Commercial Operations Executive

JOB DESCRIPTION

COMPANY BACKGROUND

Ornua is a leading dairy co-operative which sells premium dairy products globally on behalf of its Member Co-operatives, Ireland’s dairy processors and, in turn, Irish dairy farmers.

Ornua has revenues of €3.4 billion and is supported by a global team of approximately 2,800 employees. The Group operates as a commercial organisation across 10 business units, including 12 production facilities located in Europe, North America, the Middle East and Africa.

The commercial organisation is responsible for the marketing and sales of Ornua’s consumer brands including Ireland’s most successful food export: Kerrygold. Consumer markets are served by production facilities in Ireland, Germany and the UK and by in-market Sales & Marketing Teams in Asia, Germany, Ireland, MEA, Poland, Spain, rest of Europe and North and Latin America.

It also manages the procurement of Irish and non-Irish dairy products, the sale of dairy ingredients to food manufacturing and foodservice customers globally, and the implementation of de-risking and trading strategies to manage market volatility. These activities are supported by production facilities and in-market teams in Europe, North America, the Middle East and Africa.

WHY THIS ROLE IS VALUABLE

The Commercial Operations Executive is a key member of the Commercial team in Ireland, supporting the team in executing our growth plans with Key Customer Accounts. Reporting to the Senior Account Manager, the role acts as a central point of co-ordination between the Commercial team and colleagues across Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing and 3rd Party Logistic Providers.

KEY AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY:

• Act as the Commercial team’s lead contact with Customer Service and Supply Chain including product availability, stock management on a daily basis for promotions and ownership of the team’s service-level reporting.


• Partner with National Account Managers to deliver accurate forecasts by SKU and by customer, building a consolidated periodic sales plan.


• Act as lead contact for aligning commercial plans with the Marketing and Trade Marketing teams on customer activations, including sampling and point-of-sale (POS) planning and requirements.


• Serve as lead contact for Field Sales Representatives, managing their reporting and tracking product sample allocations.


• Provide ongoing support to the Commercial Director, National Account Managers and Category team, including sales reporting and ad hoc requests.


• Gather and analyse customer and competitor information, maintaining market pricing and promotional trackers.


• Use customer reporting data to support the Category Management team in developing shared insights that enable value-adding decisions.


• Contribute to the preparation of presentations for customer meetings.


• Manage sales enquiries and, in conjunction with Marketing, respond to consumer complaints.


• Support Marketing brand events where relevant, including co-ordinating customer invitations.

KEY SKILLS/ATTRIBUTES

• Ideally a bachelor’s degree in business, Food Business, Food Science or a related discipline.


• Previous experience in a commercial support or administrative role, preferably gained working with Retailers.


• Proficiency in Power BI, Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint.


• Excellent numerical, analytical and organisational skills.


• A clear, confident communicator with strong persuasion and presentation skills.


• Able to quickly master reporting systems and work comfortably with large volumes of data.


• A self-starter who thrives in a fast-paced, high-growth environment and is comfortable working with ambiguity.


• Committed to delivering an exceptional customer experience and confident engaging

ORNUA COMPETENCIES:

• WORKING TOGETHER: Encourages co-operation in own team and support cross functional working.


• COMMUNICATIVE: Communicates confidently, adapting style for different situations.


• OWNERSHIP: Clarifies accountabilities, overlaps, and gaps, and helps other remain motivated through difficult times.


• CUSTOMER FOCUS: Pays attention to customer satisfaction levels and builds good relationships.