Director Strategic Accounts

Maker's Pride Talent Acquisition Team•Downers Grove, IL

1d•Remote

About The Position

The Director of Strategic Accounts is responsible for driving profitable, sustainable revenue growth by developing, leading, and maintaining high-impact relationships with Maker’s Pride’s most strategic customers. This role serves as the senior commercial owner for assigned key accounts and is accountable for customer retention, revenue expansion, margin performance, and long-term partnership value. The Director achieves company objectives by effectively navigating complex customer environments, resolving challenges, and capitalizing on emerging opportunities. This role influences decision-making at all levels within customer organizations and across Maker’s Pride by demonstrating strong business acumen, financial insight, emotional intelligence, and executive presence. The Director of Strategic Accounts plays a critical leadership role in aligning customer strategies with internal capabilities to deliver mutually beneficial outcomes.

Requirements

Advanced expertise in strategic account management, business development, sales execution, and customer relationship leadership
Strong sales reporting, forecasting, insights, and analytics capability
Executive presence with demonstrated negotiation, influence, and stakeholder management skills
Proven ability to lead, develop, and retain high-performing teams
Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to de-escalate complex customer situations
Detail-oriented and disciplined approach to managing complex portfolios and processes
Results-driven mindset with the ability to lead and adapt through change
Exceptional ability to build trusted relationships at all levels internally and externally
Strong financial and business acumen, including deep understanding of P&L management and profitability levers
Excellent oral, written, and presentation skills
Demonstrated ability to handle sensitive information with the highest level of confidentiality
Bachelor’s degree in business administration, sales & marketing, or similar
10+ years of experience in manufacturing, preferably within a multi–business unit environment
Extensive customer-facing experience with strategic or enterprise-level accounts
3+ years of experience in a people leadership role
Proficiency with MS Office Suite (Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Word)

Nice To Haves

Food industry manufacturing and operational experience strongly preferred
SAP experience a plus

Responsibilities

Own and lead a portfolio of designated strategic accounts, serving as the primary commercial and relationship owner
Retain and grow strategic accounts by driving revenue expansion, profitability improvement, and long-term customer loyalty
Develop, execute, and continuously refine comprehensive strategic account plans that include short-term priorities, long-term growth objectives, clearly defined action plans, milestones, and success metrics
Proactively identify, evaluate, and advance new business opportunities within existing accounts through deep understanding of customer needs, strategies, and market dynamics
Maintain a regular cadence of customer engagement to assess satisfaction, performance, risks, and opportunities, and to propose value-added solutions
Prepare for, lead, and participate in recurring Top-to-Top meetings with strategic accounts, ensuring alignment on performance, innovation, pipeline, and long-term partnership goals
Influence customer decision-making at executive and operational levels by delivering data-driven insights, strategic recommendations, and credible solutions
Develop and implement new business development plans aligned with Maker’s Pride’s commercial strategy and financial objectives
Own and maintain the strategic account project and opportunity pipeline, ensuring disciplined pipeline management and forecasting accuracy
Build robust business cases to support growth initiatives, pricing strategies, capital investments, and contract negotiations
Partner closely with the Commercial Finance team to deliver revenue, margin, and profitability targets for both new and ongoing business
Lead and coordinate cross-functional collaboration with Operations, Quality, R&D, Finance, Legal, and other internal stakeholders to ensure customer commitments are met and risks are proactively managed
Ensure adherence to established decision-making criteria, governance processes, and commercial standards, including effective use of Maker’s Pride SharePoint tools, pipeline systems, and trackers
Participate in and lead sales, customer, and process improvement initiatives to drive continuous improvement while meeting customer and company requirements
Manage customer contracts and commercial agreements in partnership with the Maker’s Pride Legal team, ensuring compliance, clarity, and alignment with business objectives
Identify, assess, and mitigate commercial, operational, and financial risks within strategic accounts
Represent Maker’s Pride in customer and industry-facing activities, including tradeshows, innovation sessions, customer/vendor summits, and other business-building forums
Monitor industry trends, customer dynamics, and competitive activity to inform strategic planning and opportunity development
Lead, coach, and develop direct report(s), including Account Manager(s), to build a high-performing, accountable strategic account management team
Set clear expectations, provide ongoing feedback, and support professional development to strengthen leadership capability and succession readiness