Associate Director - Bakery Business Development

About the Role

The position is responsible for managing and developing Bakery Business Development, managing financial results (sales and operating income) and ensuring targets are achieved. Conduct financial performance review Month-to-date and Year-to-date for own areas. Drive long-term and short-term commercial strategic plans aligned to company vision and strategic direction to meet revenue targets. Liaise closely with internal sales/operations teams, support functions, and external customers. Support Marketing, Commercial Operations, Managed Markets, and Sales in supplier selection and management. Responsible for development and execution of category plans for assigned categories.

Responsibilities

• Set strategic direction for assigned cross-functional sourcing programs through collaborative development of Strategic Sourcing initiatives and Category Plans; lead cross-functional sourcing teams.
• Review and drive Bakery Business Development activities that lead business outcomes and enhance strategic partnerships with external customers and top suppliers (Makro mail, KVI, annual promotion plan, sales gap recovery action plan, special events, etc.).
• Formulate price policy and price structure considering relevant factors and ensure proper implementation to maintain market competitiveness.
• Conduct industry deep-dive analysis to support understanding of the marketplace and provide proactive insight to long-term potential sourcing strategies (3+ years).
• Lead assortment strategic actions: annual reviews and implementation for new store, new product, core product by store type; item performance review; control SKU in/out by category; new item selection and deletion; Plan-O-Gram review & approval.
• Identify sourcing best practices and collaborate with cross-functional team members to ensure practices are applied; determine key metrics for supplier performance management and facilitate quarterly reviews with stakeholders.
• Conduct, review and manage budgeting and costing for Bakery Business Development to ensure effectiveness and efficiency; translate annual budget into actionable steps and cascade to teams (Operations, Commercial, Store Format) with timely result updates.
• Update and communicate tasks, agreed actions and results; meet with Store General Managers/Assistant GMs to communicate business direction, familiarize participants with new products and updated operations.
• Determine innovation resolutions to serve customer needs, create market advantages, ensure competitiveness and enable profitable sales recovery opportunities.
• Review price negotiation processes (Makro mail, KVI), competitor price matching, new item margin negotiation, promotion year plan, and actions for sales gap recovery and special events.
• Negotiate and manage major packaging contracts to ensure required quality, service, availability and budget objectives are achieved.
• Coordinate onsite visits by critical suppliers to review production processes and ensure end product flavor, texture and look meet requirements.
• Act as Subject Matter Expert for strategic sourcing, contract review and negotiation in assigned categories to ensure variety and quality of bakery product development (locally sourced and seasonal where applicable).
• Coach immediate team, liaise with wider organization and suppliers to ensure results meet strategic direction and annual budget; ensure execution of people development framework and build team capability.

Qualifications

• Master or Bachelor in Business Administration, Science, Marketing or a technical/related field. MBA preferred.
• Strong knowledge of culinary operations in Food Service sector with demonstrated success; a Bachelor’s or culinary degree is preferable.
• 15+ years professional experience in retail food service management, retail operations, and/or consumer packaged goods preferred.
• 5–7 years strategic sourcing experience preferred.
• Department-level supervisory/managerial experience with direct and indirect reports.
• Demonstrated understanding of food safety principles and operational requirements.
• Retail/wholesale industry knowledge and experience.
• Must have experience working in commercial baking facilities and be familiar with grain processing, particularly milling, sifting and heating grains.
• Demonstrated ability to develop market expertise and credibility in the Bakery Business Development segment, including customers, suppliers, products, applications, technology, pricing and value.
• Must have a strong understanding of the physiochemical and functional prop