Director of Sales Strategy and Planning

COMPANY OVERVIEW:

Icelandic Provisions is an early-stage growth company that provides essential nutrition rooted in the Nordic Food Philosophy.The flagship product, dairy Skyr, is the only authentic Icelandic Skyr brand in the United States that uses heirloom Skyr cultures and the original recipe that is beloved across Iceland.

The Nordic way of life is not only deeply rooted in the quality of the Icelandic Provisions’ products but runs deep in the organizational culture through the WÁOO (pronounced WOW!) values.When we are attracting talent to join our growing organization, a natural question we ask is whether the candidate brings the “wáoo” factor?We describe is as: Welcoming, Ámbitious, Optimistic, and On with the butter!

With a strong consumer and business base to build on, we are looking for product-obsessed, passionate individuals who are energized about rapid growth and achievement and want to be a part of the happy, healthy cultural movement that we are leading.We believe in putting best-in-class products in the market and take pride in what we are building, “making everything count” along the way.

POSITION OVERVIEW:

The Director of Sales Strategy and Planning will report directly to the Chief Customer Officer and will play an essential role in the continued exponential growth of the Icelandic Provisions brand.This individual will be responsible for leading the development, implementation and evolution of the commercialization strategy and will lead a team of two trade and category management associates.

KEY JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

Overall responsibility for the development of customer trade investment strategy, planning and deployment on an annual basis.This includes the continuous monitoring of our customer trade investment plans and promotional programs to maximize ROI while maintaining alignment with overall brand strategy
Accountable for uncovering key category opportunities to improve profit and gross sales volume based on analysis of promotion, spending and volume (forecast and actuals).Leads the development of solution based selling tools and presentations to target those opportunities
Develops fact based analysis by interpreting lead business indicators of shipments, share,consumption, promotional efficiencies and effectiveness. (IP, Category, Competition, Customer)Makes strategic recommendations to Sales Leadership Team
Responsible for the development of key selling and merchandising materials related to new item launches
Develops annual slotting budget and adapts slotting spend during the year to maximize distribution and growth
Assists Finance/Accounting & Sales teams with reconciliation of all customer deductions to ensure all deductions are accrued for properly and match customer plans
Develops brand distribution priorities and goals. Identifies at risk skus and selling opportunities across US. Development of trade plans rooted in consumer insights to drive core distribution gains
Single point of contact to facilitate execution of field level requests
Proactively track and analyze brand results on a national, market and customer basis.Provides perspective and solutions to brand building issues in the marketplace.Also responsible for sharing success or best practices as they relate to brand or specific customer events
Responsible for delivering key pricing and shelf placement insights and strategies, and category management best practices around the consumer and customers.Leverage syndicated and customer data sources to deliver these key insights
Establishes a strong working relationship with Sales, Marketing, Innovation, Finance and Operations teams
Acts as category management liaison for other internal functions helping to create stories, provide data to impact new item innovation, contribute to investor/board news-letters and overall tracking of business objectives
Develops and communicates all tracking and measurement of the key performance indicators, deployment priorities and activities along with managing and leveraging 3rd party data management vendors.

JOB QUALIFICATIONS:

Bachelor’s degree in Business or related field
Ten plus years of combined industry experience in Sales, Trade Marketing, Category Management, Marketing or Finance
Proven success in delivering targeted sales and financial objectives.Must be a creative problem solver with the ability to align the sales team with trade and category management strategies while also influencing the broader organization
Position requires excellent analytical, organizational, communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills
Proven ability in building highly collaborative working relationships, especially with sales team and cross functional partners
Keen understanding of trade philosophies and practices to deliver meaningful and effective promotional analysis and recommendations
Experience working with syndicated and customer data sources to drive actionable insights
Must have the ability to work in conditions that include multiple and sometimes conflicting priorities
Travel requirements up to 25%

ORGANIZATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS:

The ideal candidate for any role within Icelandic Provisions needs to align to the values by exemplifyingWÁOO (pronounced WOW!) in the way that they lead.We will naturally be assessing for the “wáoo” factor (i.e., did they “wáoo” you and will they “wáoo” others?)Here’s how we describe it:Welcoming, Ámbitious, Optimistic, On with the butter!

WELCOMING - Food is one of the greatest connectors we have as humans. In the English language the word “companion,” in Spanish the word “companero,” in Italian the word “compagno,” and in French the word “copain” all come from the Latin meaning “with whom one eats bread.” We love this because we are a provisions company, and we value and embrace how food brings us together. So, it’s only natural that we look for talent that is hospitable and welcoming, treating and accepting others in a way that is consistent with the culture at IP.
AMBITIOUS - We have big dreams. We are eager, brave, passionate and love to punch above our weight.We compete in one of the most competitive categories in the consumer-packaged goods retail landscape and we are a small and mighty team.We are seeking individuals who are smart, entrepreneurial, and energized by charging toward a common goal to join our team.
OPTIMISTIC - We are a glass half full company. Iceland is regarded as one of the happiest countries on earth despite being dark for much of the year.We are looking for individuals who are focused on the upside, shy away from negativity, and know how to persevere no matter what the circumstances are.
ON WITH THE BUTTER! - Put simply we do not like to dilly-dally.We connect dots, move, and then move on. There is an Icelandic phrase that is used to encourage people to get on with it called “áfram með smjörið” which literally translates as “get on with the butter.”We are seeking individuals who know how to make informed decisions and then quickly action them.

YOU’RE AN IDEAL CANDIDATE IF...

You think working in a fast paced, ever changing, entrepreneurial environment is exciting
You believe there is always a better way. You ask lots of questions, actively seek the opinions of others and love working collaboratively
You are a “Swiss Army Knife” of talents and are comfortable with the often fluid, changing environment of a startup and want to make a positive and lasting impact
The unknown, the ill-defined or the uncharted motivates you
You are looking for a work environment without a lot of hierarchy, you like empowerment and have a “roll up your sleeves” mentality
You have strong analytical skills balanced with a great sense of logic and pragmatism when it comes to problem solving
You are self-aware, you pay attention to organizational dynamics, and you are comfortable pacing how you influence and drive organizational change
You are both a doer and an optimist

WHAT ICELANDIC PROVISIONS OFFER:

Salary Range $145,000 - $175,000, commensurate with skills and experience
Competitive benefits package including health, dental, vision insurance and 401k matching
Flexible paid time off allowing to manage your time as it works for you
Exciting work environment in a small team and a great deal of autonomy
Flexibility to work remotely or in our New York City offices
Delicious Skyr available (for free)