Account Manager

Position/Employment type:

Account Manager, Malawi / Full time employee   

Organization/Reporting line:

GardaWorld (M) Ltd reporting to Head of Business Development, Malawi

Place of Work/Travel:

Lilongwe, Blantyre Malawi with regular travel to multiple locations across the country.

Contact and Cooperation:

Internally: Sales Executive Team, Bid Support Team, Customer Relationship Team, HODs.

Externally: Government authorities, clients, competitors

Job Outline:

The incumbent will be an experienced and self-motivated individual with confidence in delivering sales results in accordance with clear metrics, and with the initiative to leverage their network of relationships to develop business opportunities in the country.

The Account manager will be responsible for managing and maintaining relationships with the clients. This will involve building and maintaining strong relationships with clients, identifying and pursuing new business opportunities, and ensuring client satisfaction and retention.

This position will work closely with sales executives and customer service executives to grow and maintain a healthy pipeline of clients.  The incumbent will be responsible for developing an extensive network of business relationships for GardaWorld.

Key Responsibilities:

Client Relationship Management:

• To establish and maintain relationships with clients in a sector. This involves understanding the client's needs and providing them with solutions that meet their requirements. Effective communication and collaboration with internal teams are also critical to succeed in this responsibility.
• Develop trust relationships with a portfolio of sector specific major clients to ensure they do not turn to competition.
• Expand the relationships with existing customers by continuously proposing solutions that meet their objectives.

Sales and Business Development:

• Responsible for identifying new business opportunities and generating revenue for the company. This may involve cross-selling and upselling to existing clients or identifying new clients and building relationships with them.
• Lead, design and implement approaches and plans to support topline revenue growth and margin expansion for the specific sector.
• Understand, analyze and connect all key revenue growth margin drivers related to segment/sector performance and identify and leverage all key customer-centric & customer-relevant value propositions that will drive adoption and scale, leading all aspects of the strategic RGM initiatives.
• Lead commercial elements of Revenue Growth and ensure tools deployment with the segment/sector unit.
• Responsible for identifying and exploiting business opportunities by analyzing market trends within select markets.
• Ensure the correct products and services are delivered to customers in a timely manner

Client Retention:

• Work to retain existing clients by ensuring their satisfaction with the company's products and/or services. This may involve resolving any issues or complaints that arise and providing ongoing support and communication.

Communication and Collaboration:

• Effectively communicate with internal teams, such as operations, finance and customer service, to ensure that client needs are being met. They must also collaborate with these teams to develop strategies and solutions that meet client requirements.
• Act as key contact for revenue growth management strategies and all key commercial activities for all relevant internal stakeholders and ensure activities are ‘in sync’.

Client Account Planning and Reporting:

• Responsible for developing client account plans that outline the strategy for managing and growing client accounts.
• Provide regular reports on client account performance (P&L), progress and forecasts to internal stakeholders using key account metrics.
• Ability to translate the strategic plans of the Company and align this to segment/sector.

Competencies:

Competencies: Profitability, commercial strategies, pricing strategies, taking initiative, cross-functional teamwork, prioritization, business analytics, revenue growth

Communication skills: Excellent communication skills to understand clients' needs and effectively communicate with them. They should be able to articulate ideas clearly and concisely and be able to adapt their communication style to suit different clients.

Sales skills: Should have a strong sales acumen, including the ability to identify opportunities and close deals. They should be able to understand clients' needs and effectively present solutions to meet those needs.

Relationship-building skills: Building strong relationships with clients is essential to being an effective account manager. This requires excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to build rapport, listen actively, and demonstrate empathy. A natural instinct to identify, develop and deliver new business opportunities and partnerships.

Customer service orientation: Customer-focused and committed to providing exceptional customer service. They should be responsive to client needs and be able to provide timely solutions.

Organizational skills: Well-organized to manage multiple accounts and prioritize their workload. They should be able to manage their time effectively and stay on top of deadlines.

Analytical skills: Able to analyze data and metrics to identify opportunities for growth and improvement. They should be able to use data to make informed decisions and develop strategies to meet clients' needs.

Industry knowledge: Should have a good understanding of the industry they work in, including trends, competitors, and market dynamics. This enables them to provide clients with valuable insights and stay ahead of the curve.

Authority:

In accordance with GardaWorld Malawi Authority Matrix

Accountability:

Accountable to the Head of Sales and Business Development, Malawi for the responsibilities stated in this job description,   monitored and managed through the mid-year and annual performance review and supported through the monitoring of their KPIs.

Qualifications & Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, Business Administration, Management, Commerce or related field
• A minimum of five (5) years’ experience in revenue growth management, commercial planning, commercial execution, segmentation, and channel strategies. 
• Accomplished in developing new complex/ customised products/services for the customer, with a record of consistent negotiation and delivery of significant new contract wins.
• Experience identifying and exploiting new business opportunities for new products, services, and markets, and with managing and developing current business networks.
• Intimate knowledge and understanding of the complexities and client challenges of doing business in Malawi.     
• Evidence of a deep network of client relationships based in Malawi.