Job Description

No Relocation Assistance Offered
Job Number #172643 - Midrand, Gauteng, South Africa

Who We Are

Colgate-Palmolive Company is a global consumer products company operating in over 200 countries specializing in Oral Care, Personal Care, Home Care, Skin Care, and Pet Nutrition. Our products are trusted in more households than any other brand in the world, making us a household name!

Join Colgate-Palmolive, a caring, innovative growth company reimagining a healthier future for people, their pets, and our planet. Guided by our core values—Caring, Inclusive, and Courageous—we foster a culture that inspires our people to achieve common goals. Together, let's build a brighter, healthier future for all.

The Role

The Customer Group Leader is responsible for navigating and winning within a complex route-to-market landscape. You will be the commercial architect for our most significant accounts, tasked with driving deep distribution and fostering high-level strategic partnerships. This role demands a balance of aggressive commercial growth and meticulous joint business planning.

This role is responsible for sales, profitability and market share objectives and results for the Indirect Trade Business. The Customer Group Leader plays a pivotal role in working closely with the CDTL in driving profitable growth by ensuring marketing, selling, financial and supply chain guidelines are utilized to the greatest effect by the distributor to optimize the business opportunities. They are responsible for the development and implementation of the approved business plan, ensuring that the distributor/Group makes payments as agreed and achievement of the budget for the business.

Key Responsibilities

• Distribution Mastery: Drive availability and visibility in complex RTM environments; constantly optimizing the path to the end consumer.

• Joint Value Planning (JVP): Lead the end-to-end creation and execution of comprehensive business plans with key customers, ensuring mutual growth and long-term alignment.

• Expert Negotiation: Lead high-stakes commercial negotiations, managing complex terms, trade spend, and pricing structures to protect margins.

• Relationship Management: Build and sustain relationships with key stakeholders, moving beyond customer status to a strategic partner. Driving the goal alignment process with the key stakeholders in order to identify the most important areas of focus and priorities, in alignment with the overall strategy for the South Africa region and all functions

• Execution Excellence: Ensure flawless delivery of commercial initiatives through cross-functional leadership and rigorous performance tracking.

Customer Development

Implement strategies that are consistent with the broader organisational vision. Ensure

that the strategies take into account a broad range of internal factors such as which

brands, which categories, and what channels and retail environments throughout the

country. Also recognize differing external factors such as suppliers/vendors, distributor capacities, customers; competition, economic environment, etc. will impact implementation.

• Identify, plan and execute the optimal trade coverage strategy required to ensure competitiveness, optimum distribution / cost and the right organisational structure

• Ensure “winning at the shelf” is a top priority for the team, and that 5P tactics and demand marketing initiatives are executed with excellence at the point of sale

• Ensure that overall strategies are translated into specific short term and long term operational objectives (e.g., targets for distribution, volume, profitability, merchandising, trade stock holding levels, and market share) and priorities.

• Working with the CDTL to constantly review and update the go-to-market strategy in a manner that provides a proper level of service aligned with the business strategy, design and implement terms and conditions that will drive the business and improve efficiencies.

• Driving the goal alignment process with the distributor/buying groups in order to identify the most important areas of focus and key priorities, in alignment with the overall strategy for the South Africa region and ensure annual joint business plans are developed

• Maintain transparent/fair, performance-based terms & conditions and consistent discretional investment

• Optimise resources and leverage trade spending across channels, categories, and brands/products given Colgate's strategic direction

Financial

• Understanding and managing the Financials in partnership with the CDM’s and CDTL for South Africa IDT Customer Development Function. This includes, and is not limited to, P&L management, balance sheet and cash generation.

• Monitoring performance, gross to net, margin improvement, volume growth and working capital and taking action to improve performance

• Receivable management: ensure that terms are consistent with in-market practices, and those receivables terms are fair, based on standard in-market terms and required inventory coverage.

Qualifications

• Post Graduate Qualification, Masters preferred

• 12+ years of commercial leadership experience.

• Proven Versatility: Success across diverse markets with varying RTM complexities.

• Strategic Closer: Demonstrated ability to negotiate multi-faceted contracts and execute complex business plans.

• Analytical Mindset: Expert at using data to identify distribution gaps and commercial opportunities.

Our Commitment to Inclusion
Our journey begins with our people—developing strong talent with diverse backgrounds and perspectives to best serve our consumers around the world and fostering an inclusive environment where everyone feels a true sense of belonging. We are dedicated to ensuring that each individual can be their authentic self, is treated with respect, and is empowered by leadership to contribute meaningfully to our business.

Equal Opportunity Employer
Colgate is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, ethnicity, age, disability, marital status, veteran status (United States positions), or any other characteristic protected by law.

Reasonable accommodation during the application process is available for persons with disabilities. Please complete this request form should you require accommodation.

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