Brand Manager Amarula at The Heineken Company

Purpose of the job

• Support the development of the Brand Strategy to drive HEINEKEN BEVERAGES INTERNATIONAL market share growth ambitions in the cream liqueur and spirits segment. Lead implementation of that strategy including communication, integrated commercial plan and innovation/renovation projects aligned to the brand positioning and strategy.
• Support the Marketing Leadership Team and broader marketing team to actively drive HEINEKEN Marketing team culture through role modeling HEINEKEN behaviors.

Key Responsibilities:

Consumer at the Centre

• Consistently drive competitive advantage by being close to and inspired by the consumer.
• Understands how insight differs from data & information. Turn data and insights into action to win with consumers.
• Show a good understanding of BGS and key brand health metrics.
• Understands shopper missions and path to purchase.

Brand Strategy

• Demonstrates an understanding of all elements of Brand Strategy, how they interrelate and how they contribute to reaching strategic objectives.
• Understands how brand strategy impacts the marketing mix and activity choices across the Must Win Battles.
• Actively contribute to the development of the Brand Strategy.
• Continually tracks brand performance, competition, BGS outputs and other sets up any other required monitoring.
• Support and where possible, present Brand Strategy, reviews and plans to both internal and external stakeholders.

Breakthrough communication development, implementation & touchpoint planning

• Show a good understanding of media landscape, the role and effectiveness of differing touchpoints for achieving different objectives.
• Develop content and activities that deliver Brand Objectives and are aligned to BiaB.
• Fully understands and uses MWB principles and ABTL fundamentals.
• Work with CMI and Media to identify volume and aspirational targets and the related media targets.
• Develop clear campaign objectives aligned to business and brand objectives, monitor and measure against them, optimising during the campaign where possible.
• Assess the strength of creative and media proposals to effectively deliver the campaign objectives, engage consumer in the content and maximise the ‘reaction’.
• Support the creation of integrated campaigns working cross-functionally across all relevant functions in the business, and proactively manages brand planning and in-market execution.
• Measure the impact on the brand of the Marketing Mix and ensure future plans are ‘effective first’ and learnings are integrated.
• Inspire agencies to create brand and business building communication and activities that deliver against objectives and resonate with consumers.
• Effectively and proactively manage agencies (briefing, challenging, feedback, reward).
• Support, and where possible manage all client side elements of the production process end to end.

Integrated commercial planning

• Demonstrates a full understanding Integrated Commercial Planning process.
• Demonstrates an understanding of key consumer and commercial levers that impact brand performance.
• Demonstrates an understanding of the role of different marketing activities in affecting consumer and shopper behaviour.
• Turn strategic insights into plans that win across Consumer, Shopper and Customer.
• Allocate budget in line with strategy and objectives.
• Support in uniting Brand and Commercial Strategies into winning annual plans that effectively coordinate all brand activities to drive penetration, build Brand Power and deliver business results.
• Support the Annual Brand Planning process and mobilize cross functionally to ensure integrated plan across all Must Win Battles.
• Evaluate plans to ensure ongoing learning and improvement.

Brand Profitability

• Measures and evaluates the effect of specific activities on top line, and return on investment.
• Demonstrates an understanding of the Brand’s SKU mix and profitability.
• Measure reaction and ROI on all activities and apply learning to all future activity.
• Maximise Commercial Spend Productivity by aligning investment to brand role, minimising non-working spend and maximising return on all activities.
• Flawlessly manages the brand budget / expenses with minimal accruals and delays in closing off PO’s.

Innovation/renovations

• Understands ‘Sources of Growth’, ‘Taste Landscape’ and can articulate key macro consumer trends.
• Can differentiate between creative ideas and commercial ideas that can improve business results.
• Understands how innovation contributes to portfolio and brand strategies and individual brand’s positioning to drive value growth.
• Is familiar with the different steps in the Innovation / renovation process and with deliverables per function.
• Understands how to write a concept.
• Effectively launch a product or packaging innovation / renovation, by leading cross-functional projects, ensuring effective decision making at each gate and securing cross-functional organisational alignment behind priorities and plans.
• Actively visits key markets to connect with in-market teams, customers and trade visits to strengthen market view for campaign and asset development, while observing safety protocols.
• Grounds all work in shopper insight.
• Collaborate with Sales and Trade Marketing, to ensure world class execution of all brand activities, grounded in shopper insight, across the path to purchase (on time, on budget, on strategy).
• Understand the most effective tactics across the path to purchase by channel to achieve different objectives.
• Leads and delivers BTL / TTL activities OTIF, and on budget.
• Monitors and evaluates effectiveness and ROI.
• Generate company wide commitment and excitement about key initiatives.
• Ensure the brand is activated in line with brand guidelines and the Responsible Marketing Code in store/bar.

RTC & Channel understanding

• Actively meets Distributors, Wholesalers and Retailers to better understand their purchase drivers and barriers.
• Recognises the strengths and restrictions of different RTC in reaching consumers.
• Ability to analyse RTC data, uncovering opportunities and risks and translate insights into actionable brand activities that drive growth
• Understands and can articulate the category strategy.
• Demonstrates an understanding of channel segmentation and the role of different channels in Brand Strategy and activation.
• Demonstrates an understanding of shopper and on-trade consumer drivers by market
• Demonstrates an understanding of the value chain in different channels and with different RTCs.
• Ensure customer, channel and RTC strategies are reflected in all brand activations and innovation plans

Education, Skills & Experience

• Appropriate tertiary marketing qualification preferably marketing related (degree / diploma) or equivalent experience
• Appropriate tertiary marketing qualification preferably marketing related (degree / diploma) or equivalent experience
• Minimum 3 years Brand Management/Marketing experience
• Proven track record with demonstrated success in campaign and project management
• Ability to deal with complexity in a demanding and complex business environment