Sr. Manager, Sales Planning & Strategy

Utz Brands, Inc.•Chicago, IL

3d•Remote

About The Position

Utz Quality Foods is seeking a Sr. Manager, Sales Planning & Strategy. The Sr. Sales Strategy & Planning Manager plays a key role in supporting the execution of sales strategy and planning processes and ensuring alignment with business objectives and Integrated Business Planning (IBP) requirements. This role partners with sales, marketing, and supply chain teams to deliver accurate, actionable sales plans and to maintain planning discipline across channels. The Sr. Manager focuses on translating strategy into operational sales activities and enabling the sales team with tools, data, and processes to achieve revenue goals. This is a remote opportunity with up to 25% travel as needed.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, Supply Chain, or related field.
5–7 years of experience in Sales, Sales Planning, Sales operations, Demand Planning, or related field.
Industry expertise in understanding of the CPG industry, including account and trade management, planning, sales support, and performance management.
Familiarity with S&OP or IBP processes; experience in consumer goods or retail preferred.
Experience using CRM platforms and data analytics tools.
Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
Analytical thinker with the ability to translate data into actionable insights.
Ability to prioritize and balance between immediate priorities and long-term objectives.
Proficient in Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Power BI and data visualization tools.
Proficient in Circana/Nielsen, internal shipment data systems, etc.
Excellent communication skills with the ability to present to small groups and to senior leadership.
Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines in a fast‑paced environment.
Collaborative problem solver with strong relationship‑building and influencing skills.

Responsibilities

Develop and maintain detailed sales strategy and plans, incorporating input from Sales teams, Marketing, Demand Planning, and Customer Insights.
Work collaboratively with Sales, Marketing, Demand Planning, and Finance to develop an annual sales plan to meet company objectives.
Guide Sales teams through a collaborative sales planning process by supporting a build of account-level promotional calendars that align to RGM promo guardrails, managing trade spend budgets to deliver volume and trade targets through optimizing frequency, depth, and mechanics by account, influencing strong in-market execution of the plan, and ensuring annual plans are aligned to and support commercial and brand priorities.
Ensure consistent use of sales planning processes, templates, and timelines.
Act as a liaison between field sales teams and central planning functions.
Drive precision in sales forecasts and integrity of trade data for timely updates in IBP and Demand Planning processes that will inform critical business and operational decisions.
Track performance against sales plan metrics, flag variances, and steward risks & opportunities.
Support preparation of materials for annual sales planning, monthly Demand Reviews, and business performance meetings.
Generate and analyze sales reports to support decision-making by sales leaders.
Partner with Marketing and Product teams to support execution of brand initiatives, including: new product launches, product and packaging changes, corporate activations, etc.
Work closely with Supply Chain to align demand forecasts with capacity and inventory plans.
Provide training and support to sales team members on planning tools, processes, and reporting.
Share best practices and contribute to continuous improvement of planning processes.