Job Description

COSUCRA GROUPE WARCOING SA AND COSUCRA INC. OVERVIEW

COSUCRA Groupe Warcoing SA (www.cosucra.com), with global HQ in Belgium, has been manufacturing naturally grown specialty food ingredients since 1852, with a current focus on yellow peas and chicory root raw materials. COSUCRA with our technological, sustainability and farm to fork traceability leadership positions, is WELL POSITIONED FOR THE FUTURE in an ever increasing plant based nutrition consumer demand with the commissioning of our €35 million pea plant investment in Belgium during 2018 to increase the capacity of PISANE™ pea protein, SWELITE™ pea fiber and NASTAR™ pea starch. In 1990, COSUCRA launched pea protein isolate solutions and was the first European producer to pioneer this achievement.

COSUCRA has a second plant located adjacent to our pea processing plant that is focused on manufacturing inulin/chicory root and soluble dietary prebiotic fiber solutions with the brand names FIBRULINE™ and FIBRULOSE™. COSUCRA was the world’s first industrial producer of inulin in 1986. New Nutrition Business market research firm claimed 2020 to be the year of inulin/chicory root fiber.

COSUCRA pea and inulin/chicory root fiber solutions are well suited to meet consumer demand per New Nutrition Business Top 10 Food and BeverageTrends: #1 Digestive Wellness; #3 Plant Based; #4 Sugar Reduction; #5 Protein and #7 Meat Reimagined. If your purpose includes Climate Change, Sustainability and Health & Wellness to Improve our Global Society please come help make an immediate impact.

Plant-based protein, gluten-free, allergen-free, sustainable and farm to fork traceability agriculture practices with local farmers in Belgium and France are some of the key consumer drivers that COSUCRA can help address. COSUCRA has Non-GMO Project Verified and USDA NOP organic certifications.

COSUCRA Inc., our North American subsidiary based in Chicago, was created in June 2018 to help COSUCRA “further build customer intimacy and support our customers’ growth. » The company vowed to take a ‘solutions-focused approach’ in order to provide customers with relevant concepts that meet local taste preferences. Chicago was selected based on the establishment of The Hatchery (www.thehatcherychicago.org), which enables local entrepreneurs to build and grow successful food and beverage businesses.

We welcome employees and candidates with different backgrounds and perspectives. We value and trust each other – including our differences – while remaining true to our mission of improving lives. We encourage a corporate culture of self-expression, asking employees to be authentic to themselves. Our team brings together their unique perspectives, experiences, and passions in the work they do because we believe diversity makes us stronger, together. We aim to create a workplace that celebrates the diversity of our employees at all levels of the workforce without regard to age, race, color, sex, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity and/or expression, disability or any other laws. We strive to take steps in our recruiting practices by promoting diversity and fostering inclusion throughout our interview and hiring process, working toward the goal of a diverse and inclusive workforce.

COSUCRA EURO 35MILLION PEA PLANT EXPANSION IN BELGIUM DURING 2018 (VIDEO)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBWEol7fUqc

COSUCRA EUR 60 MILLION INVESTMENT TO INCREASE CAPACITY OF CHICORY ROOT FIBER AND PEA PROTEIN PLANTS

https://www.foodingredientsfirst.com/news/Cosucra-strengthens-pea-protein-investment-with-new-Danish-facility.html

JOB INFORMATION

Job Title: Customer Service & Logistics Manager, COSUCRA Inc. (NORTH AMERICA SUBSIDIARY)

Position Location: USA Home Based (preferred to be located within a four drive of Chicago or in the USA Central and East Coast Time Zones to be closer to Belgium Global HQ for daily collaboration)

Reports To: Directly to General Manager, COSUCRA Inc. and Matrix to Customer Service/Inside Sales Manager based in Belgium HQ

Relocation: No

Compensation: Salary and Bonus commensurate with experience. Benefits Package includes (401K Matching, Medical, Dental, Vision).

JOB PURPOSE

We are seeking a motivated professional to join our North America Team and will engage with our direct customers and internal team members to ensure we provide outstanding customer service. This individual will be critical in enhancing the customer experience and delivering on their product needs. The Customer Service & Logistics Manager is a position that works in a high performance, customer-focused team environment and will have an integral rôle in accelerating the growth of COSUCRA Inc. in USA, Canada and Mexico markets. This role is designed for a very entrepreneurial minded individual who would like to make an immediate impact by growing a subsidiary business from the ground up with a start-up culture. Candidates should have experience in customer service, internal sales, logistics or supply chain, preferably within a food ingredient manufacturing company.

The position supports the company’s interaction with current and potential customers. The Customer Service & Logistics Manager supports direct customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints. This position will provide front line of support for clients and customers in effort to help ensure that customers are satisfied with COSUCRA solutions. The position will also provide internal and external customer service reporting. We offer a safe work environment and COVID-19 safety protocols are followed.

The Customer Service & Logistics Manager will join as an individual contributor and have a pivotal role in accelerating the growth of our direct account customers for the Subsidiary and support the growth of distribution partners’ COSUCRA business. A good level of Emotional Intelligence (EQ), integrity, passion and desire to grow a three year old North American subsidiary in a dynamic, fast growing plant based nutrition industry are essential to personal and professional fulfillment.

Part of onboarding will include in person commercial, technical and operational training along with meeting cross-functional colleagues in Belgium HQ. The Customer Service & Logistics Manager will foster very good relationships and team work with team members based in Belgium HQ in the successful fulfillment of daily responsibilities.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES (TO INCLUDE BUT NOT LIMITED TO)

Responsible for:

• DAILY SUPPORT OF SUBSIDIARY DIRECT CUSTOMERS AND DISTRIBUTION PARTNERS:
  • Process orders within our ERP, prepare order confirmations/correspondences and fulfill customer needs to ensure customer satisfaction.
  • Responsible for maintaining a high level of professionalism with clients and working to establish a positive rapport with every caller.
  • Develop highly collaborative, durable, personal relationships with direct account customers. Facilitate highly connected approach between customers’ cross-functional departments and that of COSUCRA Inc. and COSUCRA Groupe Warcoing SA.
  • Understand/communicate customer needs and requirements to achieve customer satisfaction.
  • Route qualified opportunities to the appropriate sales executives for further development and closure.
  • Resolve product or service problems by clarifying the customer's complaint; determining the cause of the problem; selecting and explaining the best solution to solve the problem; expediting correction or adjustment; following up to ensure resolution.
  • Identify and assess customers’ needs to achieve satisfaction.
  • Update customers on orders and other pertinent information.
  • Handle customer complaints, provide appropriate solutions and/or alternatives.
  • Prepare and assist in the follow-up on customer Supplier Agreements.
  • Support Sales in the day-to-day interactions with customers as needed.
  • Responsible for customer service reporting, including Open Order Reports and contract balance reporting
  • Collaborate with Finance to ensure timely issuance of direct customer invoices after order shipment
  • Provide support to distribution partners’ COSUCRA business as appropriate
  • Collaborate with COSUCRA Inc. direct sales team to complete new supplier set up forms, technical documents and required documentation for COSUCRA Inc. to be approved with new direct customer in their ERP
• SALES REPORTING AND INVENTORY MANAGEMENT:
  • Support forecasting of monthly, quarterly and annual volume/pricing using SAP CRM and monthly S&OP (Sales Operations planning) meetings with direct customers and distribution partners in the development of Annual Budget.
  • Monitor weekly inventory levels by SKU and packaging of direct customer business and issue new orders to replenish inventory from Belgium HQ. Collaborate with partners to ensure timely arrival of inventory into USA/CAD/MEX warehouses.
  • Participation in monthly meetings to ensure Strategic & Operational objectives are met for direct customer business
  • Support update of Monthly and Quarterly review of sales pipeline for quality and quantity against Annual Budget
  • Support the compilation of Product Scope of each Distribution Partner to understand end customer and annual volume total usage by SKU
  • Maintain and update SAM CRM system, complete monthly Strategic & Operational report on the most meaningful direct account customer activities and distribution partner customer projects.
  • Maintain and update sales pipeline (SAP CRM) of direct account customers and distribution partners COSUCRA business on a timely basis to communicate customer requirements to cross-functional teams for S&OP (Sales Operations planning) and customer innovation implementation.
  • Complete Monthly S&OP (Sales Operations) meetings with distribution partners to assess financial performance vs. assigned Annual Budget.
• ASSIST COSUCRA INC. GENERAL MANAGER ON STRATEGIC & OPERATIONAL DUTIES TO GROW NOAM SUBSIDIARY AS REQUESTED:
  • Annual update on progress of 5 Year Strategic Plan to COSUCRA Groupe Warcoing and Inc. Board of Directors
  • Annual Budget Planning and Quarterly Sales & Marketing Action Plan
  • Monthly Sales & Sales Operations Planning Process
  • Collaboration Requests and Projects with COSUCRA Groupe Warcoing SA (Belgium HQ)
  • Technical Service and Applications (Prototypes Development for customer meetings, conferences and major food shows in USA/CAD/MEX)
  • Innovation & Commercial Development
  • Develop 3rd party food science partnerships to manufacture protoytype concepts for trade show conferences and customer meetings
  • Food Shows and Conferences Implementation
  • Customer Service
  • Supply Chain
  • Finance
  • IP / Regulatory

THE POSITION IS WELL SUITED FOR YOU IF:

• Are passionate about #Plant Based Nutrition, #Health & Wellness #Digestive Health #Sustainability, #Farm to Fork Traceability, #Technological Leadership and #Climate Change to make a personal impact and improve our global food ecosystem
• Have a strong desire to help grow a three year old North American subsidiary with a start up culture in a dynamic, fast growing plant based nutrition industry
• Enjoy collaborating with others (internal and external stakeholders) globally and have a personal affinity for European cultures (COSUCRA Belgium HQ is in a region that intersects French, Dutch and German cultures).
• Want to obtain and apply hands on knowledge of technical sales, marketing, distributor management, technical service, applications, product development, innovation/commercial development, customer service, global supply chain, finance, Sales Operations, quality, regulatory, nutrition and IP to grow North America subsidiary.
• You are self-motivated, results-orientated and technically-savvy.
• Take ownership and responsible risks to achieve outstanding results.
• High engine speed - ability to work in a consistently fast-paced, changing environment.
• Anticipate customer needs. Proactively and reactively create and recommend new solutions.
• Possess the desire to learn and understand how plant based nutrition trends and solutions impact our and our customers’ businesses.
• Respect and value differences and seek opportunities to learn from diverse cultural perspectives.
• Pioneering disposition with superior energy, tenacity and resilience to drive change
• Possess a good level of Emotional Intelligence (EQ) with the ability to influence for results including high engagement of teams and overcoming obstacles

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s Degree
• 7+ years of previous Inside Sales, Customer Service, Logistics and/or Supply Chain experience in progressively increasing responsibilities. Preferred experience with a food & beverage ingredient manufacturing, food & beverage consumer packaged goods manufacturing or food & beverage distribution company.
• Strong passion for data and ability to create systems/framework to increase efficiencies
• Enjoy collaborating among many diverse cultures outside of North America
• Excellent presentation and communication skills of the English language, both in creation and execution.
• Demonstrated strong problem solving and creative skills and the ability to exercise sound judgment and make decisions based on accurate and timely analyses
• Strong interpersonal and leadership skills, ability to communicate and manage well at all levels of the organization and with staff at remote locations essential
• Strong analytical and mathematical skills
• Strong organizational skills is a plus
• Strong phone presence and listening skills
• Ability to prioritize and manage time effectively
• Available to travel as appropriate. Close proximity to major airport is preferred.
• Expert knowledge and use of SAP, Microsoft Word, Excel and Powerpoint for internal/external customer meetings

COSUCRA Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability status, genetics or any other protected class in accordance with all applicable federal, state and local laws.

Company Description

COSUCRA Groupe Warcoing SA (www.cosucra.com), with global HQ in Belgium, has been manufacturing naturally grown specialty food ingredients since 1852, with a current focus on yellow peas and chicory root raw materials. COSUCRA with our technological, sustainability and farm to fork traceability leadership positions, is WELL POSITIONED FOR THE FUTURE in an ever increasing plant based nutrition consumer demand with the commissioning of our €35 million pea plant investment in Belgium during 2018 to increase the capacity of PISANETM pea protein, SWELITETM pea fiber and NASTARTM pea starch. In 1990, COSUCRA launched pea protein isolate solutions and was the first European producer to pioneer this achievement. COSUCRA has a second plant located adjacent to our pea processing plant that is focused on manufacturing inulin/chicory root and soluble dietary prebiotic fiber solutions with the brand names FIBRULINETM and FIBRULOSETM. COSUCRA was the world’s first industrial producer of inulin in 1986. New Nutrition Business market research firm claimed 2020 to be the year of inulin/chicory root fiber. COSUCRA pea and inulin/chicory root fiber solutions are well suited to meet consumer demand per New Nutrition Business Top 10 Food and BeverageTrends: #1 Digestive Wellness; #3 Plant Based; #4 Sugar Reduction; #5 Protein and #7 Meat Reimagined. If your purpose includes Climate Change, Sustainability and Health & Wellness to Improve our Global Society please come help make an immediate impact. Plant-based protein, gluten-free, allergen-free, sustainable and farm to fork traceability agriculture practices with local farmers in Belgium and France are some of the key consumer drivers that COSUCRA can help address. COSUCRA has Non-GMO Project Verified and USDA NOP organic certifications. COSUCRA Inc., our North American subsidiary based in Chicago, was created in June 2018 to help COSUCRA “further build customer intimacy and support our customers’ growth. » The company vowed to take a ‘solutions-focused approach’ in order to provide customers with relevant concepts that meet local taste preferences. Chicago was selected based on the establishment of The Hatchery (www.thehatcherychicago.org), which enables local entrepreneurs to build and grow successful food and beverage businesses.