Brand Manager – Emerging Brands

At Link Snacks, we show up hungry, roll up our sleeves, plaid or otherwise, and dive straight into the hard work. We don’t hide from challenges; we hunt them down. We push harder, move faster, and take the kinds of big swings that built this business in the North Woods of Wisconsin four decades ago.

We’re everyday people who deliver extraordinary results. Innovation, creativity, and urgency aren’t buzzwords, they’re expectations. And just like the real protein snacks we make across our global house of brands—Jack Link’s®, Lorissa’s Kitchen®, Golden Island®, BiFi®, and Peperami® and KOOEE!® to name a few—there’s nothing artificial about us. What you see is exactly what you get: humble, gritty, passionate people who show up every day ready to not just be a participate in the meat snack industry that the Link Family created, but to move faster, innovate harder and keep raising the bar so high, the rest of the world needs a ladder just to see it.

Dominating this space across the world takes a team. A team that runs together, succeeds together, and celebrates together. A team that’s full of relentless energy and spirit that can only be fueled by one thing: a fist full of our delicious meat snacks.

Real Meat Protein. Real People. Real Results. THAT is Link Snacks.

JOB SUMMARY

Joining the Emerging Brands team as Brand Manager you will have the opportunity to build and grow a variety of brands in the Link Snacks portfolio by driving marketing, partnering with sales, and the overall general management of our businesses. Be part of a team that is pushing the boundaries and reimagining multiple categories and channels. 

The Brand Manager - Emerging Brands, is an agile, General Manager that will lead and execute commercialization of products, go-to-market strategy, develop 360-degree brand marketing plans, and much more for our refrigerated snacks portfolio as well as our Jack Links Canned Chili business. These businesses are emerging platforms for Link Snacks and this is an opportunity to be the leading growth driver.

Critical thinking is a MUST.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Develop and execute brand marketing plans, with excellence through cross-functional collaboration to ensure quality and readiness of plans, tracking of performance in market, course-correction and learnings to improve future performance.
• Lead cross-functional efforts, in close partnership with product development and consumer insights to develop and commercialize new products and expansion efforts to drive sales and profit.
• Understand channel and customer business dynamics and leverage insights to inform brand growth strategies, product and consumer marketing opportunities to drive growth.
• Uncover actionable and powerful insights through analysis of brand performance, consumer insights, category trends & competitive dynamics.  Leverage these insights to shape brand strategy and growth opportunity recommendations.
• Partner closely with sales team to develop best-in-class channel strategies, sell-in materials, and growth plans that meet and exceed brand AOP.
• Work with cross-functional teams to measure and analyze sales impact, sales execution and the profitability/ROI including brand budgets.
• Perform other duties and responsibilities as necessary.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by a Team Member to be successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job the Team Member is regularly required to sit, use hands to finger, handle, or feel and talk or hear. The Team Member is occasionally required to stand, walk and reach with hands and arms. The Team Member must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those a Team Member encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. The work environment is a plant/office setting with varying degrees of temperatures and noise levels. Exposure to manufacturing equipment movement and wet/slippery floors. However, the vast amount of work is conducted in a climate-controlled office. Travel may be required.

• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing or equivalent.
• 5+ years of experience in brand marketing.
• 3+ years of CPG industry experience.
• Experience in rapidly developing & testing new, strategic business models.
• Analytic horsepower with a relentless orientation on results, and the capacity to respond quickly to changing marketplace dynamics
• High levels of interpersonal skills, specifically in the area of influencing without direct authority, resolving conflict, and creative problem solving.
• Ability to lead complex, strategic projects through to commercialization
• Proven track record of driving profitable growth including P&L and marketing spend responsibilities.
• Experience managing and influencing cross-functional teams in conversations and in presentations
• Resilient problem solver. Experience building consensus even if all team members may not be in agreement. Can find creative solutions and common ground in order to move key initiatives forward.
• Ability to work independently and cross-functionally to lead programs, analyze data and drive results in a dynamic and rapidly evolving environment  
• Familiarity with common consumer marketing research tools and techniques
• Experience with NIQ, Mintel, Numerator, etc.

Preferred (but not required) Experience

• MBA
• 2+ years of experience working within a start-up company or start-up environment.
• Deli/Refrigerated category experience
• Canned goods category experience
• Sales experience
• Entrepreneurship and/or Start-up Founder experience

REQUIRED SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITIES

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills; must work effectively with all levels of leadership and Team Members
• Tenacious, resourceful, determined; overcomes obstacles and operates with urgency
• Must be willing to roll up your sleeves, learn new skills, and wear multiple hats as an intrapreneur.
• Driven to build & willing to pivot in a rapidly changing environment
• Highly organized with time management and meeting deadline skills 
• Strong analytical skills and data-driven thinking 
• Highly creative with ability to think out of the box 

Ability to travel: ~20%

The salary range for this role is $120,000 - $145,000 (Annually).  Actual salaries will vary based on several factors, including but not limited to external market data, internal equity, location, and candidate skill set and experience. Base pay is just one component of Jack Link’s Total Rewards package for Team Members. Other rewards may include annual incentive and program-specific awards. Jack Link’s provides a variety of benefits to eligible Team Members, including medical, dental and vision benefits, life and disability insurance, 401k participation, paid holidays, and paid time off.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER:
Jack Link’s provides equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic that is protected by federal, state or local law.

E-VERIFY:
Jack Link’s is a participant in the federal E-Verify program to confirm the identity and employment authorization of all newly hired employees.  For information about the E-Verify program, please visit:  http://www.uscis.gov/e-verify/employees

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

Disclaimer:

This job description is intended to generally describe the nature and level of work to be performed by employees in this position. It is not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities and skills required of employees performing this role.