Director, Channel Execution, Traditional Trade

The Coca-Cola Company; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 800 000 - 1 200 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the beverage industry seeks a senior professional to support the Franchise Unit Leader in developing commercial execution plans. This role involves driving retail execution strategies, optimizing investments, and fostering innovation across channels to enhance profitability. Candidates should possess a Bachelor's degree and extensive experience in commercial operations, with strong leadership and project management skills.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of prior commercial/franchise operations experience is a plus.
• Proven ability to work across cultures and functions.
• Strong self-starter with superior leadership skills.

Responsibilities

• Develop channel commercial execution plans for South Africa.
• Conduct investment analysis to optimize ROI for commercial initiatives.
• Manage balance between consulting support and franchise support.

Skills

Leadership

Project Management

Cross-Cultural Communication

Education

University Bachelor's degree

Job description

Location(s): South Africa

City/Cities:

Travel Required:

Relocation Provided:

Job Posting End Date: June 1, 2025

Shift:

Job Description Summary:

Position Overview:

This role supports the Franchise Unit Leader in developing channel commercial execution plans. It is responsible for driving organized retail execution of strategy for South Africa in collaboration with the Operating Unit (OU) Channel team. The role involves leading the system to evolve Channel and Commercial Capabilities in South Africa Franchise to drive top-line growth in traditional trade, and partnering with the Customer Director to ensure channel strategy execution within Modern trade customers.

What You'll Do for Us:

1. Develop alternative winning at point-of-sale solutions.
2. Engage bottlers with a focus on execution excellence.
3. Conduct investment analysis to optimize ROI for commercial initiatives within the channel.
4. Deliver higher ROI on investments within the channels.
5. Create coherent plans across channels to drive the right OBPPC (occasion, brand, package, price, and channel), improving system profitability and preventing channel leakages.
6. Bring innovation, especially in processes for execution solutions, managing increasing complexity as the company expands into more categories and sub-channels.
7. Leverage technology to modernize presence across channels, building competitive advantage with the Operating Unit Channel Lead.
8. Define and implement new processes, products, and commercial solutions to address complex business needs related to coolers, procurement, placement, tracking, and process improvement, supporting horizontal and vertical growth.
9. Interact with various organizational levels, including function heads, bottlers, external consultants, and vendors.
10. Manage the balance between consulting support and franchise support, with appropriate pushback when necessary.
11. Maintain sensitivity to franchise issues with strong interpersonal and presentation skills, both verbal and written.

Qualifications & Requirements:

1. University Bachelor's degree minimum.
2. 12+ years of prior commercial/franchise operations experience is a plus.
3. Proven ability to work across cultures and functions.
4. Strong, proven self-starter with superior leadership skills.
5. Ability to lead and influence teams, aligning resources towards common goals using best practices.
6. Ensure proper reflection and execution of marketing programs within the channel.
7. Project management experience for various channel initiatives.

Skills:

Details on specific skills are not provided in the original description.

Our Purpose and Growth Culture:

We are committed to fostering an inclusive culture grounded in our purpose: to refresh the world and make a difference. We embrace a growth mindset, value continuous learning, and focus on behaviors such as curiosity, empowerment, inclusiveness, and agility. Our culture is a key reason for our long-standing success. Visit Our Purpose and Vision to learn more about these behaviors and how to embody them in your role at Coca-Cola.