Fonterra

We are looking for a dynamic Brand Manager to develop and manage marketing strategies and brand plans for the assigned brands with long term sustainability on parameters of brand growth, market share and profitability of our brands whilst creating and managing an innovation plan taking into consideration current and future consumer trends.

What you would be doing:

• Develop strategy for brands/ categories growth based on consumer needs states, positioning of brands, knowledgeable in market trends pertaining to relevant and adjacent categories, in alignment with overall corporate priorities.
• Develop a road map for each key growth driver and drive implementation of them in order to achieve projected category/ brand growth
• Review and evaluate the strategy based on current performance of the assigned Brands against plan, market developments and competitors’ activities and take corrective action wherever required to achieve the objectives.
• Achieve profitability of assigned brands by implementing optimal portfolio and pricing strategies
• Co-ordinate with the sales team on the annual sales plan and support in aligning sales and distribution strategies to ensure achievement of target sales volume and revenue
• Effectively manage portfolio strategy in line with market requirements
• Effectively manage pricing strategy within a price-controlled environment through robust market intelligence systems to predict price gaps and competitor price movements
• Manage the A&P budget efficiently to achieve agreed brand profitability via coordinating with media agency for cost efficient media planning, supply chain for promotional material buying, creative agency for cost effective communication assets, and customer marketing for trade promotions/shopper activation
• Efficiently control the transition from old to new inventory during innovation, renovation, consumer promotions by continuously monitoring and reviewing stocks and minimizing write off costs.
• Develop and implement brand marketing plans within Brand Plans and budget on time.
• Review, establish, and sustain good brand equity, image and awareness for existing as well as new products
• Identify shopper insights, purchase hurdles and drivers for the respective brands
• Develop actionable shopper insights for the respective brands (and along with the RE team, category insights for the priority REs), based on shopper research and other available data
• Develop strategic shopper plans based on identified shopper insights
• Create and maintain shopper profiles for each brand (and along with the RE team for priority REs)
• Developing shopper platforms and programs of activation which bring these plans to life
• Identify Shopper marketing innovation by developing, testing and sharing results of new vehicles and initiatives
• Develop and execute a secure innovation pipeline aligned with, local consumer needs and FBL’s innovation strategy resulting in mid and long-term product launches.
• Identify potential areas for innovations by conducting market survey and research, generating insights on evolution of consumer needs and opportunities, proactively identifying consumer preference shifts across demographics to ensure full funnel for innovation and drive funnel velocity
• Manage Innovation-to-Market process, review the progress in each stage, drive cross – functional collaboration and ensure new products/ concepts are launched in the market on time
• Lead product lifecycle management process from concept stage till the product becomes obsolete.

Here’s what we are looking for:

• Bachelor's Degree in Marketing or Business Management, Master’s Degree would be desirable.
• 3-5 of experience in Brand Equity Management, Product Life Cycle Management and Project Management within the FMCG industry.
• Excellent skills in stakeholder and relationship management.
• Strong leadership capability
• Excellent communication and organizational skills.
• Self-driven mentality with high level of critical thinking, and problem-solving skills.
• Strong communication skills in both English & Sinhala.