Customer Account Specialist - Kansas City

Job Overview

The Mustangs Region Sales Team is seeking a determined and energetic Customer Account Specialist (CAS) to accelerate General Mills sales at foodservice operators across Kansas and Western Missouri.

As a CAS, you will drive incremental sales and volume as well as sustain existing business at Foodservice operators in the K-12, Commercial, Lodging, Healthcare, Colleges & Universities, Military, and Business & Industry channels.

In this role, you will be responsible for selling our full portfolio of front-of-house and back-of-house products, including Frozen Baked Goods, Cereal, Pizza, Flour, Mixes, Snacks, and I/W Frozen Meals. Through these selling efforts, you will develop mutually beneficial partnerships with foodservice operators across all customer channels and record all activity into Salesforce.

You will collaborate with your Account Executive and CAS peers to deliver product expertise to your customers as well as share competitive and industry insights. By leveraging sales tools and analyzing internal reports, you will strategically plan your daily activities and identify new business opportunities. In addition, you will support key distributor and industry events, including Food Shows, Distributor Sales Meetings, and School Nutrition Association (SNA) Events.

Not only will you contribute to your individual territory growth, but you will also be supported by the amazing Mustangs Team, which spans Kansas, Western Missouri, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona.

Strong candidates will demonstrate an entrepreneurial and curious mindset, eager to learn the business and drive opportunity in the market. You will need to jump in quickly, showcase a bias for action, and have a strong sense of ownership for your territory. As a CAS, you will develop a foundation in selling skills, including relationship building, internal and external communication, influencing, and more.

This role will be based out of Kansas City; however, the operator footprint extends to Kansas (Wichita, Topeka, Western KS, etc.) and Western Missouri (including Springfield), which may require some travel and overnight stays.

Key Accountabilities

Sustain existing business and drive new, incremental sales volume

• Sell General Mills products to foodservice customers in our focus channels across your assigned territory to grow volume.
• Collaborate with Account Executive and CAS peers to effectively create operator demand for new items through distributors including, but not limited to, Sysco KC, US Foods KC, SGC, Graves Foods, and PFG.
• Leverage resources such as Salesforce, customer purchase data, Google, customer websites and social media, and local expertise to properly inform yourself about customers' operations and prepare for new opportunities and sales calls accordingly.
• Leverage a broad portfolio of marketing and trade resources to overcome customer objections to close sales and drive growth.
• Partner with distributor sales teams (DSRs) to educate them about our products and empower them to sell on your behalf to their customers.

Additional information

Leverage Data & Analytics Tools including Salesforce, Operator Volume Data, and Bid Tool Data to identify and close new opportunities.

• Embrace Salesforce as the daily tool to manage and grow your business:
• Consistently meet or exceed the in-person sales Visits goal of 16 per week.
• Complete 100% of Core 74 Opportunities determined per half-year
• Achieve assigned territory volume growth target
• Leverage General Mills data sources to mine for additional opportunities within the territory.

Other Accountabilities

• Develop, plan, and execute a strategic call pattern that maximizes your sales call coverage (minimum of 16 in-person sales calls per week)
• Demonstrate product knowledge to operators through at-home and on-site sample preparation and baking across all product platforms.
• Support critical distributor and industry events, including Industry Events, Distributor Food Shows, Distributor Sales Meetings, etc.

Minimum Qualifications

• High School Diploma/ GED with 1+ years of relevant food sales, food service or other relevant food experience.
• Proficient with Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook)
• Strong interpersonal, communication, and problem-solving skills
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate and win as part of a team
• Self-motivated and disciplined with ability to maintain workload from a remote office

Preferred Qualifications

• 2+ years of direct foodservice experience working with distributors and operators.
• Local knowledge of the market
• Experience working with Customer Management tools like Salesforce.

Additional Considerations

• International relocation or international remote working arrangements outside of the U.S. will not be considered.
• Applicants for this position must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. General Mills will not sponsor applicants for work visas.

Salary Range

The salary range for this position is: $71,300 - $107,000 Annual

At General Mills we strive for each employee's pay at any point in their career to reflect their experiences performance and skills for their current role. The salary range for this role represents the numerous factors considered in the hiring decisions including, but not limited to, educations, skills, work experience, certifications, etc. As such, pay for the successful candidate(s) could fall anywhere within the stated range.

Beyond base salary, General Mills offers a competitive Total Rewards package focusing on your overall well-being. We are proud to offer a foundation of health benefits, retirement and financial wellbeing, time off programs, wellbeing support and perks. Benefits may vary by role, country, region, union status, and other employment status factors. You may also be eligible to participate in an annual incentive program. An incentive award, if any, depends on various factors, including, individual and organizational performance.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet a minimum 18-year age qualification.