Head of Commercial, Red Stripe

Context/Scope:

WestLAC is a Diageo region which contains 4 business units: Jamaica; Border/Free Trade Zone; Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia; and Central America & Caribbean
Jamaica is experiencing prolonged economic challenges with inflation averaging at 10% over the past 10 years and unemployment levels currently at approximately 15%. Weak Gross Domestic Product growth and limited government finances leave little room for stimulus in the local economy. In addition, the Jamaican dollar continues to weaken against the US dollar with the current exchange rate being approx. J$110 to US$1
Red Stripe is the market leader in the Jamaica beer sector with greater than 70% market share. The main competition for Red Stripe comes from other alcoholic drinks, in particular white overproof rum and tonic wines. The total beverage alcohol market in Jamaica accounted for J$4 billion in 2013. Red Stripe’s key competitor in the domestic market is Wray & Nephew which owns brands such as Appleton.Their parent company is Gruppo Campari who took possession of the company in 2013

Purpose of Role:

Lead the development and execution of commercial strategies to drive Red Stripe (RS) to reach/exceed its F17 Performance Ambition including NSV, TP, Cash Flow, market share, visibility and Sales Capability
Lead the market transformation initiative to deliver an incremental sale of brewed and spirits volume to meet our Performance Ambition by 2017
Manage the commercial team through partnering with Marketing, Finance and our sales & distribution company (Celebration Brands Ltd) to deliver the joint venture outcomes defined in the Agreement

Ensure all the strategic initiatives are implemented, translating plans to reality. Ensure West LAC reaches the specific goals in the market place. Responsible for achieving AOP financial figures, Share of Value figures and Distribution for the country

Be the main point of contact between CBL and Red Stripe on a day-by-day basis. Accountable for developing partnership relationships with CBL to support the entire Red Stripe Portfolio of brands whilst increasing distribution, volume and brand visibility
Sole responsibility for relationship management and sales to the hotel channel

Key Outputs:

Develop and deliver customer specific strategies and commercial plans
Build and maintain a high level of strategic alignment with CBL’s Board in order to create a high performance organization
Support development and execution of brand standards for consumers, channels and customers.

Develop and deliver Annual Operating Plan
Execute commercial proposition for Innovation and Reserve brands projects.
Manage Market intelligence and Competitor’s analysis
Give customer input into demand planning and short-term forecasting (S&OP Process)
Support the development and implementation of Sales incentives, training, measurement tools and KPIs

Support market forecasting and monitor depletions
Compliance in full with Diageo Code of Business Conduct
Interface between Marketing & Customer Marketing to create the link to Shopper, Consumer, Customer and Category understanding
Interface with Supply, Procurement, Legal and Finance teams
Manage relationships with the Supply Chain, Customer & Logistics Managers, as well as with the Finance team to solve issues regarding orders, credit terms, payments and reimbursement to distributor or other suppliers
Implement pricing changes

Qualifications and Experience Required:

College graduate; MBA in Business or related field desirable
Strong leader with proven capacity to achieve results and maintain strong relationships with direct reports
Thrive under pressure; energetic, high sense of urgency; proactive and passionate about the business
Good analytical skills, data literate and strong financial acumen
10 years in Sales and /or Customer Marketing / Marketing areas with specific experience in managing distributor based businesses in the region
Ability to operate in a matrix organization

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