Customer Account Manager Role purpose – Plans and implements sales to customer accounts where growing relationships, identifying opportunities, and account management skills are critical. Accounts frequently have multiple buying locations (internationally in case of global Strategic Accounts), making the process of establishing and maintaining broad client relationships essential. Requires full knowledge of the product line and its applications, along with a strong understanding of the client’s objectives and challenges.
Lead in customer negotiations such as design changes, changes in the supplier base, move of production, material recovery or contract/annual pricing negotiations and new businesses. Prepare and agree sales plan/tactics ahead of negotiations (i.e. price reconciliation, supporting documents, technical explanations …).Represent ‘Voice of the Customer’, monitor and measure the customer’s perception of GKN Automotive and act towards continuous improvement.
Key responsibilities
Key Account Management
Manage and develop important customer relationships with guidance from senior colleagues and/or manage an account team delivering day-to-day support. Customers likely to include mid-tier companies, multinational corporates and similar.
Customer Relationship Management / Account Management
Develop and implement relationship management plans for complex existing customer accounts to identify and build relationships with relevant decision makers and influencers within the customer organization and to enable effective two-way flow of information and resolution of issues. Manage ongoing relationships with identified customer segments to ensure their needs are met, providing themes, summary analyses, and recommendations for changes based on customer input.
Customer Needs Clarification
Set clear objectives for each sales call; develop and make presentations that are tailored to the known interests, needs, issues, and concerns of decision makers and influencers within the customer organization; gather and analyze relevant information; and gain agreement to a statement of customer requirements.
Sell Customer Propositions
Use personal expertise to identify the complex standard products and/or services offered by the organization that meet the customer’s needs, together with quantities and product configurations. Present these to the customer with a clear rationale and at standard commercial terms, referring to senior colleagues where necessary to ask for concessions (e.g., price reduction) that gain the customer’s agreement.
Promoting Customer Focus
Collaborate internally and work as the customer champion in cross-functional teams to build strong external customer relationships.
Customer Relationship Development / Prospecting
Develop and implement a relationship management plan for potential customer accounts to identify and build relationships with relevant decision makers and influencers within the customer organization and to enable effective two-way flow of information and resolution of issues.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Data
Enter customer information that has been gathered through research and/or through direct customer contact into the customer relationship management system, to ensure that the organization has quality data to enable effective customer retention and business development activities OR Ensure that team members maintain up-to-date customer relationship management data, identifying and resolving issues.
Sales Opportunities Creation
Develop a personal network within the sales territory and represent the organization at trade shows and other events to identify sales opportunities, promote the organization, and enhance its reputation.
Operational Compliance
Develop own capabilities by participating in assessment and development planning activities as well as formal and informal training and coaching; gain or maintain external professional accreditation where relevant to improve performance and fulfill personal potential. Maintain an understanding of relevant technology, external regulation, and industry best practices through ongoing education, attending conferences, and reading specialist media.
Skills
Manages Resistance
Uses comprehensive knowledge and skills to act independently while guiding and training others to acknowledge a client’s indifference and gain agreement from the client to discover the root causes of resistance.
Understands Customer Needs
Uses comprehensive knowledge and skills to act independently while guiding and training others to articulate the customer needs in the customer’s business language and business context.
Customer-Focused Approach
Works without supervision and provides technical guidance when required to orient the seller’s organization around delivering to the key needs of their customers.
Maintains the Relationship
Uses comprehensive knowledge and skills to act independently while guiding and training others to continuously provide effective solutions and value to the client’s organization.
Builds Rapport
Works without supervision and provides technical guidance when required to quickly and effectively establish trust within the buying centers in the client’s organization.
Strengthens Customer Connections
Works with full competence to connect with customers to strengthen the relationship, meeting personal needs through positive customer experiences. Typically works without supervision and may provide technical guidance.
Pre-Call Preparation
Works without supervision and provides technical guidance when required to carefully prepare for client interactions using established frameworks.
Understands the Buying Process
Works without supervision and provides technical guidance when required to align the client’s sales process with their organization’s sales process, including the key influencers/sales team members when appropriate.
Education
Bachelor’s Degree or Equivalent Level
Experience
Experienced practitioner able to work unsupervised (13 months to 3 years)