Senior Innovations Commercialization Manager at Diageo

Context/Scope:

• KBL is a customer-centric organization and has the ambition to be rated by its customers as the #1 Consumer Goods Company in Kenya. This will only be possible if everything we do is linked to the needs of our customers and consumers
• This is done as we continuously excel in the provision of compelling shopper and customer propositions aligned with consumer needs

Dimensions

Financial:

• Lead the strategic ownership and activation of the innovation budget, driving innovative in-outlet and multi-channel programs that maximize market impact.
• Champion aggressive growth targets for the innovations category and by identifying and winning key battleground opportunities with cutting-edge sales and marketing strategies.
• Spearhead breakthrough growth initiatives that accelerate market share expansion and boost consumer penetration through forward-thinking innovation and customer-centric solutions.
• Transform KBL’s innovation ambitions to deliver +5% revenue contribution through creation of the next income pipeline.
• Actualizing brand innovation concepts to commercially viable propositions delivering KBL’s ambition for innovations.
• Creation and oversight of innovations brands P&L in service of prerequisite margin, and net sales revenue.

Complexity of Role:

•  Highly organized, proactive, and self-driven leader thriving in fast-paced, hands-on environments to deliver impactful results.
• Visionary and disciplined innovator with a proven ability to bring Diageo’s brand portfolio to life through creative, market-leading initiatives.
•  Skilled at building strong, influential relationships across diverse stakeholders, managing multiple high-priority projects simultaneously, and adapting communication style to drive alignment and accelerate decision-making.
•  Experience in navigating complex matrix organizations with agility, embracing ambiguity to identify and capitalize on new opportunities.
•  Ability to Inspires and develop high-performing teams, clearly defining capability needs and fostering career growth to unlock full potential.
• People leadership capability to design and execute industry-leading innovation commercial growth drivers, focused on category and channel expansion and breakthrough market development

Responsibilities:

• Lead the commercial partnership for the innovation pipeline, ensuring strong alignment with Sales and RTC capacity, capability, and overall business objectives
• Influence and mobilize senior sales leadership and cross-functional partners to secure disproportionate focus, investment, and resources, accelerating pipeline delivery with maximum commercial impact.
• Own end-to-end execution oversight, ensuring innovation launches are flawlessly integrated within the broader commercial calendar and aligned with strategic business goals.
• Partner with senior organization leadership to architect and evolve the Sales function in support of ambitious innovation-driven growth agendas.
• Identify, partner and champion where necessary the creation or transformation of RTC models necessary to unlock innovation potential and scale launches successfully across market.
• Define enterprise-wide innovation KPIs and rigorous execution standards, embedding them into sales performance frameworks and cultural norms.
• Lead the redesign of sales incentive structures to directly reward innovation delivery, driving sustained commitment and accountability.
• Act as the principal commercial leader bridging innovation, marketing, and sales functions to ensure strategic alignment and commercial rigor across all innovation initiatives.
• Embed deep commercial insights into launch planning to guarantee market relevance, competitive differentiation, and target achievement.
• Set and monitor critical KPIs for innovation launches, holding cross-functional teams accountable to deliver comprehensive commercial plans including customer propositions and sell-in enablement tools.
• Architect and own the innovation performance management framework, integrating it into global sales reporting and executive review cadences.
• Lead monthly innovation performance reviews at the executive level, defining clear, data-driven interventions and driving decisive action.
• Influence senior sales leadership to prioritize and execute corrective actions, ensuring innovation objectives are consistently met or exceeded.
• Champion regular commercial monitoring and evaluation (M&E) across all launches, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and cross-business learning.
• Provide strategic commercial oversight and input during critical governance milestones, ensuring robust go-to-market readiness and commercial viability

Top 3-5 Accountabilities:

•  Demonstrates strong analytical expertise and commercial insight to design, lead, and execute high-impact innovation programs that drive sustainable, long-term growth.
• Excels in crafting compelling, data-driven narratives to influence decision-making and align both direct reports and senior stakeholders around strategic priorities.
• Skilled in developing, adapting, and scaling bold, creative initiatives by translating deep customer and shopper insights into tailored, customer-centric programs that deliver measurable results.
•  Ensures rigorous budget management, making informed adjustments to project scope and resources grounded in financial analysis to optimize ROI.
• Drive continuous performance measurement and proactive intervention to guarantee programs meet or exceed targets, with timely escalation and strategic course correction based on real-time insights.
• Provide inspiring people leadership focused on business outcomes while fostering talent development and supporting the achievement of long-term career growth for team members.

Key Relationships: Commercial and marketing Directors, Sales team, Finance team, Marketing team, Procurement team, 3rd Party agencies

Qualifications and Experience Required:

Essential Skills

• Proven track record driving breakthrough innovation initiatives within Marketing and/or Sales (Customer Marketing) that deliver transformative commercial growth.
•  Strong creative vision paired with deep commercial insight into customer and shopper behavior, enabling the design of forward-thinking, disruptive innovation strategies.
• Expertise in leveraging channel dynamics and shopper insights to develop and scale cutting-edge shopper programs that redefine category engagement and consumer experiences.
•  Strategic influencer skilled at navigating complex organizational landscapes to drive rapid decision-making and execution of innovation priorities.
• Experienced in inspiring agencies and collaborating closely with key customers to co-create pioneering, high-impact innovation activations.
• Inspiring people leader committed to cultivating a culture of creativity, agility, and continuous innovation across teams and stakeholders.

Desirable

• Advanced business-related qualification (e.g., MBA or equivalent is an added advantage), providing strong strategic and commercial foundations.
•  Proven track record in commercial management with demonstrated ability to drive revenue growth through innovation.
• Experienced leader with a strong history of building, developing, and inspiring high-performing, cross-functional teams.
• Skilled in leading transformational change initiatives, successfully navigating organizational complexity and driving cultural evolution.
• Exceptional strategic thinker with the ability to anticipate market trends and position innovation agendas for competitive advantage.
•  Strong stakeholder influencer and communicator, capable of aligning diverse internal and external partners behind a shared innovation vision.