Key Account Manager Traditional Trade segment

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas – immunology, oncology, neuroscience, and eye care – and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie on X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Tik Tok.

Champion the perspective of low-income FMCG wholesalers, township pharmacies, and General traders. Share channel insights, anticipate market changes, recognize unmet needs, and develop key account strategies to secure market access and optimize AbbVie brand value. Place the low-income consumer at the center of all efforts while operating within AbbVie’s business code of conduct, policies, and all relevant South African laws and regulations.

Responsibilities:

•  Develop a comprehensive understanding of the complexities, pressures, and opportunities within each account’s decision-making matrix to successfully establish new brand entry and category presence within each account (Traditional Trade -FMCG segment). Identify and engage key wholesalers and customers who are critical to the value chain and leverage this insight to articulate anticipated channel influencer decision drivers and unmet needs. Clearly communicate these insights to brand teams to ensure a holistic and tailored key account situation analysis for optimal market access and growth.
• Develop strategy and concise engagement plans specific to accounts with clear objectives and activities to optimize usage, listings, trading and access of AbbVie products considering long-term goals of the entire product portfolio.
• New Product Launch and Speed-to-Shelf Excellence- Secure new product listings by ensuring prompt completion of documentation and rollout of launch materials.
• Train retail and wholesale staff to ensure effective product activation.
• Identify, segment, and prioritize low-income FMCG wholesalers, township pharmacies, and other key stakeholders; tailoring value propositions for each.
• Develop and maintain long-term partnerships with key stakeholders: owners/managers of buying groups, wholesalers, township pharmacies, and optometry traders.

Build and nurture strong professional relationships with senior buyers, procurement, and decision-makers at each wholesaler and retail group.

• Maintain consistent communication to address needs, challenges, and opportunities.

• Oversee operations of trade merchandising store teams, ensuring excellence in service delivery and product availability. Ensuring In-Store Execution and Presence, merchandising, and planogram adherence.
• Coordinate timely placement of POS materials, displays, and execution of promotional campaigns.
• Negotiate commercial agreements with each key account, pricing strategies, margins, incentives, and service-level agreements tailored to brand channel requirements.
• Regular Business Reviews and Analytics by conducting scheduled account reviews to analyze sales performance, identify growth drivers/barriers, and track progress against KPIs. Share actionable insights with internal teams.
• Design and coordinate effective route-to-market solutions, overcoming logistics challenges.
• Optimize order management, delivery cycles, and payment solutions to match the cash flow patterns of brand trading partners.
• Ensure full regulatory compliance and educate partners on responsible selling and good distribution practices.
• Collaborate closely with cross-functional AbbVie teams (supply chain, finance, marketing, regulatory) and share best practices for rapid scaling.
• Promptly report any adverse event or safety information to Pharmacovigilance within 24 hours of awareness.

 

• Bachelor's degree, biological sciences, pharmacy, business related field, or equivalent.
• Relevant experience with demonstrated track record of success in sales or consultative selling role within FMCG trading environment in traditional trade segment.
• Years of experience in this role or similar role – 5 to 10 years
• Ability to translate strategies into actionable and realistic key account engagement plans
• Ability to work with, motivate and coordinate cross functional teams
• Ability to negotiate, close and sign Commercial deals with key accounts and with complex customer networks
• Solid analytic, business planning and financial acumen skills and solid working knowledge of pharmaco-economic principles
• Strong knowledge of traditional trade FMGC mindset and motivation in relevant local context
• Solid knowledge of Traditional Trade Customer/ Wholesaler decision making process and who the key stakeholder/influencers are plus English language proficiency verbally and in writing (for all non-English speaking countries)
• Demonstrated track record of success on specific key account experience strategically and long term as well as tactical within relevant local context preferred

 

AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives and serving our community.  Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled. 

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