Commercial Director FM, SADC

ABOUT THE ROLE 

The role is responsible for commercial strategy and targets for the FM (Food Manufacturer) business domain in the assigned market. The role is accountable to identify/manage new business opportunities and pipeline, drive end-to-end business development process, generate business cases and represent the company for deal discussions together with internal stakeholders (marketing, supply chain, operations, R&D, sourcing, pricing, legal and finance).

The role devises the sales strategy for the assigned business areas, in alignment with regional/ global strategy and priorities, and ensures execution of the same through leading a team of sales professionals/ account managers towards delivering the sales volume and financial business objectives. 

The role will be part of the market leadership team and play an integral part in devising and delivering the market’s commercial growth strategy.       

KEY RESPONSABILITIES INCLUDE

• Develop, own and execute the strategic plan for achieving the business targets for the FM business towards maximizing volumes, margins and profitability
• Ensure that critical and strategic business drivers are known and understood within commercial and other relevant teams, in order to maximize sales potential in the area of responsibility
• Develop and expand customers and market segments
• Nurture and maintain new and existing customer relationships directly and through the team
• Identify new business opportunities and serve as  ‘frontline’ representative with potential customers to develop business
• Map and prioritize potential customers for outsourcing deals in the market, navigate internally to involve appropriate stakeholders, initiate and participate in outsourcing discussions, build and support business cases for various outsourcing models, identify and engage internal cross-functional stakeholders, and support/ lead implementation of the outsourcing projects
• Manage the planning of resources (budget, forecast, manpower, etc.), oversee budgetary controls and manage expenses
• Manage, coach and guide team members to enable their commercial performance, including through managing targets and sales processes, building capabilities, performance management, sales meetings, regular commercial reviews etc
• Continuously collect and assess market intelligence and key trends in order to adapt and devise market approaches; ensure relevant trends and information is communicated to appropriate functions/ internal stakeholders
• Provide ongoing analysis of sales performance metrics against budgeted objectives such as market share, margin, revenue growth, profitability; measure and assess effectiveness of overall commercial activities and update business plans accordingly
• Build and develop strong relationships with global/regional/local internal stakeholders to have a clear understanding of critical priorities and objectives and establish action plans that translate into business opportunities
• Be a part of the Market Leadership team and will be responsible for all company-wide agendas

ABOUT YOU

• Bachelor's degree, preferably in Business Commercial subject or Food technologist or equivalent (Master degree preferred)
• 12 to 15+ years of relevant experience in a commercial B2B environment, preferably in a multinational company in food industry or FMCG; knowledge and experience of chocolate industry is a plus
• Demonstrated track record in strategically developing new customers, new products and new market segments with maximizing volumes, sales margins and customer profitability, and managing end-to-end processes.
• Fluent in Business English; Native language in specific country is an added advantage
• IT Skills in the MS Office and Google suite
• Strong business acumen with solid commercial experience and credentials
• Proactive and entrepreneurial mindset; self-starter who takes ownership and accountability
• Agile, flexible and comfortable with ambiguity; Ability to thrive under pressure and ability to adapt to market needs and changes
• Strong cross-functional collaboration to achieve results
• Excellent communication and negotiation skills
• Hands-on style; willing to roll up sleeves
• Inspiring and effective people management
• Good interpersonal skills and teamwork: work cooperatively and effectively with others to set goals, resolve problems and make decisions that enhance organizational effectiveness.
• Strong organization & planning skills
• Strong ethics: understand ethical behavior and business practices and ensure own behavior and the behavior of others is consistent with these standards and aligns with the values of the organization.
• Focus on client needs: anticipate, understand, and respond to the needs of internal and external clients to meet or exceed their expectations.
• Strong in navigating complex matrix organizations, both internally and externally
• Strong negotiation and communication skills, engaging a wide variety of internal and external stakeholders across organizational boundaries
• A series of successful experiences in building a good working relationship with account and business influencers
• Analytical skills relevant for a sales and business development environment
• Experience managing people, with excellent motivational leadership skills, focusing on coaching and capability development