Senior Customer Collaboration Manager

Who We Are

Suntory is a fast moving, agile and entrepreneurial business that is home to some of the nations most loved brands. The Suntory Group is one of the largest soft drinks companies and among the world’s leading consumer products companies. We offer a uniquely diverse portfolio of beverages enjoyed by millions across the globe

About your role

You will be responsible for enhancing the end-to-end supply chain collaboration between our business and key customers and lead a team of two who do a similar role for additional customers.

These roles are essential to our business & are almost permission to trade in the eyes of our customers, showing we care about servicing their needs.

Through a ‘customer-first’ mindset you will foster strong relationships to improve supply chain processes and drive mutual growth through efficient and innovative ways of working.

You will be a connector between commercial plans & execution and help us to continually enhance and evolve our Customer Experience through seamless operations, improved service levels, and overall increased customer satisfaction

What You'll Do

Foster Collaboration – Internally & Externally

In this newly created role, you will have the responsibility of setting up the team & creating the collaboration agenda for the GB business. This covers all areas in how we want to work & whom we should work with to grow our businesses.

You will build a network of contacts across our customer’s Supply Chain Function and conduct regular Face to Face meetings (such as 30-60-90s) to review performance, align on upcoming plans and identify new improvement opportunities.

You will facilitate cross-functional meetings for SBF GB&I and the customer to discuss and resolve supply chain challenges and unlock enhanced supply capabilities that enable both our businesses to enhance our processes. This may involve using data from agencies such as Kantar, as well as working with our field team agencies.

Facilitate Seamless Operations

Using the available systems, you will monitor KPIs daily on Key metrics (such as inbound service & inventory levels) to root cause any issues and look for any opportunities.

You’ll be in daily/regular conversations with the customer, interrogating their data & recommending solutions to maximise daily on shelf availability.

You will lead the process ensuring we have a collaborative forecast with our customers, aligning both the demand (base, promotion & events) and managing long term forecasting, sharing knowledge & strategies.

You will track & monitor all aspects of promotions from ensuring products are set up, orders are on time, volume is across the network & of sufficient amounts to lead to no out of stocks on shelf & then make recommendations throughout on opportunities to maximise sales / minimise over stocks

Deliver Continuous Improvement

You will identify opportunities & implement best practices to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and improve service levels across our e2e supply chains

You’ll ensure your team is efficient in the services you provide & use industry insight to help us evolve and lead in the space of Customer Collaboration

Leadership & Coaching

You’ll play a pivotal role in supporting the wellness, capability and development of your team

You will support your team with Customer meetings when escalation has been requested or deemed essential

What's in it for you

Suntory is a fast moving, agile and entrepreneurial business that is home to some of the nations most loved brands. The Suntory Group is one of the largest soft drinks companies and among the world’s leading consumer products companies. We offer a uniquely diverse portfolio of beverages enjoyed by millions across the globe

What You need to be successful

Solid experience in Supply Chain Management including Line Management

Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, layered with strong stakeholder engagement skills and an ability to lead, inform and engage multi-functional teams

Strong negotiation skills & someone that has experience from within sales or customer facing collaboration roles previously.

Proven ability to build and maintain strong customer relationships, and who is self-starter attitude that unlocks results

Adaptable and resilient, with the ability to navigate complexity and ambiguity through effective problem-solving and analytical skills

Flexible & able to travel to Customers throughout the UK c40% per week

Our DEI Commitment

At Suntory, we recognize that diverse knowledge, perspectives, and backgrounds contribute to our collective success. We are committed to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace where all individuals can bring their whole selves to work every day, regardless of race, color, religion, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, or any other protected characteristic.

Our recruitment and selection processes are designed to highlight what Suntory offers as an employer while allowing candidates to share their unique skills and experiences. We understand that career trajectories vary, and if you believe your experience/background can benefit our team, we encourage you to apply. We endeavor to make our interview process as inclusive as possible and offer reasonable accommodations as needed. Together, we can cultivate a workplace where everyone can thrive and propel our mission of Growing for Good.