Associate Director, National Distributors

Job Description

Associate Director of Regional Distributor reports into the Head of Distribution and Execution is responsible for leading Kraft Heinz’s strategic commercial relationships with national foodservice distributors (primarily Sysco and US Foods) within the Away From Home channel. This role develops and executes joint business plans that drive sales growth, assortment and distribution expansion, service level improvements, promotional effectiveness, and margin optimization while ensuring alignment with brand and channel strategies.

Essential Functions & Responsibilities

• Own the distributor strategy for Sysco and US Foods across the Away From Home channel, translating corporate brand and channel goals into executable distributor-level plans.

• Lead annual joint business planning and regular business reviews with distributor executives and internal cross-functional partners.

• Develop and manage distributor-specific pricing, promotion, and trade support to maximize incremental sales, distribution, and ROI.

• Drive category and assortment and distribution decisions to increase open coding and share of shelf and warehouse space

• Serve as the primary business lead for Sysco and US Foods, building senior-level relationships and ensuring strong commercial alignment.

• Drive enterprise KPIs and relevant goals to the team – Street Share and Distribution 

• Knowledge of trade management and understanding of ROIs for various trade investment decisions 

• Set and track distributor KPIs (sales, distribution points, fill rates, promotional ROI, gross margin, etc.) and use data to prioritize actions.

• Partner with Sales Planning, Demand & Supply Planning, Finance, and Insights to ensure accurate forecasting, inventory management, and performance reporting.

• Work closely with Sales (regional and national teams), BAP/Brand Marketing, Customer Logistics, Legal and Finance to execute distributor initiatives.

• Mentor, coach, and develop direct reports (if applicable) and influence matrixed teams to deliver results.

• Travels regularly to engage with the customer visits and top to tops 

Expected Experience & Required Skills

• General Management experience of owning and making investment decisions 

• 7+ years of experience with CPG/Foodservice preferred

• Has a proficient understanding of the full P&L and how various commercial decisions would impact the overall picture on the P&L 

• People management is required 

• University/College degree preferred 

• Self-starter with high levels of drive, energy, resilience and a desire for professional excellence 

• Proficient in Excel and Power Point is required 

• Ability to work and navigate effectively in a matrix organization

• Ability to build strong relationships and work with a variety of cross-functional stakeholders 

• Strong analytical skills — comfortable working with sales, financial and supply chain data to drive decisions.

• Excellent negotiation, presentation, and influencing skills; ability to partner with senior distributor and internal leaders.

• Proficiency with Excel and experience with BI/analytics tools (e.g., Power BI, Tableau) and CRM systems (Salesforce preferred)

Work Environment & Schedule

This position is considered a Remote based role that can be performed from a home office with expected travel. Additionally, this role requires working a salaried, exempt schedule to best execute against customer and internal expectations.

Our Total Rewards philosophy is to provide a meaningful and flexible spectrum of programs that equitably support our diverse workforce and their families and complement Kraft Heinz’ strategy and values.

New Hire Base Salary Range:

$141,500.00 - $176,900.00

Bonus: This position is eligible for a performance-based bonus as provided by the plan terms and governing documents.

The compensation offered will take into account internal equity and may vary depending on the candidate's geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors

Benefits: Coverage for employees (and their eligible dependents) through affordable access to healthcare, protection, and saving for the future, we offer plans tailored to meet you and your family’s needs. Coverage for benefits will be in accordance with the terms and conditions of the applicable plans and associated governing plan documents.

Wellbeing: