Aqualite Industries - Zonal Manager - Sales

Department: Sales and Distribution

Work Location: Regional office

Grade: M3/ M4 Travel Required: Yes(50%)

Reporting to: Administrative: Sr. VP Sales

Reported by: ASMs

Functional: GM Sales

Educational Qualification: Graduate and MBA in Sales/ Marketing

Experience: 8 - 12 years

Any additional requirement:

Purpose of the Position (Job Summary)

- The purpose of this position is to drive sales in the specific sub-region to meet AOP targets by implementing trade promotions, ensuring stock availability, distributor expansion, etc.

Key Roles and Responsibilities :

Financial - Sales strategy: Design & execute sales strategies defined for each sub-category and state to ensure month-on-month achievement of sales target (value and volume). The RSM is responsible for overall sales in his assigned territory.

- New product launches: Ensure revenue from sales of new products as per AOP target

- Distributor expansion: Drive incremental revenue from distribution expansion

- Customer Orientation - Distributor calls: Conduct calls as per the agreed plan with each distributor. Review call cycle, reporting (weekly) on calls made and stock ordered for the team

- Distributor management: Build and maintain distributor relationships to grow regional sales

- Marketing: Work closely with distributors to develop & execute annual plan for promotions, advertising campaigns and retailer meets; Coordinate with the Marketing team to ensure that distributors are fully aware of and support planned promotions

- Merchandising: Provide merchandising assistance (i.e., through point of sale material, brochures, etc.) and advice to distributors in order to maximise sales

- Distributor investments: Ensure distributors have appropriate investments to cater to market needs (stock levels, credit, salesmen, etc.)

- Complaints management: Resolve product issues (such as recurring faults) at distributor level, arranging credits, replacement stock as required and providing feedback to Brand Managers for recurring issues; Ensure timely settlement of distributor issues like pending schemes/ discounts/ reversal of debit note, etc.

- Product intelligence: Provide support to develop products as per region's demands

- Exception approvals: Authorise and allocate transit damage rebates and credits effectively and within Company guidelines in order to maintain a positive relationship with distributors and maximise profitability. Report any exceptions to the Regional Manager

- Market metrics: Track distributor order fulfilment of demand generated from Retailers by the field force

- Competitor benchmarking: Benchmark market/ competitor best practices through ASMs & derive actionable recommendations from the same

- Distributor appointment: Scouting and appointing new distributors as per defined norms

- Distributor onboarding: Ensuring distributor gets all relevant post appointment support

- Distributor exclusivity: Ensuring adherence of exclusivity to Aqualite by designated exclusive distributors

People Orientation - Market expansion: Motivate & lead ASMs & SOs to establish coverage, distribution and display objectives to meet Sales targets

- Targets: Cascade targets for team & provide necessary support such as coaching, feedback, training & development to meet targets

- Trainings: Provide inputs on training needs for the team to Regional Manager/ HR

- Recruitment: Recruit and develop team members. Support HR in creation of a talent pipeline to ensure business continuity in case of attrition

- Mentorship and supervision: Mentoring, coaching and supervising the work of ASMs

- Internal Business Process - Sales planning: Overseeing creation of monthly/ weekly/ daily distributor-wise, sub category-wise sales plan for the month

- Collections: Track & minimize average outstanding at end of each month as a % of month's sales

- Balanced billing: Improve sales billing phasing to reduce month end skew

- Channel partner engagement: Drive distributor/ retailer engagement and scale up efforts to increase number of participating distributors/ retailers

- Market working plan adherence: Ensure adherence to market working plan for self & team. Report regularly to Regional Manager

- Distributor quality tracking: Review quality of distribution by tracking the range of articles billed out of the identified focus articles and target fulfilment

- Scheme success: Maximizing enrolment into trade schemes

- Stock availability: Ensure improvement in article wise stock availability

- Process sanctity: Ensure adherence to key sales processes

- Distributor-retailer mapping: Prepare territory-wise distributor to retailer mapping records and ensuring adherence

- Sales forecasting: Provide inputs to Regional Manager for accurate & timely sales forecasts

- Reviews: Conduct and attend timely reviews as per sales governance model

- Documentation from distributors: Collect no pending issue letter from distributors on quarterly basis

Competencies :

Technical/ Functional Behavioral :

- Sales planning

- BTL implementation

- Distributor management/ engagement

- Product knowledge - Customer Focus

- Collaboration

- Adaptability

- Result orientation

- Execution excellence

Key Result Areas :

Quantitative Qualitative :

- % Target achievement on AOP for the sub-region

- % revenue contribution from NPDs

- Average outstanding at end of each month as % of month's sales

- Incremental revenue from distribution expansion

- (Billing in last 3 days/Total Billing) averaged over four quarters

- Attrition

- # of participating distributors/ retailers in promotions/ engagement programs

- % adherence to monthly market working plan (self & team)

- % Improvement in forecast accuracy - Salesforce effectiveness

- Distributor coverage expansion

- On time target cascade for team

Key Stakeholder Management :

Internal External :

- Marketing/ Brand team

- NPD

- Production Planning & Logistics

- Sales Support

- Distributors

- Retailers