UI Assistant Business Development Manager
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About this role
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Unilever is currently hiring for an Assistant Business Development Manager Function: Customer Development
Reports to: UI Business Development Lead, East Africa Location: Kenya Terms & Conditions: Full time
Role Purpose
Drive sustainable and profitable growth across assigned East African markets by leading distributor performance, commercial planning, customer development and market execution.
The role will combine hands-on business delivery with the development of capability for broader regional leadership responsibilities and o perates within a regional business covering Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi and Somalia
Core Responsibilities
Business Delivery: Own turnover, growth, profitability and market execution targets for the assigned approximately EUR 7M business. Lead annual plans, monthly performance reviews and corrective actions.
Distributor Leadership
Build and execute joint business plans, lead distributor governance, strengthen capability and hold partners accountable for agreed commercial outcomes.
Commercial Planning
Own forecasting, demand planning, pricing, portfolio mix, trade investment and promotional planning in collaboration with relevant functions.
Market Development
Identify and convert growth opportunities across priority geographies, brands, customers and channels. Expand distribution, coverage and execution quality.
Operational Excellence
Maintain healthy inventory, service, working-capital and order discipline. Proactively manage supply risks and prevent avoidable out-of-stocks.
Cross-Functional Leadership
Partner with Supply Chain, Finance, Marketing and Customer Operations to deliver end-to-end business priorities and resolve execution barriers.
Governance and Compliance
Ensure distributor operations, commercial investments and market activities comply with company policies, controls and regulatory requirements.
Scale and Succession
Demonstrate readiness to assume additional markets, customers and P&L responsibility as the East Africa business grows.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in Business, Commerce, Marketing or a related discipline; postgraduate qualification is an advantage.
- Approximately 5-8 years of progressive FMCG commercial experience in Sales, Customer Development, Distributor Management or a related field.
- Proven record of delivering sales and business targets through distributors and customers.
- Strong commercial acumen, analytical capability and understanding of P&L drivers.
- Comfort operating independently across multiple markets and influencing stakeholders without direct authority.
- East Africa or comparable emerging-market exposure is strongly preferred.
- High ownership, learning agility, resilience and an entrepreneurial growth mindset.
Skills and Experience
- Distributor management - Joint business planning, governance, performance reviews and capability building.
- Commercial delivery - Demonstrated delivery of growth, revenue targets and disciplined execution.
- Planning and analytics - Forecasting, demand planning, performance analysis and action-oriented reporting.
- Financial acumen - Working knowledge of P&L, gross margin, trade investment, ROI and working capital.
- Route to market - Experience improving coverage, channel execution and distributor productivity.
- Stakeholder leadership - Ability to align customers and cross-functional teams around clear decisions and actions.
- Communication - Executive-ready written and verbal communication, including customer negotiation and business reviews.
Unilever Behaviors
- Care Deeply: We care deeply about how consumers experience our brands every day, everywhere; about our people’s growth and development, and our impact on the planet. We care about our performance, to a point where it hurts when we don’t win.
- Focus on What Counts: We ruthlessly prioritise what truly matters, and so do fewer things brilliantly. We set clear goals & direction and recognise others for maximum impact.
- Stay Three Steps Ahead: We think boldly and creatively to make breakthroughs in performance. We are always curious and confident -anticipating and staying ahead of consumer needs and external trends, to beat the competition.
- Deliver with Excellence: We deliver excellence in what we do at pace. We take personal ownership and hold each other to account – always finding a way to do what we said we will do.
Unilever is an organisation committed to equity, inclusion and diversity to drive our business results and create a better future, every day, for our diverse employees, global consumers, partners, and communities. We believe a diverse workforce allows us to match our growth ambitions and drive inclusion across the business.
At Unilever we are interested in every individual bring ing their ‘Whole Self’ to work and this includes you! Thus if you require any support or access requirements, we encourage you to advise us at the time of your application so that we can support you through your recruitment journey.