Director of Commercialization

Suja Life•,

1d•$150,000 - $175,000

About The Position

The Director, Commercialization translates the company’s brand, consumer, category, and business strategies into go-to-market strategies and actionable commercial plans that drive sales growth across channels. The role connects Marketing, Sales, Consumer & Shopper Insights, Category Management, Innovation, Finance, and Operations, turning complex information into differentiated sales narratives and tools that help the organization win with customers. The Director leads national commercialization strategy and the national sales narrative, adapting the story to the needs of different channels and customers. The role owns the national sales toolkit, supports innovation commercialization, establishes cross-functional governance and processes, and equips Sales with effective materials and strategies for customer meetings, selling cycles, and launches. The position requires occasional travel by car or airplane, including visits to retail customers, data partners, and company facilities. The work may occasionally take place in a manufacturing environment with temperatures around 35 degrees. Computer, keyboard, and telephone use are required, as are occasional nights and weekends.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required.
At least 8 years of experience in CPG, preferably in commercialization, sales strategy, category management, shopper or consumer insights, marketing, or related commercial functions.
Demonstrated experience developing go-to-market strategies and translating complex business information into compelling commercial narratives.
Experience developing sales enablement tools, customer presentations, and commercialization materials.
Proficiency with PowerPoint and other tools used to develop and communicate commercial strategies.
Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to simplify complex information into clear, persuasive messages.
Strong project management skills and the ability to manage multiple high-priority initiatives and deadlines simultaneously.
Strong understanding of CPG sales channels, customer dynamics, and the retail landscape.
Proven ability to lead cross-functional initiatives and influence senior stakeholders without direct authority.
Strong strategic thinking, analytical, storytelling, and presentation skills.
Ability to sit for extended periods and occasionally lift equipment weighing up to 20 lbs.

Nice To Haves

MBA or advanced degree.
Experience in commercialization, sales strategy, category management, shopper or consumer insights, or marketing within the CPG industry.

Responsibilities

Collaborate cross-functionally to shape go-to-market strategies for portfolio initiatives, major brand programs, innovation launches, and strategic growth opportunities.
Establish commercialization frameworks, processes, and timelines that align cross-functional teams and support effective execution.
Identify selling opportunities, proof points, and activation requirements that drive customer adoption and business growth.
Partner with Sales leadership to ensure commercialization strategies are practical, differentiated, and aligned with customer needs.
Lead development of national sales narratives that explain the company’s growth story, category opportunity, portfolio strategy, and customer value proposition.
Synthesize inputs from Marketing, Insights, Category Management, Sales, Finance, Innovation, and other functions into cohesive commercial stories.
Adapt the national narrative into selling stories for different channels, customers, and selling occasions while maintaining consistency with brand and business strategy.
Evolve sales narratives using customer feedback, market dynamics, and business performance.
Own and maintain the national sales toolkit as the central source for sales messaging, selling stories, category insights, brand assets, product information, innovation materials, and proof points.
Establish standards and governance for sales materials to ensure consistency, accuracy, quality, and ease of use.
Develop and maintain sales presentations, one-pagers, sell sheets, talking points, customer narratives, FAQs, and other commercial materials.
Refresh sales materials in response to new insights, business results, product changes, competitive activity, and evolving customer needs.
Ensure sales teams have appropriate materials for customer meetings, line reviews, selling cycles, and business planning.
Connect Marketing, Sales, Consumer & Shopper Insights, and Category Management around shared commercial priorities and narratives.
Establish commercialization cadence, checkpoints, and cross-functional forums to keep work on track.
Identify gaps or inconsistencies in commercial stories and bring relevant functions together to resolve them.
Mentor cross-functional partners to improve commercial storytelling, sales readiness, and customer engagement.
Partner with Marketing, Innovation, Insights, Category Management, and Sales to develop commercialization strategies for new products and major innovation initiatives.
Translate innovation strategies into customer selling stories that communicate consumer need, category opportunity, product differentiation, and retailer or customer value.
Tailor innovation sell-in and launch plans and timing for key retailers and customers.
Develop launch toolkits and sales materials for innovation presentations, customer line reviews, sell-in, and launch execution.
Establish commercialization milestones and ensure sales readiness ahead of innovation launches.
Capture post-launch learnings and incorporate them into future commercialization strategies.
Serve as a strategic resource to Sales leadership and account teams on communicating company growth strategy and customer value.
Improve sales organization efficiency and effectiveness through scalable, repeatable commercialization processes and tools.
Simplify complex information and make insights more actionable for customer-facing teams.
Monitor sales-tool usage and effectiveness and improve content based on feedback and business needs.
Stay current on customer, category, competitive, consumer, and industry trends to keep commercial materials relevant and differentiated.
Work cross-functionally with Sales, Marketing, Growth, Innovation, and the broader Sales organization to deliver reporting and insights that drive business decisions.