Job Summary:
The Senior Account Manager is responsible for protecting and growing assigned customer accounts through consultative, strategic selling and proactive business development. This role focuses on driving new, large‑volume sales across Kalsec’s product portfolio by navigating complex buying environments, influencing key decision‑makers, and clearly demonstrating value through end‑application presentations, technical demonstrations, and commercial negotiations.
The account portfolio includes national and global food manufacturers, requiring a high level of professionalism, strategic thinking, and cross‑functional collaboration.
Essential Job Responsibilities:
- Serve as the primary point of contact for assigned accounts and act as the trusted advisor and “face of Kalsec” to customers, consistently upholding Kalsec’s mission, values, and standards.
- Own sales volume and gross margin growth for assigned accounts through the development and execution of strategic business plans that meet or exceed budgeted targets.
- Collaborate closely with Sales Leadership and commercial colleagues across U.S. and international markets to achieve shared revenue objectives efficiently and effectively.
- Align regional account strategies with national initiatives and campaigns by partnering with cross‑functional internal and external stakeholders to drive sales performance.
- Retain and grow existing customer relationships while identifying and developing new customer opportunities, continuously elevating the quality, clarity, and consistency of communication between Kalsec and assigned accounts.
- Regularly review and manage contracts, agreements, pricing, forecasts, budgets, and actual sales performance to ensure alignment with business objectives.
- Deliver compelling, customized presentations to key accounts, including defining presentation objectives and coordinating required internal resources to support customer needs.
- Maximize account coverage by leveraging direct sales efforts, commission agents, and existing relationships to gain access to new contacts and buying influencers.
- Continuously monitor and assess market intelligence related to pricing, competitive activity, product quality, applications, economic factors, and industry trends, providing insights and recommendations as appropriate.
- Develop annual sales forecasts for assigned accounts and partner with leadership to establish sales objectives aligned with individual and company goals.
- Maintain accurate, detailed records of account activity, opportunities, projects, and correspondence within Salesforce.com.
- Build, manage, and advance a robust sales opportunity pipeline equal to (or exceeding) assigned revenue targets, driving opportunities from identification through qualification, negotiation, and closure. Communicate changes in demand and project status to relevant internal teams.
- Partner with Marketing to support prospecting efforts and ensure pipeline growth aligns with assigned KPIs.
- Coordinate and support customer needs by working cross‑functionally with Technical, Applications, Regulatory, QA, Customer Experience, Operations, Accounting, and Logistics teams.
- Represent Kalsec professionally at trade shows, customer meetings, industry events, and conferences.
- Collaborate with Technical, Marketing, and Product Management teams to identify and develop opportunities for new or modified products based on customer and market needs.
- Adhere to all company Quality Assurance policies and procedures as defined in the Quality Manual, ensuring full compliance with food safety and quality standards.
Qualifications:
Required
- Bachelor’s degree and a minimum of 7 years of relevant industrial food ingredient sales experience.
- Proven ability to manage complex sales cycles and negotiate effectively at multiple organizational levels.
- Strong relationship‑building, communication, and influencing skills with both internal and external stakeholders.
- Home‑based office with demonstrated ability to work autonomously.
- Must be located in the Greater Chicago area or Wisconsin with easy access to a major airport.
- High proficiency in Microsoft Office applications (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).
Desired
- Master’s degree and/or technical background (Food Science, Chemistry, or related field).
- Experience selling flavors, extracts, natural colors, and other functional food ingredients.
Working Conditions:
- Regular use of Microsoft Office Suite, Salesforce (SFDC), and LinkedIn.
- Prolonged periods of sitting and computer use; occasional lifting up to 15 pounds.
- Ability to access various departments and manufacturing locations as needed.
- Bilingual preferred with an emphasis on Spanish.
- Greater than 50% travel, including international travel and weekend travel as needed.