Sales Director – East Africa

About the role

As the Sales Director for East Africa at Mars Snacking, you will lead the regional sales organisation across Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. You will own the customer and distributor agenda, drive profitable growth for the Mars Snacking portfolio and represent East Africa on the Africa Business Team.

Key responsibilities

• Develop and execute short‑ and long‑term sales strategies to grow market share and category performance.
• Strengthen strategic partnerships with distributors and retail customers, optimising route‑to‑market and cost‑to‑serve solutions.
• Maintain full P&L accountability, managing net sales value, gross margin and controllable contribution.
• Collaborate with Strategic Demand, Supply and Marketing teams to embed shopper insights into commercial plans.
• Lead, inspire and develop a team of 17 associates, including five direct reports, fostering an inclusive high‑performance culture.
• Represent East Africa on the Africa Business Team and Sales Leadership Forum, contributing to Sub‑Saharan strategic initiatives.

Required profile

• 15–20 years of commercial and sales leadership experience in FMCG, with a proven record in distributor management and route‑to‑market strategy across African markets.
• A university degree is required; an MBA or equivalent postgraduate qualification is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated full P&L ownership, financial acumen and resource allocation across Traditional Trade, Modern Trade and D‑Commerce channels.
• Values‑led people manager with experience recruiting, mentoring and developing diverse teams.
• Strategic thinker with strong negotiation, stakeholder engagement and collaborative leadership capabilities.

Required skills

What we offer

• Opportunity to lead a regional sales function for a global snacking brand.
• Exposure to a diverse talent pool of over 130,000 employees worldwide.
• Participation in cross‑functional Africa‑wide initiatives and peer learning forums.
• Competitive compensation package and career development pathways.