Part Time – Pet Nutrition Specialist-The Nutro Company
Quality. Responsibility. Mutuality. Efficiency. Freedom. Unusual values for a $5 billion company? Not at Mars North America! The Five Principles of Mars have inspired us for over 90 years. More than a statement of values, they are the explanation for our success and the formula for our future.
Mars North America creates the foods you love, like MM's®, SNICKERS®, DOVE® and UNCLE BEN'S® . . . and the foods your pets love, too, like PEDIGREE®, CESAR®, WHISKAS® and SHEBA®.
We stand apart because we are a global leader in the food, snack and petcare industries and one of the most successful family-owned businesses in the world. Currently, we are looking for qualified, diverse individuals to apply for the following position:
The Part Time Pet Nutrition Specialist will interact with consumers to influence the purchase of Nutro Greenies brand products in store by telling the Nutro Story and educating consumers on the ingredients and benefits to dogs and or cats. The Pet Nutrition Specialist's job is to roam their designated store(s) by approaching consumers who are using other pet food brands, asking questions to determine the best Nutro brand product for the consumer's pet, and communicating the benefits of Nutro and Greenies brand products. Ultimately, the Pet Nutrition Specialist's ability to establish trust and credibility with the consumer will result in converting consumers to our products resulting in sales growth of assigned stores via demonstration activities.
Principal Accountabilities
The Pet Nutrition Specialist is assigned to a group of stores and has accountability for the following:
- Deliver consistent business results by educating and converting consumers to Nutro Greenies products.
- Work collaboratively with peers, line managers, the Nutro Sales team, store personnel and consumers to ensure the recommendation, brand awareness and growth of the Nutro Greenies brand products.Exercise advanced interpersonal skills in actively approaching and engaging all available customers to communicate the benefits of Nutro Greenies brand products resulting in sales growth of assigned store(s).
- Leverage superior listening skills to identify special needs of the consumer's pet and is comfortable asking probing questions to identify the true desire of the consumer.
- Develop the product knowledge necessary, through use of provided tools (on-line training, manuals, newsletters, demo meetings, etc.), to recommend the appropriate products that addresses the identified needs of the pet.
- Willingness to follow specified scripts and practices as defined by the Demonstration team and line manager to ensure consistency in message to all consumers.
- Partner with Sales associates to maximize the impact of the demonstration program at store level.
- Develop relationships with store personnel (from management to stockers) to generate good will and achieve recommendation (i.e. assist Sales in positioning Nutro as the store personnel's preferred brand) in-store.
- Consistently strive for continuous improvement by studying provided information and making food comparisons in-store during slow store traffic periods.
- Responsible and accountable to work all scheduled demonstration shifts, as assigned, without cancellation (with exception for emergency).
- Participate in pilot initiatives to educate and convert consumers to the Nutro Greenies brand products, this may include interactions on social media websites, dog parks, special pet store events, etc. These will be assigned appropriate based on territory and customer activities.
- This role will conduct store audits via phonecalls, as applicable.
Mission Critical Competencies
- Customer Focus
- Listening
- Approachability
- Integrity Trust
- Creativity
- Action Oriented
- Drive for Results
Key Functional Skills/Knowledge
- Knowledgeable of basic merchandising principles.
- Strong interpersonal skills and excellent relationship building skills (strong verbal communication skills).
- Able to assess dog and cat needs and make company product recommendations.
- Demonstrated ability to exercise good judgment/decision making.
- Ability to maintain a calm and professional composure during difficult consumer and or store personnel interactions
- Able to work with minimal supervision.
- Must possess prioritization and organization skills.
- Demonstrated knowledge of food ingredients and nutrition
- Deliver consistent business results by educating and converting consumers to Nutro Greenies products.
Key Experiences
- Work Experience working with Dogs and/or cats, in a veterinarian office/clinic, pet groomer, pet boarding, kennel or work at a pet specialty store.
- Work experience at in store demonstrations, retail experience, or a job which required a high level of interaction with consumers.
Education
- High School degree or equivalent, required
- Associates or Bachelors degree preferred.
- Vet Tech training, preferred
Decision Making Authority and Impact
Decisions
- Determine the most effective NUTRO® GREENIES® products for a specific animal's needs.
- Determine level of store merchandising sufficient to meet minimum standards without detracting from conversion efforts.
- Determine which consumers to approach.
- Determine optimum location for display table to leverage store traffic patterns.
Recommendations
- Recommend appropriate products to consumers.
- Assist Demo Management in determining the most productive work shift times and days for the customers/accounts that are assigned within their territory.
Additional Job Requirements
- Must be able to read, write, speak and understand English.
- Must have access to high speed internet and e-mail to view work schedules, participate in on line training, and read communications from management via email, when applicable.
- Must be willing and able to travel within an assigned territory.
- Must be available to work a minimum of 32 hours per a 4 week period exclusive of breaks and travel time
- These work hours may be split into two (2) shifts that occur at different locations within a territory.
- Must be available to work 3 Saturdays within a 4 week period.
- The remaining five (5) days must consist of Thursdays through Mondays.
- Must attend quarterly Demonstration Meetings as scheduled by your manager.
- Must be able to lift 15 to 40 pounds often.
- Must be able to stand and roam a store in search of consumers for 8 hours.
- Must be able to bend, squat, and reach over the shoulder (10% or less of the time).
- Must have reliable transportation to all assigned demo events and meetings.
- Will be required to carry and set up a demo table at each scheduled event
- Will be required to maintain and store assigned demonstration point of purchase (POP) materials
