Associate Director of North America Marketing – Pet Food & Rendering

Kemin•Des Moines, IA

21d•Onsite

About The Position

The Associate Director of North America Marketing is a strategic B2B marketing leader responsible for defining and leading the strategic growth agenda for Kemin’s Pet Food & Rendering portfolio in the region. Serving as the senior marketing leader for North America, this role is accountable for shaping portfolio strategy, innovation priorities, market development plans, and marketing communications initiatives aligned with business objectives. The ideal candidate combines strategic vision, strong business acumen, customer-centric thinking, and the ability to translate market insights into growth opportunities. This position is required to be onsite at our WW Headquarters in Des Moines and will report to the North America General Manager for Pet Food & Rendering. Join the Kemin Team and Transform Lives! We are a privately held, family-owned-and-operated global biotechnology company driven by curiosity and committed to transforming the quality of life for people, pets, and the planet. We create solutions that strengthen health and wellbeing, provide nutrition and immune support for pets and production animals, safeguard the planet’s natural resources, and protect the global food supply chain for generations to come. We supply over 500 specialty ingredients for various industries, including human and animal health and nutrition, pet food, aquaculture, nutraceutical, food technologies, crop technologies, textiles, biofuels, and animal vaccines. We employ 3,500 global employees and operations in 90 countries, including manufacturing facilities in Belgium, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Italy, San Marino, Singapore, South Africa, and the United States.

Requirements

Bachelors degree in Business, Animal Science, Nutrition, Marketing, or a related field with a minimum of 10+ years of experience in product management, marketing, or commercial leadership, strategic planning, or related business roles within pet nutrition, animal health, or B2B ingredients.
Strong understanding of pet food ingredients and rendering industries.
Experience leading portfolio strategy, innovation commercialization, and market development initiatives
Strong understanding of market analysis, customer segmentation, value proposition development, and strategic planning
Demonstrated ability to influence senior leaders and build alignment across diverse stakeholder groups

Nice To Haves

MBA preferred

Responsibilities

Lead the development and execution of the North America growth strategy for Kemin's Pet Food & Rendering portfolio
Identify and evaluate new market opportunities, customer segments, strategic partnerships, and expansion pathways that support long-term business growth
Champion an outside-in, customer-focused marketing approach by leveraging voice-of-customer insights, market intelligence, industry trends, and competitive analysis
Translate market, customer, regulatory, and industry insights into strategic business recommendations and growth initiatives
Influence regional business planning, revenue growth strategies, portfolio investments, and resource allocation decisions
Partner with commercial and technical teams to accelerate growth, improve customer value creation, and strengthen competitive positioning
Lead the North America innovation portfolio strategy, ensuring alignment between customer needs, market opportunities, and business growth priorities
Influence innovation investment decisions through market sizing, opportunity assessment, customer insights, and competitive intelligence
Represent North America in global portfolio governance, stage-gate reviews, and innovation pipeline discussions
Evaluate portfolio performance and recommend strategic actions including investment, expansion, repositioning, or portfolio rationalization
Partner with Global Marketing, R&D, and Commercial teams to shape commercialization strategies and accelerate market adoption
Ensure Product Marketing Managers develop compelling, customer-focused value propositions and business cases for innovation initiatives
Champion commercialization excellence across the innovation lifecycle from concept through launch and adoption
Provide strategic leadership for market segmentation, targeting, positioning, value proposition development, and communications
Drive strategic pricing, value creation, differentiation, and messaging discussions in partnership with commercial leadership
Ensure consistency and effectiveness of customer-facing narratives across products, services, and market segments
Oversee regional launch planning, go-to-market strategies, and activation efforts to support commercial success
Partner with sales leadership to strengthen strategic account planning and market development initiatives
Monitor market performance and business results, ensuring marketing investments deliver measurable impact against growth objectives
Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing regional marketing organization
Establish clear priorities, performance expectations, and development plans aligned with business objectives
Elevate strategic thinking, customer-centricity, and storytelling capabilities across the team
Ensure effective prioritization across portfolios, balancing near-term business needs with long-term strategic objectives
Act as a trusted, active member of the North America Leadership Team
Provide a strong customer, market, and competitive perspective in leadership discussions and business planning processes
Engage in healthy debate, align on decisions, and champion agreed priorities across the organization
Bring energy, urgency, and a positive leadership presence to the team

Benefits

Competitive salary
uncapped bonus opportunities
401k match program
generous paid vacation and holidays
fitness reimbursement for the whole family
access to an on-site fitness center
a restaurant offering seasonal fresh food options
free fresh fruit in break areas
opportunities for growth and development throughout your entire career
in-house learning platforms, offering thousands of training resources both live and online
tuition reimbursement for external post-secondary pursuits
paid time off for service
partnerships with The World Food Programme and Habitat for Humanity
local community initiatives