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Senior Director, Sales Planning, Distribution and Incentives
Volkswagen Group of America
Herndon, VA, United States
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Description
VW. Two letters. Endless opportunities. A bright future. The Volkswagen Group is one of the world's largest producers of passenger cars and Europe's largest automaker and is on the road to number one. Come join our team and you could be part of that ride. For our employees, Volkswagen stands for more than just efficient and sustainable products - it’s an expression of who they are and how they move through life. Become a part of the Volkswagen of America experience and work with people who are passionate, innovative, enthusiastic, and high performing team players. Everyone deserves a better car and everyone deserves a better company - it’s a Volkswagen thing.
Role Summary:
• This Senior Director position will lead the strategy for volume planning, distribution and allocation of Volkswagen vehicles across the entire network to provide the optimum mix of product in order to meet the needs of regional sales operations, dealerships and ultimately consumers. The role consists of three main areas of responsibility:
◦ Manage the Distribution function and operations team to ensure vehicles are being allocated in a fair and consistent manner while maximizing company, region, and dealer performance
◦ Lead the local VWoA Sales Planning team in close collaboration with the NAR to effectively and reliably execute sales planning and related operational activities including national objective setting, sales analysis and reporting, market assessment, and carline volume and forecasting
◦ Oversee new vehicle incentives planning, leading the incentives operations team and working closely with the Sales regions, Finance, and VCI to develop competitive programs to maximize retail sales performance.
• In close alignment with other functions, this role will be the primary lead to provide sales strategy and analysis for the VW brand in the US market, developing executive-level presentations and serving as the subject-matter expert on US sales operations and broader US automotive industry trends
Role Responsibilities:
Volume Planning
• Lead the sales planning general manager and forecasting Manager in the monthly MPL planning process to define current and next year monthly sales targets by carline and channel based on market analysis, sales trends, supply, restrictions, and share growth objectives; review plan with executive leadership and VWAG for consensus and approval.
• Provide direction and feedback to sales planning team on monthly retail national objective setting process, including assessment of natural demand, gap analysis against prior objectives, and inventory pressures; develop strategic and tactical action plans in conjunction with Regions & corporate functions to improve sales and inventory issues
• Provide direction and feedback to Finance and Vehicle Logistics teams on monthly wholesale objective setting process, including shipment forecast assessment, holdback (ex. new dealers) determination by channel, products with new model year vehicle release (if applicable), and coordination with finance for profitability assessment and approval
• Act as the primary lead in Sales to develop and drive product strategy regarding volumes, pricing, positioning, mix, and offering structure / complexity that complement the short and long-term sales objectives. Create strong arguments for or against the proposed actions and develop compelling business cases as needed.
• In conjunction with Regions and Product, develop appropriate launch and runout plans to effectively manage model transitions while achieving sales objectives and Brand growth. Ensure all Sales Operations functions are supportive of the recommendations, interface and negotiate with other areas of the business, and influence the leadership team accordingly.
• Ensure cross-collaboration between the Sales Planning, Vehicle Ordering, and Distribution teams within Sales Operation and drive continuous process improvement and efficiencies
Distribution
• Align activities between sales planning, production planning, and retail programs, to:
◦ Maximize new car retail and wholesale at the national level
◦ Drive pipeline inventory to ideal levels through the right build profile and volume of production
◦ Maximize product turn rates to clear company and dealer stock and prevent vehicle aging
◦ Minimize incentive spending and maximize total net margin
• Serve as Brand lead in improving the Dealer and customer experience relating to distribution, working with the business and external experts to develop and implement industry leading distribution system
• Manage and lead a Distribution Manager and team of specialists to ensure we are maximizing our sales potential with a solid and consistent allocation system.
• Challenge and override recommended monthly and annual sales goals and ensure that they have been set based on national and local market analysis, competitive actions and supply & mix issues
Retail Programs (Incentives)
• Lead the Director for Retail Programs.
• In conjunction with Finance, develop an annual incentive strategy identifying required programs along with budget requirements.
• In conjunction with field and corporate departments, design and develop selling and incentive programs to generate dealer excitement while optimizing program spending. Ensure legal compliance for all initiatives.
• Interface with VCI to strategize and develop retail and lease products, programs, and promotions. Support negotiation of subvention requirements to optimize program spending.
• Ensure effective communication of all retail programs to the dealer body and ensure solid customer communication through integrated activities with marketing via vw.com and alternative media outlets.
• Provide incentive input for future products and proposals & support efforts of Sales & Product to ensure a proper market orientated mix at new vehicle launch adheres with initial incentive strategy.
• Serve as an Industry Expert, with in-depth knowledge of the competitive environment, products, programs, positioning, and sales strategies. The position should serve as an “in-house” industry consultant providing an independent viewpoint based on measureable analytics.
• Drive ‘Retail Programs’ continuous improvement initiatives including refinement of Business Intelligence, program effectiveness measurement, financial control, audit, communication, IT and process.
Company Cars
• Lead for achieving the Monthly Sales Target for Company Vehicles
• Establish mix and pricing for vehicles listed on ETag
Qualifications
Years of Experience:
• 10+ years automotive industry experience
• 5-7 years of supervisory experience
Education - Required:
• Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Economics, or related field
Education - Desired:
• MBA
Skills:
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Problem solving skills
• Strong analytical skills
• Influencing and negotiation skills
• Excellent time management and organizational skills
• Strong presentation development skills
Specialized Skills-Required:
• Significant automotive OEM experience in roles leading functional areas and managing others
• Experience and knowledge of Vehicle Operations (Production Planning and Distributions processes and systems)
• Understanding of new vehicle incentives, including program structures and costing
• Ability to work cross-functionally with multiple stakeholders, including Product Marketing, Sales Regions, Finance, and captive finance partners
• Experience and understanding of automotive dealership operations
• Deep understanding of the US automotive industry and competitive dynamics
• Demonstrated success in developing strong working relationships across many layers of an organization and across cultural boundaries
• Ability to present and share business POV in Executive Leadership/(C-Suite) settings
• Ability to lead large teams and projects
• Understanding of product planning and product cycles from a Sales function perspective
Specialized Skills-Desired
• Operations & Logistics experience
• Previous regional and dealer contact experience; with emphasis on having held leadership roles within Region Structures.
• Strategic management consulting experience, preferably some with automotive clients
• Experience in Enterprise Business Intelligence, Planning & Consolidation Software (such as Business Objects or Essbase)
Work Flexibility:
• Travel: ~20%
Work Schedule:
• Traditional office environment with expected peak times during month/year end. May require evening and weekend work as necessary.
We are proud to be an EEO employer M/F/D/V.
We maintain a drug-free workplace and perform pre-employment substance abuse testing.