Director of Sales, Specialty - San Leandro, CA

WHO WE ARE

At Ghirardelli, we're on a mission to become a one billion dollar brand and beyond. We want to be every consumer's first choice of premium chocolate, and we believe we can do that through our products and the way we do business, which are all inspired by our brand commitment to Making Life A Bite Better. We are a company committed to both personal and professional growth and believe that each employee contributes directly to Ghirardelli's growth and success.

The Director of Sales is responsible for executing the Company Game Plan strategy within the Channel/Retailer Strategy. Leading the strategic development of our business within retailers in the United States, they will utilize the Ghirardelli Story and tool set to convert the shopper and drive household penetration for the Ghirardelli Brand. The Director is a vital member of the Ghirardelli Sales Leadership team that is responsible for setting direction and equipping the entire sales organization.

• Set strategic direction for the channel to achieve sales budget and trade spending guidelines, both short-term and long-term.
• Develop Ghirardelli short and long-term plan for in store presence within the channel according to MAPS objectives.
• Achieve channel budget.
• Achieve in-store presence objectives.
• Spend within Trade Funds to achieve best ROI and departmental budgets.
• Provide channel forecasting, sales and other necessary data (commission, broker, account, etc).
• Assess broker and distributor development and implement changes.
• Develop and coach individuals on the team.
• Continually assess overall team capability vs. requirements and adjust as needed.
• Manage performance issues quickly and directly.
• Understand professional goals of team members and build plans to help them achieve goals.

• Bachelor's degree required, MBA desired.
• Minimum 8 to 10 years of CPG selling experience with an emphasis on increasing levels or responsibilities
• Minimum 3 years of people management responsibilities

Other Job Requirements

• Market, Retailer, Industry Events, HQ and Team/cross-functional engagement is a critical element for success.
• Availability/flexibility to business engagement is necessary & will vary based on portfolio and go-to-market expectations. For example, some Retailers have Trade Shows that occur offsite and over multiple days. GCC Sales engagements will also require offsite participation. These occur in the form of cross-functional & Sales specific events (i.e. National Sales Conference, Channel Meetings, Leadership Team meetings, etc.
• In office/home office expectations to align with company policy.

* Note: The salary is based on qualifications and geography.