Immediate Superior: Head of Trade Marketing
Job Grade: 25
Location: Sandton
Function: Commerce
Type of Contract: Permanent
Reference Number: 57032771
Closing Date: 2 November 2026
Purpose of the Role
Develops channel segmentation and tiering parameters. Sets the portfolio strategy in a channel and provides the salesforce with insights, activation programs and materials to win market share and grow brand power in specific channels.
- Translates the brands’ Must Win Battles into specific channel strategies.
- Develops channel targets, including output KPIs such as market share and channel profitability, and input KPIs such as PICOS.
- Builds channel insights across customers, shoppers and consumers, monitors performance and builds relationships with key accounts.
- Supports brand, account and regional planning.
Key Result Areas
Category, Portfolio and Brand Understanding
- Ensures team understanding of category, portfolio and brand strategies and plans.
- Develops channel plans incorporating category, portfolio and brand strategies and plans.
- Optimises portfolio and brand profitability sustainably, incorporating Revenue Management guidelines into trade marketing plans.
Shopper and Off-Premise Consumer Understanding
- Applies research, time-in-market and multiple data sources to create strategic insights that anticipate shopper and consumer behaviour.
- Creates shopper and consumer profiles identifying prioritised value drivers at point of purchase and consumption.
- Ensures channel plans reflect shopper and consumer understanding and opportunities.
RTM, Channel and Customer Understanding
- Demonstrates understanding of priority channels, value drivers, activation pillars, OpCo trade terms and investment guidelines.
- Develops channel plans considering customer strategies, needs and execution capabilities across direct, indirect and digital routes to market.
- Anticipates opportunities based on channel, customer needs and trends.
- Understands competitor strategies and execution capabilities to identify commercial opportunities.
- Considers sales organisation capacity and needs when building plans.
Channel Strategy Development
- Develops winning channel strategies and plans with SMART objectives.
- Prioritises channels and tiers customers for investment.
- Ensures channel strategies support delivery of the three-year OpCo plan.
- Translates category, consumer and customer value drivers into relevant channel strategy.
- Coaches the team in strategy development, project briefing and management.
Annual Planning
- Builds segment plans by channel that reflect the three-year channel strategy.
- Translates top-down channel objectives into objective-driven activities and allocates budgets in line with Revenue Management principles.
- Manages the channel budget cross-functionally.
- Develops PICOS for all channels using category management and Revenue Management insights.
- Develops the cold strategy for the channels.
- Drives category management principles and plans for channels, key accounts and new launches.
- Ensures practical, implementable plans, materials and promotions that support ease of execution.
- Leads and coaches the team in creating the channel plan.
Excellence in Execution
- Ensures execution aligns with strategy, brand plans, calendar and budget.
- Ensures cross-functional alignment and commitment to channel plan execution.
- Delivers sales tools and information to support channel plans.
- Drives delivery using execution reporting data.
- Evaluates execution performance through weekly market visits and adapts plans based on sales and customer feedback.
- Champions EoE purpose and process within the team.
Channel, Outlet and Consumer Segmentation
- Ensures trade census data is current, valid and fit for purpose.
- Uses shopper, consumer, channel and customer information to prioritise value drivers.
- Leverages databases to match priority value drivers by channel with brand activation selection.
- Enables targeted equity building in Gold, Silver and Bronze outlets for OpCo brand priorities.
- Ensures quantified segmentation is reflected in channel plans.
- Ensures segment plans link to prioritised channel opportunities and investment allocation.
Commercial Acumen
- Demonstrates understanding of profitability and drivers by channel to optimise investment.
- Recommends investment choices by channel, customer and brand based on commercial jobs to be done and execution capability.
- Evaluates segment plans against channel strategy and financial objectives.
- Performs pre- and post-activity ROI analysis and generates recommendations for improvement.
- Monitors and responds to competitor activity across the value chain.
Educational Qualification
Relevant tertiary qualification, preferably a Bachelor’s Degree or Honours in Commerce.
Professional Experience and Personal Attributes
- 7+ years’ experience in the FMCG environment.
- Sales experience.
- Strong marketing, key account, channel and merchandising capability.
- Strong leadership, problem-solving and time-management capabilities.
- Experience managing multiple sales channels.
- Strategic and commercial acumen.
The Company’s approved Employment Equity Plan and Targets will be considered as part of the recruitment process. As an equal opportunities employer, HEINEKEN Beverages encourages and welcomes people with various disabilities to apply and is committed to inclusion and diversity.