Position Purpose:

The Associate Brand Manager, Seasons, will be responsible for leading defined seasonal initiatives and cross-functional workstreams from insights through execution.  Working within the strategic direction, this role independently develops recommendations and manages assigned innovation, portfolio, activation, and commercialization projects, while partnering with the manager on broader season strategy, portfolio management, and financial trade-offs.

ABM, Seasons, serves as the day-to-day marketing lead for assigned agency, vendor, and cross-functional workstreams and collaborates with U.S. and international partners to translate Lindt’s global brand and seasonal strategies into consumer-relevant, commercially viable plans that deliver against consumer, customer, financial, and brand objectives.

This is a hybrid role that requires three days per week in our Stratham, NH and/or Boston, MA corporate office.

Essential Job Functions & Responsibilities:

Seasonal Strategy & Annual Planning

• Contribute consumer, category, competitive, customer, and financial insights to the development of annual and longer-term seasonal plans.
• Thoroughly understand Lindt and Key Franchise equities and how they apply to Seasons
• Translate approved seasonal and brand strategies into actionable project plans, briefs, commercial deliverables, and clear measures of success.
• Develop recommendations for assigned initiatives and clearly articulate the consumer insight, business rationale, risks, and expected impact.
• Maintain a current- and next-year perspective on assigned workstreams while elevating longer-term opportunities and implications to the Brand Manager.

Portfolio Management

• Responsible for managing an assigned portfolio including innovation, renovation, and rationalization.
• Analyze viability and profit/sales potential for new segments, markets, and consumers and apply to future innovation.
• Evaluate product portfolio and the marketplace; recommend new product opportunities, mix, rationalization, renovations, and profit-optimization actions while maintaining the high-quality, Lindt standard.
• Lead assigned innovation, renovation, packaging, and portfolio projects through the stage-gate and commercialization processes.
• Coordinate with domestic and international cross-functional teams to deliver milestones and resolve issues.
• Identify project risks, dependencies, and resource constraints early; develop options and recommend corrective action.

Business Analytics & Performance Management

• Analyze seasonal, portfolio, category, competitive, customer, and consumer performance using relevant internal data sources; convert analysis into clear business implications, recommendations, and actions.
• Manage recurring reporting and assigned business-review content, including innovation tracking, competitive updates, and ongoing & post-season learning.
• Manage assigned budget, forecast, and profitability components; actively contribute to sales projections and financial planning to drive the Season sales, profit, and business health.

Integrated Marketing & Agency Support

• Execute assigned marketing communication plans, including activations, PR, digital, social, and/or promotional workstreams, with clear objectives and measures of success.
• Serve as the day-to-day marketing lead for assigned agencies and vendors, managing briefs, feedback, timelines, deliverables, and budget components.
• Ensure all work reflects Lindt, sub-brand, and seasonal equities while remaining relevant to the consumer occasion and U.S. marketplace.

Cross Functional Support

• Lead defined cross-functional project teams and working sessions, driving alignment, decisions, accountability, and timely resolution of risks.
• Partner with Sales and Sales Strategy to develop persuasive, customer- and channel-relevant selling stories, materials, and recommendations.

Qualifications & Requirements:

Skills & Knowledge:

• Exceptional analytical, communication, and presentation skills
• Excellent collaborative and negotiation skills with ability to build productive business relationships cross functionally within the organization and outside of the organization with agency partners
• Assertive self-starter with ability to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines
• Curiosity and the ability to operate in ambiguity
• Strong record of complex project management with multi-disciplinary teams
• Ability to prioritize and effectively measure and drive for results in an entrepreneurial work environment

Education:

Master’s degree in a related field

Other Requirements:

• Previous experience working in Brand/MarketingAnalytics experience -- should have worked with Nielsen and/or IRI
• Proven ability to develop and utilize many elements of the marketing mix to drive the business
• Experience working in an international corporate environment, a plus
• Experience in new product development, a plus 

Requirements