National Account Manager

Griffith Foods • Lombard, IL

2d • $120,000 - $160,000 • Remote

About The Position

Griffith Foods is the caring, creative product development partner helping food companies meet the evolving needs of consumers while sustaining the planet. As a family business founded in 1919 and headquartered in Alsip, Illinois USA, Griffith Foods is known for true, collaborative innovation guided by their Purpose of “We Blend Care and Creativity to Nourish the World”. The company’s product capabilities range from seasonings and marinades to coating systems and sauces that are better for people and better for the planet. For more information, visit www.griffithfoods.com. Custom Culinary®, a subsidiary of Griffith Foods, is hiring a National Account Manager (NAM) who is a senior strategic sales leader responsible for driving profitable growth across major national customers in Fast Casual, Polished Casual, QSR, Convenience, and Family Dining. This role requires deep connectivity with national decision makers and the ability to influence cross‑functional partners in culinary, supply chain, marketing, R&D, procurement, and operations. This is your opportunity to translate customer strategies into scalable, branded solutions while navigating the complexities of foodservice distribution, broker networks, and supply chain management. With enterprise-wide responsibility for high-impact national and regional chains, this position plays a critical role in advancing Custom Culinary®’s revenue, margin, and brand objectives. It demands a seasoned expert with rare national account mastery and the strategic capability to drive long-term growth.

Requirements

• Have senior‑level national account leadership, including deep customer connectivity, strategic influence, and the ability to drive profitable, multi‑year growth with major chain operators.
• Have expertise navigating the complex foodservice ecosystem, from distribution and broker networks to cross‑functional collaboration with culinary, R&D, supply chain, marketing, and operations teams.
• Are highly strategic, financially disciplined mindset, with the ability to own full P&L performance, lead complex negotiations, and translate customer and market insights into scalable, branded solutions that deliver long‑term value.
• Bachelor’s degree.
• 10+ years of progressive sales experience within the food service manufacturing industry.
• 5+ years of direct national account and regional chain account responsibility, with demonstrated existing customer connectivity.
• Experience driving complex products through challenging distribution environments, requiring deep industry knowledge and executional expertise.
• Extensive experience working with and through broker networks to achieve national and regional objectives.
• Ability to travel 75%, including overnight business trips.
• Candidates must currently possess unrestricted authorization to work in the United States. Work visa sponsorship is not available for this role.

Nice To Haves

• A rare blend of strategic vision and hands‑on execution
• Deep, long‑standing national account credibility
• A uniquely deep command of the foodservice ecosystem

Responsibilities

• Leads full P&L ownership for major national and regional chains, driving sales, profitability, and branded growth through strategic portfolio expansion, disciplined financial governance, and high‑stakes commercial negotiations.
• Develops and executes long‑term strategic account plans, leveraging deep market, consumer, and operational insights while serving as the senior enterprise liaison across Marketing, Culinary, R&D, Supply Chain, and Operations.
• Cultivate and sustains senior‑level customer relationships, acting as a trusted advisor who aligns industry trends, innovation, and sustainability priorities with customer objectives to create long‑term value.
• Success requires mastery of the complex foodservice distribution and broker ecosystem, ensuring alignment, execution, and resolution of distribution challenges while collaborating closely with field sales and agency partners.
• Internally, the role drives cross‑functional influence, organizational alignment, and disciplined execution across CRM, forecasting, pipeline management, pricing, budgeting, and all administrative processes.

Benefits

• Medical, Rx, Dental, Vision, Flexible Spending & Health Savings Accounts, EAP, Health Advocacy, Financial Planning, Parental Leave, Care.com, Adoption & Surrogacy Assistance, Education Assistance/Tuition Reimbursement, Safety Reimbursement, Lifestyle Spending Account, Group Life & AD&D, Voluntary Life Insurance, Short Term & Long Term Disability, 401(k) Plan with Company Match, PTO, Holiday’s & Leaves, Accident Insurance, Critical Illness Insurance, Hospital Indemnity, Home & Auto Insurance, Pet Insurance, Identity Theft Protection, Long Term Care + Life Insurance & Legal Assistance.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 501-1,000 employees