What are the responsibilities and job description for the Foodservice Customer Account Specialist - Chicago, IL position at General Mills and Careers?
Job Description:
As a CAS you will drive new sales and sustain existing business at foodservice operators in the Lodging, Commercial Restaurant, K-12, Colleges & Universities, and Healthcare channels in the suburbs of Chicago!
Our Midwest Sales Team is seeking a tenacious and adaptable Customer Account Specialist (CAS) to accelerate General Mills’ sales at foodservice operators in the great state of Illinois!
As a CAS you will drive new sales and sustain existing business at foodservice operators in the Lodging, Commercial Restaurant, K-12, Colleges & Universities, and Healthcare channels in the suburbs of Chicago!
In this role, you will:
- Sell a broad portfolio of front-of-house and back-of-house products, including: Frozen Baked Goods, Flour, Mixes, Single-Serve and Bulk Cereals and Yogurt, Snacks, Frozen Meals
- Develop mutually beneficial partnerships with foodservice operators across channels: Lodging, Commercial Restaurants, Caterers, Colleges & Universities, Healthcare, K-12
- Execute in-person sales calls with foodservice operators and distributor sales representatives
- Provide expertise to your customers regarding our products (features, benefits, versatility), competitors, and broader industry knowledge.
- Demonstrate product knowledge to customers through at-home and on-site sample preparation across all product platforms
- Collaborate closely with the Account Executives (Distributor Managers) and CAS peers with a “Winning as One” mindset
- Leverage Salesforce and other internal data sources to strategically identify new sales opportunities, plan sales activities and record results
- Support critical distributor and industry events, i.e. Industry Expos, Distributor Food Shows, Distributor Sales Meetings, etc.
KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES
Sustain existing business and drive new, incremental sales
- Sell General Mills foodservice products to foodservice customers in our focus channels across territory
- Leverage resources such as Salesforce, Firefly, customer purchase data, Yelp, customer websites and social media, etc. to properly inform yourself about customers’ operations and prepare for sales calls accordingly
- Leverage a broad portfolio of marketing and trade resources to overcome customer objections and close sales
- Partner with distributor sales teams and distributor sales representatives to educate them about our products, empowering them to sell on your behalf to their customers
- Collaborate with the GMI Region's Account Executives to effectively create operator demand for new items through distributors (GFS Kenosha, Sysco Chicago, USF Chicago, Performance Chicago)
- Collaborate with CAS (sales team) peers to provide efficient customer account coverage and Account Executive support
Leverage analytics (i.e. Salesforce, Firefly, Excel-based reporting) combined with local expertise to identify new sales opportunities
- Leverage networking, local publications, social media, boots-on-the-ground research to develop local expertise about the greater Chicagoland area
- Analyze data available from multiple sources including Salesforce, Firefly, Excel-based reports and local expertise to identify new customer targets, core void and lost business opportunities at existing customers
Other Accountabilities
- Develop and execute a strategic call pattern that maximizes your in-person and virtual sales call coverage (minimum of 16-20 operator sales calls per week to sell approximately 750 – 1000cs of incremental volume per month)
- Demonstrate product knowledge to operators through at-home and on-site sample preparation across all product platforms
- Support critical distributor and industry events, i.e. Industry Expos, Distributor Food Shows, Distributor Sales Meetings, etc.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- High School Diploma
- Proficient with Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook)
- Strong interpersonal, communication and problem skills
- Demonstrated ability to collaborate and win as part of a team
- Self-motivated, able to maintain workload from remote office
- Valid driver's license with a good driving record
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Bachelor's or Associate's Degree
- Problem solving skills
- Experience selling to or working within Lodging and Commercial Restaurant operators in Chicagoland Market
- Previous work experience in sales and/or foodservice
- Spanish proficiency
ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS
- Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the U.S. General Mills will not sponsor applicants for a U.S. work visa.
- International relocation or international remote working arrangements (outside of the US) will not be considered.