Sales Manager

Foremost Farms USA is a world-class supplier of cheese, dairy products and ingredients to national and international markets. We offer innovative solutions, technical services and customized products, ingredients and packaging for our foodservice, food processing, distributor and pharmaceutical customers.

This position is responsible for assisting in the sale of Cheese products through direct sales and distributors to maximize sales volume and profitability, in accordance with regulatory and company policies and procedures.

* Creating and conducting customer business reviews reflecting volumes, marketing spend, sample spend, and pricing. * Communicating to appropriate parties, including brokers and customers, to provide needed information such as company policy updates, price lists, product specifications and pos material. * Work with customer service to ensure pricing correctly reflects marketing/rebate programs, brokerage, and freight. * Receiving and processing sample orders from food brokers and existing and prospective customers. Ensuring customer receipts and satisfaction of samples. * Establishing and maintaining rebate programs for customers, including processing payments as appropriate. * Coordinating customer requests for new products with appropriate functions to increase likelihood of successful new product development. * Ensuring appropriate complaint resolution, which includes working with plants, customer service, and quality group. * Being responsive to customer needs, including receiving calls from existing and prospective customers to maintain, increase, or initiate new sales of cheese products. * Attending regional and national trade shows and customer food shows to actively position and sell Cheese products. * Assisting in the coordination of packaging for new and existing customers. * Assisting in managing outside contractors that convert products, and those we purchase products from. * Staying abreast of relevant to market trends and conditions, competitive products and pricing, sales activities of competitors and existing and new product sales potential. * Assisting food brokers and distributors to become effective representatives of Foremost Farms interests in the marketplace, by providing training to sell Cheese products, performing joint sales calls as necessary, motivating and coordinating their sales activities to maintain, increase, or initiate sales of Cheese products. * Researching contacting and initiating sales relationships to provide new profitable business. * Reviewing and setting pricing policy with all appropriate stakeholders to maximize profits, considering industry trends which could affect profits, inventory levels and other factors. * Assisting customers with complaint resolution, including coordinating related efforts with the sales service department and other departments, as needed. * Regular and punctual attendance and physical presence in the workplace. * Timely and accurate completion of duties. * Frequent travel for work, 34% to 66%of the time.

**Required Competencies:** * **Computer Skills:** Ability to operate all information technology related business systems, programs and applications in a manner that achieves efficiency, accuracy, and relevancy of information processing and reporting as it applies to this position. * **Language Skills:** Ability to read and interpret documents such as dictated letters or memoranda, invoices, company policies and various documentation, paying particular attention to grammar. Ability to process routine reports and correspondences. Ability to communicate effectively with employees, customers and others. Must have excellent presentation skills. * **Mathematical Skills:** Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals. Ability to compute rate, ratio, and percent. * **Reasoning Ability:** Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out instructions furnished in written, oral, or diagram form. Ability to deal with problems involving several concrete variables in standardized situations. Must have financial and business acumen, proven problem solving skills and demonstrates good judgment in decision-making * **Other Skills & Abilities:** This position requires an understanding customer product needs with the ability to identify and influence key decision-makers within current and prospective customer base to maintain/increase sales of FFUSA products. This position must maintain an in depth understanding of FFUSA product contribution margins, gross profit, products and programs and position this information to current and potential customers. It is expected that this position maintain a close working relationship with plant staff and customer service to insure customer expectations are met. This position is required to interact closely with production sources to assist in the continued success of the cheese business. This position must provide effective account management to maxim sales and profitability by account. It requires the ability to operate a variety of standard business machines. Must have the ability to drive a motor vehicle, maintain a valid driver’s license. **Physical Demands/Work Environment:** * **Physical Demands:** Employee is continuously (more than 67 to 100%% of time) required to: use hands to finger, handle, or touch objects, tools, or controls, sit; to verbally communicate; and to hear. The employee is occasionally (up to 33% of the time) required to walk and stand. The employee must occasionally (up to 33% of the time) lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and the ability to adjust focus. * **Work Environment:** The employee is occasionally exposed to risk of electrical shock, wet and/or humid conditions, fumes or airborne particles. The noise level is usually moderate. * **Protective Equipment:** This position may need personal protective equipment that is appropriate for the job being performed, such as hearing protection, food safety clothing and other. **Education & Experience:** This position requires a Bachelor Degree in marketing, or related field of study, knowledge related to the job and three to five years of job-related experience.