Associate Director, Sales - Kroger

Here at Kraft Heinz, our US Sales team aspires to be an indispensable partner with a growth and winning mindset, acutely focused on superior execution every day. This is our guiding compass to grow something great and make life delicious! 

We are looking for an insight driven, proactive, and motivated leader to join our team as an Associate Director leading our Hydration, Desserts, and Coffee portfolio. As part of the Kroger Customer Business Team, the Customer Sales Lead will own Kraft Heinz joint business growth efforts, strategy & investment choices, cross-functional initiative development, and execution with excellence. Reporting to the Area Vice President, Kroger Team, this position will identify & address new and existing business opportunities. If you seek to grow to your full potential, this is an incredible opportunity to support the largest Grocery customer and grow our beloved brands! 

Essential Functions & Responsibilities 

• Own P&L responsibility for the business across the account and manage all account financials against an annual operating plan including volume, revenue, margin, and trade efficiency 
• Lead cross-functional team to develop and execute specific account strategies, joint business plans and deliver execution with excellence. Deliver against customer & Kraft Heinz unit, sales, profit and execution targets. 
• Serve as omnichannel thought leader responsible for developing strategies, executing key initiatives, and achieving short and long-term targets  
• Lead major business reviews, joint business planning, line reviews, and “top‐to‐top” meetings. 
• Liaise cross-functionally to improve operational disciplines, such as forecasting and supply planning, with a strong understanding of in-store executional excellence and related metrics. 
• Develop strong customer relationships to enable both customer category and Kraft Heinz growth. 
• Mentor, manage, & coach cross functional partners and sales analysts through focus on team building, talent development and succession planning. 
• Harnesses the power of diversity – thinking, background, and experience. 
• Strong financial competence inclusive of previous experience delivering a P&L, proficiency in deploying trade, financial forecasting, and understanding of profit and revenue drivers. 

Work Environment & Schedule 

This position is considered a normal office environment with limited travel. Offices are open workspaces. Additionally, this role requires working a salaried, exempt schedule to best execute against customer and internal expectations. 

Qualifications 

• Progressive experience leading brands or account sales & building customer relationships with top tier retailers (Kroger preferred). 
• Demonstrated experience in high-low promotional planning and managing complex promotion plans 
• Significant experience in building customer relationships, preferably in a CPG environment. 
• Proven people leadership experience (recruiting, developing, and motivating a team) 
• Success working in a matrixed, cross-functional environment with Finance, Supply Chain, Category Leadership, and OMNI 
• Strong quantitative and analytical capabilities with ability to sell with data, turning insights into action. 
• Exceptional communication skills with ability to collaborate and build effective partnerships at all levels of the organization. 
• Strong negotiation skills and persuasive selling skills. 
• Bachelor’s degree in business, Finance or a related field. 

Physical demands include but not limited to 

• Willingness to drive and/or travel as needed. 
• Operate a computer and view screens for the majority of work schedule.