National Key Account Manager POST NUMBER: 483689
The Senior Key Account Manager is responsible for managing and growing strategic customer relationships for a food and beverage manufacturing company. This role serves as the primary point of contact for key accounts, ensuring customer satisfaction, driving revenue growth, identifying expansion opportunities, and coordinating internally to meet customer expectations. The ideal candidate will possess strong relationship management skills, experience within the food and beverage manufacturing industry, and a proven ability to successfully manage high-value accounts from contract negotiation through fulfillment.
Essential Responsibilities
Account Management & Customer Relations
- Manage a portfolio of strategic and high-value customer accounts.
- Develop and maintain strong, long-term relationships with key decision-makers and stakeholders.
- Serve as the primary escalation point for customer concerns and service issues.
- Conduct regular business reviews with key customers to assess performance, identify opportunities, and strengthen partnerships.
- Ensure high levels of customer satisfaction and retention.
Business Development & Revenue Growth
- Identify opportunities to increase sales volume, introduce new products, and expand service offerings within existing accounts.
- Develop account growth strategies and annual business plans for assigned customers.
- Collaborate with customers on forecasting, promotional planning, and product launches.
- Achieve revenue, margin, and profitability targets.
- Support contract negotiations, pricing discussions, and renewal activities.
Sales & Market Analysis
- Monitor market trends, customer purchasing behaviors, competitor activity, and industry developments.
- Analyze sales performance data and prepare recommendations for leadership.
- Maintain accurate forecasts and sales pipelines.
- Generate regular account performance reports and business insights.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Partner with production, supply chain, quality assurance, logistics, and customer service teams to ensure customer requirements are met.
- Coordinate product availability, order fulfillment, inventory planning, and delivery schedules.
- Work closely with finance regarding pricing, invoicing, collections, and account reconciliations.
- Participate in strategic planning and continuous improvement initiatives.
Financial & QuickBooks Responsibilities
- Utilize QuickBooks to monitor customer transactions, review account activity, support invoicing processes, and generate financial reports.
- Review account profitability and sales trends.
- Assist with pricing analysis and margin management.
- Partner with finance teams to resolve billing discrepancies and payment issues.
- Maintain accurate customer and sales records within QuickBooks and CRM systems.
Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Sales, Food Science, or related field; equivalent experience may be considered.
- 6 years of key account management, business development, or sales experience in food and beverage manufacturing, consumer packaged goods (CPG), or related industries.
- Proven track record of growing strategic customer relationships and achieving revenue targets.
- Experience managing large retail, distributor, foodservice, grocery, or wholesale accounts.
- Strong financial acumen and ability to analyze sales and profitability data.
- Hands-on experience with QuickBooks.
- Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Excel.
- Excellent negotiation, communication, and presentation skills.
Preferred
- Experience working with private label, co-packing, or food manufacturing environments.
- Familiarity with food safety regulations and manufacturing processes.
- Experience supporting national or regional account portfolios.
Physical Requirements & Travel
- Ability to travel up to 25-40% as required for customer meetings, trade shows, and industry events.
- Ability to work in an office, manufacturing, and customer-site environment.
- Occasionally lift up to 25 pounds when attending events, trade shows, or product demonstrations.
EEO Notice
Vaco by Highspring is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race (including but not limited to traits historically associated with race such as hair texture and hair style), color, sex (includes pregnancy or related conditions), religion or creed, national origin, citizenship, age, disability, status as a veteran, union membership, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, political affiliation, or any other protected characteristics as required by federal, state or local law.
Vaco by Highspring and its parents, affiliates, and subsidiaries are committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, Vaco by Highspring and its parents, affiliates, and subsidiaries will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact HR@vaco.com.
Vaco by Highspring also wants all applicants to know their rights that workplace discrimination is illegal.
Representation Notice
By submitting to this position, you agree that you will be giving Vaco by Highspring the exclusive right to present your as a candidate for the foregoing employment opportunity. You further agree that you have represented information about yourself accurately and have not affirmatively misrepresented your qualifications. You also agree to maintain as confidential, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any information you learn from Vaco by Highspring about the position and you will limit disclosure of information about the position only to the extent necessary to perform any obligations in furtherance of your application. In exchange, Vaco by Highspring agrees to exercise reasonable efforts to represent you through all solicitation, job screening and resume dispersal.
For residents of Ontario, Canada: Based on Highspring’s discussions with its Client, Highspring’s understanding is that this position for employment is a current vacancy (either through Highspring as a contractor or with the client directly).
Privacy Notice
Vaco by Highspring and its parents, affiliates, and subsidiaries (“we,” “our,” or “Vaco by Highspring”) respects your privacy and are committed to providing transparent notice of our policies.
- California residents may access Vaco by Highspring HR Notice at Collection for California Applicants and Employees here.
- Virginia residents may access our state specific policies here.
- Residents of all other states may access our policies here.
- Canadian residents may access our policies in English here and in French here.
- Residents of countries governed by GDPR may access our policies here.
Additionally, submissions to this position are subject to the use of AI to perform preliminary candidate screenings, focused on ensuring minimum job requirements noted in the position are satisfied. More details about Vaco by Highspring’s use of AI can be found here (https://www.highspring.com/ai-use-notices/). Further assessment of candidates beyond this initial phase will be conducted by recruiters and hiring managers. Vaco by Highspring does not know and cannot opine on if its client’s use of AI products in hiring.
Pay Transparency Notice
Determining compensation for this role (and others) at Vaco by Highspring depends upon a wide array of factors including but not limited to:
- the individual’s skill sets, experience and training;
- licensure and certification requirements;
- office location and other geographic considerations;
- other business and organizational needs.
With that said, as required by local law, Vaco by Highspring believes that the following salary range referenced above reasonably estimates the base compensation for an individual hired into this position in geographies that require salary range disclosure. The individual may also be eligible for discretionary bonuses.