Key Account Manager - Food Service

Greater Toronto Area, ON

Food Manufacturing (Proteins / Seafood)

The Company:

Our Client, is a National Seafood Company with branches across Canada. They supply frozen branded seafood products in both Retail and Food Service operators. They are a Canadian owned and operated company since 1970.

The Opportunity:

Our Client is currently seeking an experienced full time Key Account Manager based in our Ontario office focusing on our Food Service regional chains, large food service operators and Food Service distributors.

Responsibilities & Deliverables:

·      Represent our company with a comprehensive understanding of its offerings

·      Developing a solid and trusting relationship between major key customers and our company

·      Resolving key customer issues and complaints

·      Developing a complete understanding of key customer needs

·      Anticipating key account changes and improvements

·      Managing communications between key customers and internal teams

·      Strategic inventory and forecasting planning to improve client results

·      Negotiating contracts with new and existing customers and establishing a timeline of performance

·      Establishing and overseeing internal budgets with the company and external budgets with Distributors

·      Planning and presenting reports on account progress, goals, and quarterly initiatives to share with team members and stakeholders

·      Meeting all customer needs and deliverables according to proposed timelines and established budgets

·      Expanding relationships while bringing in new customers

·      Increase sales growth, expand products/listings, and market penetration while improving margins

·      Identify and develop new ways to grow through share gain and identify new market opportunities

·      Establish and maintain strategic customer relationships by offering business insight and personally calling on senior level decision makers

·      Develop and implement strategic business plans for all leverage customers. Continually search for synergy between customer business goals and our goals.

·      Manage sales and marketing expenses (e.g. annual budgets, monthly analysis of actual expenditures and cost reduction programs.)

·      Establish alliances with Distributors that will address deductions and control unauthorized deductions.

·      Provide insight and strategy to finance function on customer and product profitability

·      Strong negotiation skills including listening, probing, identifying interests, and mutually solving problems

·      Can deliver and stick to a tough message when required

·      Effectively reads and adapts to different personality types to maximize negotiations

·      Has the fortitude to “hang in there” on strategic issues that may draw out over a long period of time

·      Clearly identifies what they want out of a negotiation and finds creative and profit-creating ways of achieving that outcome

Qualifications & Competencies:

·      Consistency in delivering results focusing on overall profitability.

·      Has strong industry knowledge and contacts and leverages them to drive improved results

·      Has strong understanding of competition and leverages it to drive better results

·      A minimum of three (3) years account experience in Food Service sales management or related industry, seafood knowledge is an asset.

·      Bachelor’s Degree highly preferred, proficiency with MS Office required