicable law.

RARE POLICY

Know Your Rights Pay Transparency policy statement is available here US Foods is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the interview process or to perform essential job functions, please contact our US Foods Application Accommodation Line at 866-960-5886. You will be prompted to leave a message. Please state the specifics of the assistance needed and your contact information. A member of our HR department will return your call within two business days.