WHAT DOES A COMMERCIAL OPERATIONS MANAGER DO?
Published: August 8, 2024 - The Commercial Operations Manager serves as the primary contact for customer interactions within the Account Management team, swiftly diagnosing issues and coordinating effective resolutions while maintaining a progress tracker for each inquiry. This role also focuses on identifying recurring customer issues, collaborating with the sales team to implement sustainable solutions, and educating team members about the operational scope and responsibilities of the position to enhance service delivery. Additionally, the manager develops and manages commercial processes across Sales, Marketing, Service, and Manufacturing, ensuring seamless customer journeys and efficient use of CRM and other internal systems.
A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Commercial Operations Manager
1. Commercial Operations Manager Duties
- Strategic Management: Work with Commercial leaders on critical strategic, organizational, and operational projects designed to increase revenue, sales productivity, and operational efficiency.
- Strategic Support: Provide thought leadership, perform business analysis, and support the execution of high-impact strategic projects and mission-critical initiatives.
- Team Management: Hire, train, and manage Customer service representatives for order entry and customer communication.
- Reporting Enhancement: Review, improve, and develop reports to be used by the commercial teams in support of daily operations, monthly/quarterly metrics, and business initiatives.
- CRM Optimization: Facilitate the implementation, development, and maintenance of Netsuite CRM functionality in a cross-functional team environment, working closely with contractors and internal teams.
- Forecasting Development: Develop a forecasting tool and collaborate with Finance and Sales on monthly forecasting cycles.
- Revenue Management: Own the quarterly revenue projection process, including model updates and meeting facilitation with key Sales and Operations leadership.
- Process Improvement: Lead and participate in cross-functional teams to develop improved processes and communication in support of business initiatives.
- Operational Efficiency: Identify and implement process improvements to streamline the Order Entry to Order Fulfillment portion of the commercial business process.
- Strategic Communication: Understand and communicate strategic and tactical directions to ensure consistent and cohesive business objectives interdepartmentally.
- Documentation Management: Create and update work instructions and process maps.
- Cross-functional Communication: Effectively communicate with manufacturing, logistics, sales, finance, and product marketing groups to support process implementation and improvements.
- Operational Planning: Plan and monitor operational initiatives to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of customer care.
- Risk Analysis: Perform in-depth analysis to evaluate E&O exposure and identify solutions to minimize risks impacting the cluster & company P&L.
2. Commercial Operations Manager Details
- Customer Liaison: Act as the contact point for customers contacting the Account Management team.
- Issue Resolution: Complete first-line diagnosis and deal with the issue, or promptly allocate unresolved issues to the correct owners.
- Tracking Management: Record the call or email on a tracker and update daily with progress until the issue is resolved or the information required is provided to the satisfaction of the customer.
- Follow-Up Coordination: Follow up with the person or team allocated the customer issue, to ensure the issue has been resolved.
- Problem Analysis: Identify recurring issues and work with the sales team to put in place long-term fixes so that the recurring issues no longer recur.
- Role Education: Proactively and regularly educate the sales team on the purpose and responsibility of this role, so they are aware of what the role is designed to achieve, and what responsibilities lay elsewhere.
- Database Management: Build and update a database of contacts within IRIS, so that it is clear where to direct each customer to the correct person.
- Customer Transformation Involvement: Become part of the Customer Transformation program.
- Customer Journey Enhancement: Work with the sales team to ensure the customer journey within the sales department is clear, smooth, and positive and that handover of customers to other departments in the course of the journey is done in a way that ensures that the next stage of the journey goes well.
- Resolution Ownership: Act as the ultimate point of resolution for all customer queries that fall within the remit of sales, working with and through others in sales to ensure this happens.
- Process Management: Build and manage the commercial processes with Sales & Marketing, Service, and Manufacturing from customer selection, pricing, purchase, and product placement to service and replacements.
- Infrastructure Oversight: Set up and oversee the infrastructure within the company for commercial activities including Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, internal processes for product management, etc.
- Contract Negotiation: Define and negotiate the terms of the contracts and get support and approval from all stakeholders either internally and from the clients.
3. Commercial Operations Manager Responsibilities
- Data Simplification: Translate complex data into simple conclusions that empower business leaders to make decisions and take action.
- Solution Transformation: Transform business requirements into tangible solutions that drive business results.
- Process Management: Manage processes, timelines, and relationships with functional leaders to meet business objectives.
- Analytics Oversight: Oversee analytics initiatives, including requirements gathering, prioritization, and implementation.
- Pricing Strategy Development: Assess market feedback and business performance in the development of pricing methodologies and algorithms.
- Tool Development: Develop tools that optimize business processes and support continuous improvement.
- Team Leadership: Manage a team of analysts, including performance planning and career development.
- Tender Management: The Commercial Operations Manager (COM) is responsible for Hospital tender-related business (Medicines and Medical Devices) and Dose Dispensing tender business for Viatris companies.
- Pricing Management: COM is responsible for Viatris Products pricing actions, pricing proposals for the Pricing Committee, and submissions.
- Product Development: New product introductions and business development with subcluster NPI manager and Head of Commercial operations.
- Tender Coordination: Led the monitoring, administrative work, coordination, and follow-up for all Medicines and Medical Device public tender submissions.
- Price Adjustment Responsibility: Assume responsibility for all price changes that require submission to MyIRP, torta, and HILA following Committee decisions together with Commercial forecast and pricing specialist.
4. Commercial Operations Manager Job Summary
- SAP Maintenance Setup: Set up maintenance agreements in the SAP Systems (project set-up).
- Financial Optimization Support: Support the Operations Manager in managing and optimizing targeted financial results with due professional care (e.g., project gross profit, cash flow).
- Commercial Compliance: Maintain conformity of a project with commercial rules, standards.
- SAP Project Management: Manage the project in SAP, initiate purchase orders, and invoices, follow up receivables and payables, and ensure the accuracy of data in SAP.
- Stock Accounting: Take care of accounting aspects of stock management.
- Procurement Support: Support the Operations Manager in procurement and contract management.
- Data Presentation: Prepare and present project commercial data for commercial and financial reviews.
- Risk and Insurance Management: Manage all project insurance as well as risks and opportunities of the project.
- Financial Documentation: Follow-up guarantees, bonds, accruals, and accounting documents.
- Claim Management: Manage claims towards or from suppliers or customers.
- Customer Interaction: Participate in customer meetings with commercial representatives.
- Forecast Management: Translate the physical forecast into a financial forecast, track against the target, and take corrective action.
- Decision Framework Creation: Create a framework that can be used by the Customer Development Finance Business Partners to make decisions.
- Forecast Leadership: Lead for the monthly forecast, holding a close relationship with the Gifting Finance partner.
- Inventory Management: Highlight any unassigned stock and how it needs to be sold to hit targets.
5. Commercial Operations Manager Accountabilities
- Strategic Development: Work with the Head of Department to devise and deliver strategy, generate ideas, and operationalize key changes and new processes.
- Relationship Building: Build strong relationships across multiple teams while being excellent at organizing projects to achieve success.
- Customer Journey Optimization: Support the development of the New Build & Home Move customer journeys across all routes to market, working with both internal teams and external property developer partners.
- Campaign Management: Work with marketing and operations across the business to deliver campaign activity and program tests, from design through to analysis, ensuring the appropriate measurement, tracking, and reporting metrics are in place.
- Operational Workflow Management: Work with Service Operations to manage operational workflows related to property development enablement, including Sky site plan design and delivery of materials.
- Financial Reconciliation: Take ownership of financial reconciliation with third-party partners.
- Logistics Planning: Plan and create shipments to marketplace fulfillment centers, such as Amazon or Cdiscount, to ensure optimal sales coverage for the products.
- Logistics Coordination: Coordinate with the logistics department for the timely fulfillment and pick-up of shipments.
- Stock Performance Monitoring: Monitor and improve the performance of the stock in close collaboration with the sales team.
- Partner Communication: Take care of communication with marketplace partners concerning reimbursement and claim management.
- Sales Support: Support sales in data analysis and options preparation.
- Risk Management: Ensure correct commercial controls and risk management systems are implemented, used, and managed during the lifetime.
- Process Implementation: Implement robust internal review, approval, and documentation processes.
6. Commercial Operations Manager Functions
- Deadline Communication: Communicate key deadlines to Customer Development.
- Partnership Assistance: Assist with the creation of Joint Business Partners (JBPs) and sign-off.
- Plan Accountability: Understand the previous year's plan and the latest target, taking accountability for signing off the majority of JBPs, escalating any areas of concern that negatively impact the plan.
- Plan Presentation: Present and sign off the plan with the Head of Gifting, laying the foundation and guidelines for the following year.
- Forecast Accountability: Clearly communicate key timings to be hit and hold the Customer Business Managers / Customer Account Managers accountable for forecast and JBPs.
- Data Coordination: Coordinate and distribute the relevant data for Customer Development to create plan and communicate with customers, including pack description, commercials, and stock availability.
- Plan Review: Present the shape of the plan to key stakeholders and identify any corrective action required to ensure that targets are met.
- Promotional Coordination: Coordinate the Gifting promotional plan across all customers and channels, being the go-to person for any queries regarding promotions or funding.
- Sales Team Briefing: Present the plan to the Field Sales team and highlight any priorities.
- Tracking Creation: Create and share trackers for key occasions with the relevant BPC Categories.
- Promotional Planning: Create promotional plans by customers for the full year.
- Forecast Management: Manage the physical forecast, matching demand with supply and minimizing Free Sell and Residual stock.
7. Commercial Operations Manager Job Description
- Bid Management: In charge of bid qualification, bid content enrichment, and proposal quality output to customers, support sales in building the winning story for the bid.
- P&L Oversight: Oversees accurate and timely P&L calculations for new and existing clients, deals with the business-as-usual pricing process, and analyzes existing and new customer lifetime contributions.
- International Deals Support: Responsible for international and global deals support and authorization process with central and local management stakeholders according to the matrix in place.
- Commercial Strategy: Ensures Canon's profit is protected by pricing commercial contract risk and makes recommendations to Account leads on the best commercial account strategy.
- Customer Engagement Leadership: Personally leading the largest (2-3 per annum) customer engagements for the team and innovating commercial working practices.
- Forecasting Input: Input into the November forecast using knowledge of the current season.
- Forecast Accuracy: Ensure that an accurate forecast is entered into ORACLE (Gifting Database).
- Bottom-up Forecasting: Build a bottom-up forecast following consultation with the CAMs and prioritize where stock will be allocated.
- Repack Coordination: Liaise with the Repack Team to match the plan with the demand.
- FSU Forecast Communication: Communicate Free Standing Display Unit forecast with Repack.
- Plan Monitoring: Lead regular meetings to make sure that the plan is on track, highlight any corrective action to be taken and escalate where necessary to the Head of Gifting.
- Forecast Integration: Ensure that the forecast flows through to Repack and Customer Service.
- Cross-functional Collaboration: Collaborate and innovate with teams across Salesforce, including Tech & Product, Sales, Support, Legal, Purchasing, and Finance.
8. Commercial Operations Manager Overview
- Strategic Partnership: Partner with business leaders across the organization to lead projects and deliver well-defined business outcomes.
- Change Management: Drive all types of changes into the business, considering processes, systems, and people.
- Regional Alignment: Drive changes and align practices across the regions: EMEA, APAC, LatAm.
- Strategic Execution: Design and ensure successful execution of evolving strategic and operational plans.
- Operational Effectiveness: Manage change initiatives to drive operational effectiveness, increase productivity, reduce costs, and enable revenue generation.
- Project Management: Provide project management support and drive initiatives with a structured project delivery framework and process improvement approach.
- Performance Metrics: Define operational key performance metrics for the business including goal setting, quarterly objectives, etc.
- Organizational Communication: Drive effective communications throughout the organization.
- Executive Presentations: Create executive-level presentations, support team-wide communications, business reviews, etc.
- Cross-functional Collaboration: Facilitate collaboration with cross-functional partners in the Product, Customer Success, Finance, Marketing, and People teams.
- Sales Advisory: Act as a trusted advisor to the Sales team and leadership.
- Best Practices Sharing: Share best practices across Xandr to improve execution rigor across the company.
- Capability Building: Build capabilities in SMS and enterprise operational teams to ensure the longevity of process improvement initiatives.
- Strategic Development: Create business cases and develop strategic recommendations for senior executives.
- Cross-functional Management: Manage enterprise-wide cross-functional teams across multiple complex projects in parallel.
9. Commercial Operations Manager Details and Accountabilities
- Weekly Forecasting: Organize weekly sales and services forecast.
- Demand Planning Leadership: Lead monthly Order Demand Planning process and handshake with business.
- BFO Management: Ensure BFO accuracy, assist in yearly quota setting, and track sales attainment.
- DSO Tracking: Track Day Sales Outstanding (DSO) status weekly and validate the completeness and accuracy of Quote ID approval submissions.
- Project Package Assistance: Assist in the preparation of the project package (CPP) for approval.
- Quality Escalation Tracking: Track quality escalations and coordinate with regional teams to resolve.
- Financial Planning Support: Assist finance in quarterly budget planning and oversee quota setting and Terms & Conditions in partner contracts.
- Business Performance Reporting: Provide business performance reporting (weekly and monthly package) and analysis.
- Marketing ROI Analysis: Be responsible for marketing performance and ROI analysis.
- Customer Satisfaction Reporting: Monthly customer quality and satisfaction scorecard report.
- Pricing Analysis: Pricing and discounting trend analysis by line of business.
- Sales Performance Reporting: Be responsible for sales and services performance by line of business by salesperson (commission).
- Productivity Reporting: Be responsible for sales and service team productivity reporting – top/bottom three.
- Sales Inventory Analysis: Sales IN / OUT analysis, distributor inventory, and sales trending.
- Revenue Reporting: Revenue backlog and deferred report and ad-hoc reports.
10. Commercial Operations Manager Tasks
- Sales Initiative Analysis: Be the trusted business analyst for the performance of sales initiatives, enabling both end user and channel commercial teams to focus on driving the business.
- MTO and OTD Ownership: Owner of Market To Order (MTO) and Order To Deliver (OTD) processes.
- Process Proficiency: Proficient in all MTO and OTD sub-processes.
- Sales Training Oversight: Ensure all existing and new sales personnel are adequately trained.
- Process Adherence Supervision: Oversee and supervise to ensure adherence to ALL MTO sub-processes.
- OTD Management: Work closely on OTD tracking and escalations and know about Customer Project Process (CCP).
- IT Systems Expertise: Be responsible for Sales business IT systems Super User.
- Systems Proficiency: Proficient in In-touch, In-sight, Channel In-sight, Order Entry, Demand Planning.
- Superuser Leadership: Superuser to lead MTO and OTD systems training and deployment.
- Tool Deployment: Deploy enablement tools that support the sales leaders and team activity and drive its digitization.
- Business Advocacy: Advocate to escalate business functionality needs to corporate.
- Improvement Identification: Identify SMS and enterprise improvement opportunities related to process or system-based challenges.
- Strategic Initiatives: Define, plan, launch, and drive strategic and operational process improvement initiatives using defined methodologies such as lean and Six Sigma.
- Process Optimization: Model, analyze, prioritize, and improve processes using data-driven techniques, standardizing processes where applicable.