These 3 Ingredients are Key for F&B Annual Planning

Strategy, structure and management.

Food&beverage
iStock.com/AmnajKhetsamtip

It’s annual planning season. For food & beverage organizations, this process typically begins with operations and finance and focuses on topics like pricing strategies, product management and packaging.

While these considerations are undoubtedly important, one thing leaders tend to omit from their plan is the go-to-market (GTM) strategy, perhaps assuming that revenue motions will simply fall into place after the organizational groundwork is laid. But this assumption jeopardizes an organization’s ability to align with customer needs, which may shift substantially from one year to the next.

When planning discussions begin with GTM, leaders necessarily recalibrate their organization to its true north, sharpening their value proposition and sales strategies to align with new consumer preferences. This framing not only supports the pursuit of top- and bottom-line (EBIDTA) goals but also drives sustained success in an industry often dominated by large, global players.

What does a GTM-centric annual planning process look like for food & beverage organizations? It starts by outlining three pillars: strategy, structure and management.

Strategy Establishes the Framework

Drilling down on commercial strategy is what enables F&B organizations to connect the dots from customer expectation to order fulfillment. It invites leaders to identify customer needs, articulate thoughtful solutions and measure outcomes.

Revenue segments: Revisiting customer revenue segmentation is foundational to a GTM refresh. Sales teams must be able to delineate the various challenges, goals and communication preferences among their vast customer base. Machine learning can help sales teams build these segments through intense data analysis.

Value propositions: Value propositions should evolve alongside the market. What resonated last year may be irrelevant to many prospects now. F&B leaders need to articulate their unique competitive edge in a way that addresses present-day challenges.

Revenue motions: Evaluating current GTM activities—including sales, market and customer service—will help set the goalposts for the year to come. Now is the time to realign all revenue motions, both digital and analog, so the entire organization is in lockstep.

With the overarching strategy in place, F&B leaders need to ensure their teams can execute on it by examining their internal positioning.

Structure Fills the Spaces

Team structure and distribution are major contributing factors to GTM success. Are the right people in the right roles? Do the right roles currently exist? Do the current roles and responsibilities sufficiently help clients achieve their goals? These are all questions commercial leaders may pose as they dive into organizational structure.

Channel coverage: With their freshly defined revenue segments, commercial leaders can turn their attention to coverage. Based on each segment’s unique needs, they can determine whether direct, inside, digital, or broker channels would be the best fit. Objective key performance indicators (KPIs) are a must here.

Organization and job design: Leaders should tailor their role structure to customer needs and product offerings, not the other way around. Skillsets and growth paths should be shifted as necessary to align with strategic goals.

Sizing and deployment: F&B leaders can then populate their commercial role framework with an appropriate number and balance of team resources. The goal is to position personnel in a way that effectively manages each customer segment and meets revenue goals. Territory distribution may not be geographic—what’s most important is that it balances team workload and customer needs.

Together, the strategy and structure form the foundation of the GTM annual plan. But the work isn’t done yet—leaders must put systems in place to motivate teams, benchmark and reward success and sustain forward momentum.

Management Keeps the Engines Running Smoothly

At this point in the annual planning process, F&B leaders have set the stage for their team’s GTM success. Now it’s time for leadership to hold themselves accountable by establishing formal practices for team management.

Talent, skills and supervision: Opportunities for continued growth are key for team satisfaction and retention. With a freshly calibrated role framework, reps will be eager to hone their skills and advance to the next level. Leaders should check in regularly with their reports to monitor progress.

Productivity, quotas and metrics: All roles should be associated with quantifiable productivity goals and metrics—these should be fair, attainable and in line with the organization’s key growth plays. Baking in stretch goals to each role will encourage high performance and keep sales reps motivated.

Compensation and rewards: Sales rep compensation plans should align not only with the broader market, but with organizational goals and role pathways. A blend of base and incentive pay will motivate teams to produce quality work at scale.

While the bones of the management pillar can be helpful for GTM annual planning, the execution will likely be an ongoing process. It’s crucial for F&B leaders to keep a constant pulse on team performance, challenges and feedback and to iterate their management tactics as necessary.

Putting It All Together

Our first pillar, strategy, builds the menu for the twelve months to come. The leadership team investigates customers’ appetites and decides not only which offerings should be available, but how they are presented—along with any special accommodations to meet unique needs.

With the second pillar, structure, leaders set the table. They ensure the right roles and resources are in the right position for each customer. When the customer takes a seat at the table, they’ll have everything they need within reach.

The third pillar, management, guides and supports real-time service. Customers must be able to view their options, discuss recommendations with staff, place their order and receive it with timely and white-glove service. Management oversees the entire run of show and ensures all components are performing to standard.

Annual planning is an exciting time of year. Together, these three GTM pillars will help F&B companies set themselves up for twelve months of strategic growth, operational success and five-star customer service.

Matthew Laredo is a director in Alexander Group’s San Francisco office. As a director, Matthew works with client leaders in sales, marketing, finance and human resources to solve revenue growth challenges. Prior to joining Alexander Group, Matthew was a manager at Nielsen working across the consumer product goods industry.

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