Associate Director Key Accounts

Job Title: Associate Director Key Accounts

Function: SALES

Department: Customer & Channel Development

Reports to: Director Key Accounts

Purpose of the job

To lead and grow the company's strategic partnerships with major national/regional key accounts, overseeing a portfolio of accounts and the team managing them. The role is accountable for translating commercial strategy into account-level execution, driving sustainable, profitable growth, and elevating relationships with customers to senior decision-maker level (category directors, buying VPs, etc.). The Associate Director also builds the capability of the Key Accounts team and ensures consistency of commercial discipline across accounts.

Key Accountabilities

1. Strategic Account Leadership

• Own the overall relationship strategy for a portfolio of key accounts (e.g., major national retailers/modern trade groups), acting as the senior escalation point and executive-level relationship holder.
• Set the account prioritization framework, ensuring resources and investment are directed toward the highest-value growth opportunities.
• Represent the company in senior-level business reviews, top-to-top meetings, and strategic negotiations with customer leadership.

2. Team Leadership & Capability Building

• Lead, coach, and develop a team of Key Accounts Managers, setting clear KPIs and holding the team accountable for account performance.
• Conduct performance management, talent development, and succession planning within the team.
• Build commercial and negotiation capability across the team through coaching, structured reviews, and knowledge-sharing.
• Ensure consistent standards of account planning, forecasting, and reporting quality across all managed accounts.

3. Commercial Strategy & Planning

• Own the annual joint business planning (JBP) process across the account portfolio, ensuring plans are ambitious, data-backed, and aligned with overall commercial and category strategy.
• Set portfolio-level trade investment strategy and approve promotional/rebate budget allocation across accounts based on ROI and strategic priority.
• Own the portfolio's sales forecast and be accountable for its accuracy, working closely with Demand Planning and Supply Chain leadership.
• Partner with Marketing, Category Management, and Supply Chain to embed customer strategy into broader commercial planning cycles.

4. Performance & Execution Oversight

• Own portfolio-level P&L performance (sales, trade spend ROI, market share, EBIT contribution) and report against targets to the Director – Key Accounts and senior leadership.
• Review in-market execution trends across accounts, identifying systemic gaps and directing corrective strategies (beyond individual store/account fixes).
• Escalate and resolve high-impact commercial or operational issues that exceed KAM authority.
• Drive continuous improvement in account management processes, tools, and ways of working.

5. Negotiation & Stakeholder Management

• Lead or directly oversee negotiation of major commercial agreements, trading terms, and annual contracts with key customers.
• Build and maintain senior-level relationships with customer decision-makers to secure long-term, mutually beneficial partnerships.
• Anticipate market and customer shifts (e.g., channel consolidation, private label expansion) and adjust account strategy proactively.

6. Financial & Budget Governance

• Own governance of trade spend, rebates, and customer investment budgets across the portfolio, ensuring compliance with approved budgets and company policy.
• Partner with Finance on budget planning, claims audits, and reconciliation governance, ensuring financial integrity across all accounts.
• Monitor and report portfolio-level ROI on trade investment, recommending strategic reallocation to senior leadership.
• Own high-value contract structures and ensure financial commitments/obligations are tracked and honored.
• Ensure team-wide compliance with the Customer Deductions SOP, including documentation, timelines, and approval thresholds.
• Approve deductions/disputes exceeding KAM authority, per the SOP's approval matrix.
• Monitor deduction trends and aging across the portfolio, flagging recurring or non-compliant patterns.
• Act as escalation point for unresolved disputes before Director involvement.
• Partner with Finance to close process gaps between agreements and actual deductions.

Job Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Sales, or a related field; MBA preferred.
• 8–12 years of progressive experience in Sales/Key Account Management within FMCG or a similar industry, including at least 2–3 years in a people-management or team-lead capacity.
• Proven track record managing large, complex national accounts and multi-million-value trade budgets.
• Advanced Microsoft Office skills, particularly Excel; comfort working with BI/reporting tools.
• Proficient in English & Arabic.

Job Competencies

• Strategic thinking with strong commercial and financial acumen (P&L ownership level).
• Senior-level negotiation and executive relationship management.
• People leadership: coaching, performance management, and team development.
• Advanced analytical skills — able to translate portfolio data into strategic recommendations.
• Strong cross-functional influence, particularly with Finance, Supply Chain, Marketing, and senior leadership.
• Executive presence and communication skills, including comfort presenting to senior internal and external stakeholders.
• Change management and resilience in navigating complex, high-stakes account situations.