Inland Steering Manager at Hapag-Lloyd AG

Position Overview:

• As the Manager, you will act as the bridge function between Area Sales and Operations with the aim to increase profitable Inland volume and optimize Inland product portfolio.
• You will help develop the Area Inland strategy and define Area-level Inland ambition for the next budget year (volumes, profitability, Inland share, etc.) based on the Regional Inland target in alignment with Sales, Operations, and Trade Management

Key Responsibilities:

Commercial Inland Steering

• Develop the Area Inland strategy and define the Area-level Inland ambition for the next budget year (volumes, profitability, Inland share, etc.) based on the Regional Inland target in alignment with Sales, Operations, and Trade Management
• Align the commercial and the operational perspective to improve the Area’s Inland ambition and result
• Develop the Inland pricing strategy with the goal of end-to-end Inland profitability including the evaluation of the Inland Tariff tool as well as Inland related surcharges
• Actively manage the sales funnel for Inland opportunities in own Area
• Develop campaigns and initiatives in alignment with stakeholders in order to achieve Area goals and communicates these globally and actively manage hinterland imbalances.
• Identify customers with untapped Inland potential and forward those to the relevant commercial teams for action.
• Collect market and competitive insights (ambitions and product developments of competitors) and compile market feedback from Area Sales to develop market-based pricing approach and participate in Area Sales meetings.
• Forecast Inland volumes based on sales and booking history to anchor target mindset.
• Take responsibility for KPI achievement and compile the monthly Inland performance report for the Area incl. respective follow-up actions.
• Track progress towards the Inland strategy of the Area and define actions to ensure strategic measures are implemented.
• Define countermeasures where target achievement is at risk
• Report regular performance updates to Area Sales Director and Regional Inland Centre
• Actively participate in Area Inland budget and Forecasting process

Inland Product Owner

• Gather feedback on the market (from other Area Inland functions) including potential transport solutions for different modes and include product needs in the final product offering
• Identify Inland value propositions and support Sales with tangible product information
• Act as main PoC for the Account Managers on product-related Inland questions
• Drive the identification and development of relevant Inland products and define the Inland network strategy by conducting required analysis on underserved/overserved locations, equipment levels etc.
• Own the capacity demand forecasting reports and engage in active management of capacity availability and utilization.
• Analyze fixed capacity requirements based on operations and commercial data
• Support procurement on vendor negotiations and SLA definition to continuously improve and extend the vendor base.
• Plan and manage strategic vendor relationships

Qualifications:

• At least 5 years’ experience in shipping/container steering
• Strategic thinker who is customer centric
• Experience in sales and operations of trucking industry will be an advantage.
• Experience working in Nigeria, Cameroon, Congo and Angola will be an advantage
• Worked in a trucking or forwarding industry with hands on experience in product development for trucking corridors
• Assertive negotiator
• Attention to detail.
• Team player with a proactive attitude
• Ability to work under pressure, goal and deadline driven.
• Very good written English skills (French is an added advantage)
• Good understanding of Microsoft applications.
• Thorough knowledge of port-based applications (Navis, ICUMS etc.) and documentation procedures.
• Ability to work on several systems simultaneously and interpret the data
• Successfully completed commercial training or comparable studies in Business, Commerce, Sales, Engineering, Logistics or similar
• Several years of professional experience in shipping, forwarding or logistics, preferably in sales or operations
• Excellent understanding of Inland transport, as well as ocean shipping markets
• Deep understanding of Inland transport performance measurement
• Well-developed analytical thinking and creative problem-solving skills with high level of initiative, ability to work in a team and assertiveness.
• Strong communicator with experience in management level communications