Head of Category

Job Title: Head of Category

Location: Hemel Hempstead – Hybrid

Job Length: Permanent

Working Hours: Monday – Friday (full time)

Competitive Salary with extensive benefits:

• Monthly product allowance – alcoholic & non-alcoholic options available 
• Private Medical options
• Life Assurance 
• Company bonus scheme
• Access to 24/7 GP services
• Enhanced pension contribution
• Generous holiday (inc bank holidays)
• Access to a range of high street discounts

Carlsberg Britvic is the largest multi-beverage supplier in the UK and is home to some of the most iconic and popular beers & soft drinks, including Carlsberg Danish Pilsner, 1664, Poretti and Brooklyn to ale favourites such as Hobgoblin and Wainwright. For soft drinks, Carlsberg Britvic’s brands include J2O, Robinsons, Tango and London Essence along with the licence rights to the Pepsi portfolio in the UK including Pepsi MAX, 7UP, Lipton Ice Tea and Rockstar Energy.

With a strong national footprint, the Carlsberg Britvic business includes 5 production facilities and 15 logistics depot’s servicing customers up and down the UK. As these two historical businesses have come together, the one common goal remains, and that is ensuring our people succeed.  

About the Role:

The Head of Category role will be responsible for inspiring and leading their team on the next phase of our ambitious category growth journey across our beer and softs portfolio.

We are looking for thought leaders, inspirers with a growth mindset who are adept at looking for new, transformational growth opportunities with our retail partners and who have the experience and expertise to inspire their team, their commercial colleagues and our customers, to deliver on these breakthrough opportunities.

This role is central to the execution of our category strategy and the planning and delivery of our annual operating plan (AOP), therefore strong links will be required across the category strategy, marketing, commercial growth and sales teams.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic thinking

• Identify the key strategic transformational opportunities for your channel and lead your team to deliver on them
• Be an advocate/leader for our category strategy called “thirsty for growth”, inspiring both your customers and your team to partner with Carlsberg Britvic on our recommendations on how to deliver category growth
• Support the commercial team in the deployment of our value realisation strategy, building category selling stories where appropriate
• Lead the development of the Category AOP strategy and team delivery of customer roadmaps, ensure the team are ruthlessly focused on delivery

In-year delivery – Internal

• Lead or support on the delivery of Carlsberg Britvic’s commercial planning processes; AOP development & target setting and performance cycle process
• Lead the execution of the category plan; develop and execute strategies to maximise macro space, range, primary fixture & secondary space, merchandising principles, availability and FTG opportunities in line with Perfect Store visions
• Support the development of Gate 2/3 business cases with customer level information on category opportunities drive for execution from Gate 3/4 onwards
• Own or support the measurement of our category outcomes at both channel & customer level; monitor, track and feedback on progress building course correct plans where required
• Communicate and share insight & best practice on category, shopper and customer, ensuring an outside-in lense to how we make decisions
• Support evaluation of key initiatives to ensure that learnings feed into future planning & activation across the channel

In-year delivery – External with customers

• Lead a culture where Carlsberg Britvic is recognised as the indispensable category partner of choice
• Engage & inspire key external stakeholders on the strategic growth platforms and segment visions and support team to build and deliver a customer partnership agenda (delivering best in class AGS results)
• Execute inspiring category growth plans across the full customer estate; Superstores, Convenience, Online, Q Commerce, FTG
• Champion customer specific data, especially loyalty data where this exists, to add value to strategy and initiative development
• Lead the team to deliver on high impact category growth days with customers, setting a solid foundation for our Carlsberg Britvic commercial plans

People management

• Set clear performance management objectives for team aligned to business objectives
• Lead & coach team members, ensuring development plans are in place to drive great performance
• Raise the capability of the category team with respect to their understanding and usage of category vision and tools
• Ensure succession plans are in place for team members

Experience Required:

• Extensive FMCG experience
• Experience of working with and demonstrable success with a range of off trade customers
• Practical experience of category management process & first-hand experience of managing strategic customer relationships
• Strategic thinker able to develop clear vision for the category within the channel / customer
• Demonstrable capability of applying category management thinking
• Strong commercial skills across a range of channels/companies
• Strong communicator (written & presented) with good facilitation skills
• Basic understanding of the latest shopper / market insight techniques
• Strong people management & coaching skills, able to unlock the best in others

Application Process:

We read applications continuously, and vacancies may be filled anytime, so please apply as early as possible.

We look forward to receiving your application.

Our commitment to diversity equity & inclusion

We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, identities, and experiences - including those of different races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, ages, abilities, religions, and socioeconomic statuses. We actively seek to create a safe and inclusive environment for all of our colleagues, where diverse perspectives are welcomed, and inclusive practices are embedded in everything we do.

We are happy to support accessibility needs, to ensure a fair and equitable experience for all candidates, so please do let us know if you require any adjustments during the recruitment process.

This is an exciting time to join our newly formed business – with their incredible individual history’s, innovation of products and some of the UK’s most iconic brands, Carlsberg Britvic strives to deliver the best service to our customers and consumers. We aim to make a difference, bringing together two diverse companies, our global reach enables opportunity, growth and a chance to work with some fantastic people.