Business Adviser (Lagos) at Japan Tobacco International (JTI)

Position Description

• The incumbent, working very closely with the Area Sales Manager will be responsible for all aspects of coordination and collaboration with the distributor on the sales and distribution operation and on the trade marketing field force deployment and monitoring. His/Her role is to ensure that distribution and merchandising strategy as well as the KPIs agreed upon with the distributor are being met. He/She will work closely with the distributor & Agency staff in the management and execution of trade and consumer activation programs as well as monitor implementation and competitive activity.

Main Areas of Responsibility

Volume & Market Share delivery

• Ensure volume & market share growth & deliver on location volume targets while reporting any changes/challenges to the Area Sales Maanger.

Distributor Management

• Working in liaison with the distributor staff; effectively manage the sales and marketing activities in the location in order to ensure the attainment of set objectives for our brands as set by management. Eg 1. New brand launches, 2. Route to Market (RTM) plans & strategies, 3. Monitoring price etc.

Responsible for effective Implementation of Sales & Distribution

• Merchandising, through effective territory planning & field force deployment ( Indirect Sales Force/Sales Support). Monitors progress and recommends corrective action where necessary.

Reporting

• Gather and disseminate accurate and timely market and intelligence information on JTI and competitors activities in order to contribute to timeliness and quality of decisions being made by management by providing daily, weekly, monthly updates with regards to all sales & marketing activities, photographs of trade activities, carry out audits on our stock availability etc.

External Environment

• This is ever changing due to inherent volatility of the political ,socio-economic & legal framework; hence the need to ensure a full & clear understanding of the external environment in our market (particularly Legal & M&S programmes implementation) & work appropriately with the internal team & distributor to ensure we are complying fully with industry standards & government regulations

Job Requirements

• A university degree or equivalent
• 3-5 years experience in sales & distribution / channel management / Implementation of consumer and Trade Marketing Plans.

Functional Skills

• Distributor and field force planning and management
• Trade marketing and POC consumer activation
• Shelf space management
• Category management
• Field intelligence, data gathering, KPI monitoring / reporting
• Negotiation skills
• External environment (taxation, trade pricing, external / corporate relations, legal)
• Deep knowledge of Customer services