Customer Account Lead II

Kroger Customer Account Lead II-Meals Baking Operating Unit

OVERVIEW

The General Mills team is seeking a Customer Account Lead II (CAL II) to support our Meals Baking sales team.

As a CAL II you will drive General Mills' holistic plan at Kroger, following planning principles and be responsible for driving volume and sales at General Mills largest grocery customer for assigned categories and brands within our Meals Baking Operating Unit. Specific responsibilities include:

• Drive merchandising plans in close coordination with our internal operating unit and Kroger category managers
• Owning and planning annual volume plan to drive sales growth
• Leverage tool suite to optimize pricing and merch flow in highly competitive categories
• Close partnership with brand and category management to accelerate strategic category partnership and brand growth with Kroger
• Leverage cross-functional support team to achieve overall objectives

Strong candidates for this role require strategic thought and a strong working knowledge of trade planning processes. Individuals must be highly motivated with a hunger for growth & learning to be successful in their role as it's fast-paced and continues to evolve as Kroger grows and develops their suite of vendor capabilities. Applicants should be comfortable with developing winning plans, managing a trade budget, delivering volume estimates and positively impacting the Kroger region and team.

This role will provide the holder with excellent development opportunities, including:

• Leverage and learn about a wide variety of cross-functional resources to drive the total business (Region Category management, close collaboration with ICS and Kroger on forecasting models, Integrated Shopper Marketing planning on consumer plans and ecomm development)
• Access to a large support and resource network with the Kroger team (65+ people) to build a personal brand and drive differential impact to Kroger region culture, General Mills Allyship efforts, and coaching & development opportunities of associate talent
• Demonstrate engaging leader behaviors both as a direct manager & as a member of the associate group at the KBC

This role is located out of our Kroger Business Center in Cincinnati, OH.

Our people are at the heart of what makes General Mills great - it's why people join and stay. When we connect, co-create, collaborate, and celebrate together, it strengthens our relationships and increases trust. To Win Together, we need to be together, physically and virtually. To do that effectively, we need to think about connecting with intentionality - the moments both big and small, in-person, virtual, and hybrid.

Given that collaboration is critical to the success of our team members, our teams, and our business, the expectation for this role will be to work in the office on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays each week. Our policy allows flexibility for the reality of business and personal schedules. Monday and Friday are flexible regarding your work location.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES SELLING EXPERTISE & LEADERSHIP

• Develop and maintain effective customer relationships
• Understands customer needs and links them to product and service strategies to develop mutually beneficial business plans
• Leverage General Mills Sales processes to establish objectives, engage the customer, explore customer interests, explain solutions, and execute commitments
• Gain new product acceptance and merchandising levels in alignment with selling goals

EXECUTIONAL EXCELLENCE

• Takes personal accountability and ownership for results
• Meet annual sales targets by leveraging General Mills trade strategy and maintaining accurate planning and spending information in the trade planning system
• Collaborate with internal teams to develop promotional offers that reflect national trade strategies and optimize GMI resources

PROBLEM SOLVING & ANALYTICS

• Retrieve and analyze syndicated customer and consumer data to understand category and/or industry trends (IRI/Market 6/84.51 Shopper Data)
• Leverages national category management selling stories to develop targeted Kroger messaging and strategies that drive General Mills growth and distribution
• Understand and leverage category management principles to influence share of shelving and display
• Leverage enterprise-wide problem-solving tools and stakeholders to address business problems

ENGAGING LEADER

• Model Engaging Leader behaviors to foster an inclusive environment, embrace a learning mindset, and demonstrate personal accountability.
• Play an active role in leading positive culture on team

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's Degree required
• Minimum 2 years of relevant industry experience in sales, account management, trade funding, category management or other relevant experience
• Successful demonstration of analytical skills using various data sources (e.g., Circana, 84.51, Market6)
• Must be proficient in software packages (Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint)

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience supporting the Kroger business
• Desire for career development and growth within General Mills