Channel Manager

PURPOSE OF ROLE

To manage national & key accounts in your allocated Channel / Sector. To engage, support & brief Channel Sales Managers & Sales Development Representatives on accounts that they cover at site level within your ledger. To create & provide all relevant information to ensure that the Customer Engagement team are fully briefed & able to execute the sales plan. Understand the Customers world.

REPORTING AND KEY RELATIONSHIPS The Channel Manager will report to the Channel Lead (Controller or Senior) Key business contact in customer network: Buyers, Chefs, Supply Chain, Marketing, Finance, Sales, Operations. Target contacts: Buying Directors, NPD teams, Chefs, Associations. Internal teams: Channel Team, Business Insights, Finance Team, Ecommerce Team, Customer Engagement Team, Product Team, Marketing, Operations, Supply Chain, Technical & Quality Control, Chefs.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES STRATEGY

• Own, develop & execute a LIVE strategic Sector plan work and review regularly with Line manager & Business Insights.
• Work with field sales to ensure the Sector plan is relevant & aligned collective collaboration is key.
• Deliver the agreed strategic plan by sector for the account portfolio you are responsible for, including the development & retention of existing business & new business opportunities.
• Provide a detailed period brief (templated) for any accounts that have Field coverage & / or Customer Engagement contact.
• Work with the Channel / Field Sales and Customer Engagement teams to design and implement tactical activity in your accounts to support your account plan aligned and agreed 3 months in advance. Deliver sales forecast and revenue, EBIT from assigned national or development accounts.
• Customer Contact Strategy Get inside your customers world to fully understand it & how DDF can best access & maximise the opportunity.
• Ensure pricing defensibility implemented & maintained across the account portfolio / channel.
• Share good & best practice across the Channel Team to ensure that all opportunities are maximised.
• Work collaboratively across the Sales function & Business Insights to ensure that all Channel / Sector opportunities & learnings are taken into consideration and applied through the Channel / Sector strategic plan.

ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT

• Develop an Account Plan for Each Customer in line with the Company / Business Unit Plan to deliver Sales Value Target & Margin EBIT forecast and budget within each customer across your account portfolio. This plan is to develop into a JBP with key customers Aligned to Buys / Customers own KPIs (Easy to do business with).
• Devise, implement & execute a promotional plan which will include NPD, promotional offers and menu development & listings aligned to customers strategic direction / focus & development plans.
• Accountable for completion of written correspondence (contact reports 48hrs post call) regarding meetings, proposals, re-negotiations, presentations. File & documentation to be stored centrally (S:DRIVE).
• Ensure all customer communication is completed & actioned in a timely manner with account file updated post each meeting, site visit or electronic / phone communication.
• Pro-actively manage your account portfolio from a credit perspective to ensure that disputes, queries etc, are promptly resolved, aged debt is kept to the minimum and maximum sites are available to trade at all times.
• Manage your accounts payment terms to the benefit of DDF, strive for 30 days EOM and adherence to those terms.
• Identify & implement ways in which to service customers that will deliver incremental profit; RTM strategy, product mix, electronic trading, Field / Customer Engagement Team support etc.
• Quarterly review of account profitability through latest business case mechanic by SKU with all terms included.
• On a quarterly basis present your business plan for your account portfolio to the senior sales management team supported by quarterly account profitability review.
• Create an account contact matrix for your portfolio detailing all required meetings by account along with the required frequency. In addition site visits to be completed on a monthly basis to ensure a full understanding of your customers business & relevance of any proposed listings / activities. Matrix & plan to be signed off & reviewed regularly by Channel Lead.

SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

• Ideally degree educated (Business discipline).
• Experience of National Account Management (ideally in a food related business).
• Sales experience & Sales Skill.
• Team Player. Dynamic Go Getter Highly Motivated.
• Good Communicator.
• Strategic Thinker, Active Doer.
• Flexible & Nimble to Change.
• Strong negotiation skills and the ability to influence & present at all levels.
• Highly developed Presentation skills.
• Clear confident communication skills both verbal and written.
• Highly developed numerical skills, complete P&L understanding to Senior Management level.
• General interest in people.
• Demonstrable drive and enthusiasm.
• Highly mobile as role will require significant travel across the UK.