Activation Manager - On Premise

What makes this a great opportunity?

The Commercial team is responsible for identifying and building long-term category growth strategies along with managing the short-term 12 month go-to-market category and shopper plan within the On Premise channel. We are responsible for being customer and category experts and bringing the voice of the customer into the organization. We achieve this by building plans that realize category growth through the creation and sharing of a common understanding of shopper behaviour and insights. Our aim is to deliver Suntory Oceania (including SGS) and our on premise partners a sustainable competitive advantage in-market by establishing our people, brands and business as an insight driven, growth-oriented category and brand partner.

The Activation Manager On-Premise is responsible for being the channel, customer & category expert and ensuring that our brand plans are centered around the shopper and the best way to attract and retain shoppers within the On-Premise channel.

The plans developed should be in line with the brand objectives and ensuring category growth can be realized through developing our plans which are derived through the understanding of shopper (On Premise consumer) behavior and channel insights within the On Premise universe for the On-Premise channel.

The Activation Manager On-Premise is an integral part of this team and is responsible for the development and execution of the Below the Line (BTL) activation plan for the On-Premise portfolio at Beam Suntory for our On-Premise customers Nationally. This role is designed to create the link between the Customer and the business to continuously identify opportunities throughout the year to realize growth for the portfolio. This is achieved through an intimate understanding of the spirits category; the On-Premise Channel, the customer landscape and how consumer behavior can be influenced in the Channel. Critical to the success of this role is the ability to partner effectively with key stakeholders such as Marketing, BTL agency, On-Premise strategy & field sales team and Suntory Global Spirits Insights team.

This role will partner with The Group On Premise Manager to develop a long term vision for the ON PREMISE category and establish category growth platforms for the State Key Accounts.

Role Responsibilities

STRATEGY INPUT

• Lead the On-Premise shopper activation strategy for On-Premise customers and ensure channel, customer & shopper (consumer) insights are inputted into the Activation planning process
• Share channel & shopper(consumer) insights, which include the motivations of the bartender, with the Marketing team, building understanding and influencing the development of Brand Plans annually
• Translate the Demand Space strategy into engaging activation platforms for each brand
• Collaborate with Sales and key account managers to formulate the annual On-Premise Channel Plan – which incorporates Brand Plans, Category & On-Premise segment understanding

DEVELOPING SHOPPER/CATEGORY INSIGHTS

• In the absence of formal and regular shopper research, gather channel, customer & shopper(consumer) insights by spending time in trade with the field sales teams, including as part of the annual planning process.

KEY CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT

• Partner with/in customer presentations of key campaigns, representing the brand team and be able to bring together brand objectives as well as meeting customer needs.

SHOPPER ACTIVATION

• Develop & execute the annual On-Premise activity calendar for On-Premise accounts across Australia
• Develop effective activation toolkits which meet the needs of field sales teams in executing our core drink strategies
• Identify opportunities for partnerships of key brand platforms with influential On-Premise customer
• Create NPD activation plans which drive awareness of trial of innovation

LEADERSHIP

• Be the project lead in the development and execution of key campaigns, ensuring best in class activations in On-Premise accounts across Australia
• Externally focused, successfully bring the voice of the customer into the organization to educate key stakeholders on evolving customer requirements

STAKEHOLDER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

• Develop & nurture effective relationships, collaborating with sales teams, ensuring marketing activation process is on time and relevant inputs are received
• Develop & build effective relationships with brand teams to ensure all activations are aligned to brand plans and activation briefs.
• Demonstrate positive intent to problem solving issues, influencing stakeholders towards preferred solutions

Qualifications

• Tertiary qualifications (Commerce/Business discipline preferred) required
• FMCG trade and/or Shopper Marketing management expertise (min 2yrs+) required
• Project management capability with the ability to work on multiple projects and work towards hard deadlines
• Analytical skills (ACN/Aztec) preferred
• Advanced Computer Literacy in Outlook, Word, Excel & PowerPoint
• Ability to manage multiple budgets
• Briefing and judging creative development in line with shopper & brand needs
• Ability to influence and persuade constructively
• Ability to work cross functionally and collaborate
• Solid inter-personal skills and ability to work well within teams
• Self-motivated, responsive, resilient, and tenacious