Market Development Leader II - Chicago, IL

About the role

At Utz, we’re driven by a passion to excite and delight consumers with bold, flavorful snack foods made from high‑quality ingredients. With more than a century of family heritage, our growing portfolio of iconic brands includes Utz, Zapp’s, Boulder Canyon, and On the Border. Our people power our success. That’s why we’re committed to creating a supportive, inclusive, and high‑performance culture where associates can grow, lead, and thrive. We invest in our teams with competitive benefits, career development opportunities, and wellness programs that support both professional and personal success. Join our world‑class sales organization and help shape the future as we build the fastest‑growing pure‑play U.S. snacking company of scale.

The Opportunity: Market Development Leader II-Chicago, IL Under the direction of the Sales Operations Director (SOD), the Market Development Leader II (MDL II) partners with Independent Operators (IOs) and Master Distributors (distributors) to achieve maximum sales profitability and market penetration using selling strategies and proactive communications. The MDL II informs IOs and distributors of the Company’s initiatives for sales, service, merchandising standards, and product distribution. At all times, the MDL II recognizes that IOs and Master Distributors are not subject to the company’s direction and control as they are Company partners to increase the sale of products.

Responsibilities

• Communicate the Company’s sales, service, and merchandising strategies to the IOs and distributors to ensure that proactive and professional relations with them are maintained and all are working toward the common interest of gaining market share.
• Ensure that the obligations and rights of both the Company IOs and Distributors are preserved.
• Prepare weekly volume and inventory reports and KPI scorecards.
• Provide a weekly Sales/IO Work‑with planner to SOD.
• Spend time on the DC loading docks with the IOs to hear their concerns.
• Facilitate ways to improve results of IOs and distributors by providing information on suggestions to grow market share: executing promotional ad activity, following store level planogram, delivering successful new product introductions, securing additional space, obtaining new points of interruption and building relationships at store level.
• Assist the MDL I and SOD in planning regularly scheduled workshop meetings in collaboration with the Sales Operations Director and the rest of the MDL team to encourage IOs and distributors to use all tools and mediums available to realize the full sales potential of their business.
• Work to reinforce with retail store managers and store decision makers that Utz supports IOs and distributors and values their relationships with the Company.
• Conduct store visits in the assigned region to