Field Sales Manager - Zevia

Location: While this is a remote position, one must live in Southern California. 

About Us

At Zevia we're creating a world of better-for-you flavor, better for people and the planet. Our team is made up of builders who are passionate about our mission. Together we aim to impact global health, provide affordable better-for-you products, and aid the planet through reduction of plastic. We operate with passion, openness, gratitude, accessibility, humanism, humility, and scrappiness as we fight the good fight to change the beverage industry for good.

Summary

The Field Sales Manager’s (FSM) main priority is delivering volume growth across the assigned territory (CA/AZ/NV).  As part of ensuring this growth, the FSM will be responsible for developing annual business plans, driving Zevia initiatives, tracking Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and delivering volume growth per an aligned forecast through a set group of Distributors and Key Accounts.  

Key responsibilities include setting volume and executional targets in alignment with management and distributor partners, playing a primary role in tailoring strategy, programs and execution expectations for the assigned Key Accounts and Distributors.  The candidate must be effective in building and selling these programs to local decision-makers.  The role will require the creation and management of account budgets that focus on KPIs including price, promotion execution, and quality distribution.  The role requires the ability to create win-win business solutions that resonate with the retailer, distributor, and consumer.  Additionally, the FSM should have the ability to build customer facing decks and sell sheets with the help of the Category Development Team.  Communicating strategic priorities, driving and managing key Zevia initiatives, ensuring implementation of merchandising standards, developing systems to track and measure KPI execution, monitoring sales/POS progress against business plans and coaching Distributors to execute in the market at a high standard are also critical components of the FSM role.

What You’ll Do 

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Zevia’s Strategy, Merchandising Standards, and Key Account Programs

• Coordinates meetings with Distributors and Key Accounts to explain and implement Zevia’s strategies and initiatives, with a focus on meeting growth objectives
  • Develops communication process to ensure proper alignment and understanding of strategies and goals
  • Implements systems to track and benchmark DPs against key initiatives/goals
• Ensure Distributors and Key Accounts fully understand and execute merchandising standards consistent with guidelines
  • Assists in developing Sales Books and training to guarantee distributor Sales Reps clearly understand merchandising standards (i.e. product flow, sku priorities, display merchandising, pricing, etc.)
• Establishes set communication schedule to discuss upcoming/on-going Key Account Programs
  • Ensure Distributors implement tracking systems to gauge execution effectiveness

Business Plan

• Develops and gets Alignment with Distributors on the annual business plan
• Secures agreement on necessary subjects and implements monthly scorecard to review progress (distribution build-up by month/channel, sales forecast by month/channel)
• Consistently communicates with top management to guarantee alignment
• Effectively manages all budgets associated with the Distributors and Key Accounts
• Operates with ownership over local market results, driving the same with Distributors
• Establishes POS allocation by Distributor
• Coordinates with Zevia HQ personnel to issue on-going updates against allocation
• Keeps Distributor abreast of any new POS items and applicable allocation/timing

Business Intelligence

• Proactively uses Insights from the Category Team to advance the initiatives with Key Accounts while also applying Out-of-Stock analysis to ensure proper Distributor merchandising personnel is in place
• Leverages VIP to gain insights into the distributors’ local business

Distributor Structure and Accountability Expert

• Thorough working knowledge of distributors internal systems and structure
• Understands distributor’s hierarchy and has relationship from the top down (Owner to Managers)
• Clear understanding of the person responsible and accountable for tasks or programs within distributorship
• Knowledgeable on reps and area manager’s pay structure in order to program and hold accountable

Other Responsibilities

• Provide on-going feedback from VIP on opportunities that are relative to Distributor and Key Account performance against objectives and KPIs
• Develops working knowledge of geographic and demographic areas in assigned geography
• Develops expertise with regards to product competition and distributor competition in respective area
• Represent Zevia in the marketplace with passion, enthusiasm, a positive attitude, a growth mindset, and professional demeanor. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

What We're Looking For

• +5 years sales experience and track record in Consumer Goods industry (beverage preferred)
• Distributor and Supplier experience preferred
• Ability to lead, manage and motivate distribution partners with experience, +3 years
• Strategic thinker with strong business acumen
• Strong communicator and motivator
• Excellent negotiator and influencer
• Highly numerate and analytical
• Ability to leverage data from SPINS, VIP and canned BI reports to gain insights
• Clear and proven ability to develop and implement successful sales and trade marketing strategies
• Excellent communication skills, including presentation and training ability
• Creative mind, outgoing personality and friendly
• Able to work independently with responsibility, and be organized
• Experience with basic administrative programs, Windows, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, VIP and Power BI
• Must have the ability to:
• travel via car with a valid driver’s license and untarnished driving record.
• travel outside of local territory occasionally, at least once per month
• 4-year college degree preferred

Desired Behaviors

• High sense of urgency and ownership
• Analytical and execution-oriented approach to the business
• Respectful candor with a direct approach with partners and customers
• Full ownership over all aspects of the customer relationship
• Proactive cross-functional engagement to build 360-degree plans

Supervisory Responsibility

This position has no direct supervisory responsibility.

Work Environment

Under normal operations, this position operates in a home office environment for 70% of the time.  This role has some travel requirements of up to 30% with the focus on this travel to be the attending of customer HQ appointments within the assigned region, usually within driving distance.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

The employee will be required to drive for extended periods of time.  They will be moving product and must frequently lift and/or move up to 30 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 50pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus.

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work

Some flexibility in hours is allowed, but the employee must be available during the “core” work hours. On rare occasion, evening and weekend work may be required as job duties demand.

Travel

Under normal operations, this position requires travel up to 3-4 times per month to support their territory and Zevia Company needs.

Work Authorization/Security Clearance

Must be eligible to work in the U.S.

Other Duties

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

What We Offer

• A collaborative environment, where everyone contributes and delivers
• A place where you can grow, develop and learn
• Competitive compensation that includes a base salary, discretionary bonus and stock options. See below for range.
• A comprehensive benefits package which includes:
  • An array of medical plans
  • Dental
  • Vision
  • Group Life Insurance
  • Short-term disability + Long-term disability
  • Flexible Spending Accounts: Medical, Dependent and Limited Use
  • Health Savings Account
  • Accident Insurance
  • Critical Illness Insurance
  • Hospital Indemnity Insurance
  • Legal Insurance
  • Travel Assistance
  • Employee Assistance Program
  • Pet Insurance
  • 401k Plan (Traditional and Roth)
  • Vacation, Personal/Sick Days, and Holidays
  • Professional development contributions
  • And of course, all the Zevia you can drink!