Are you an experienced sales leader with a passion for driving business growth, developing high-performing teams, and delivering exceptional customer experiences? If you have extensive experience in sales management, business development, and leadership within a fast-paced FMCG environment, then PepsiCo has an exciting career opportunity for you.
PepsiCo is currently recruiting for the position of Cluster Sales Lead based in Polokwane, Limpopo. This full-time leadership role offers an opportunity to join one of the world’s most respected food and beverage companies while contributing to business growth across the region.
If you are ready to lead a dynamic sales team, develop winning sales strategies, and make a lasting impact in one of the world’s leading consumer goods companies, this could be the perfect next step in your career.
About PepsiCo
PepsiCo is one of the world’s largest food and beverage companies, serving consumers in more than 200 countries and territories. Every day, more than one billion servings of PepsiCo products are enjoyed around the world.
The company’s impressive portfolio includes globally recognized brands such as:
- Pepsi
- Lay’s
- Doritos
- Cheetos
- Mountain Dew
- Gatorade
- Quaker
- SodaStream
PepsiCo continues to invest in innovation, sustainability, and people through its strategic transformation known as PepsiCo Positive (pep+), which focuses on creating long-term growth while protecting the environment and supporting communities worldwide.
Working at PepsiCo means becoming part of an organization that values innovation, teamwork, integrity, diversity, and continuous development.
Position Overview
Job Title: Cluster Sales Lead
Location: Polokwane, Limpopo
Company: PepsiCo
Job Type: Full-Time
The Cluster Sales Lead will take responsibility for managing sales operations across the assigned cluster, overseeing both Modern Trade (MT) and Traditional Trade (TT) channels.
The successful candidate will develop and implement effective sales strategies that drive volume growth, increase revenue, expand market share, and ensure customer satisfaction while leading a team of sales professionals.
This is a senior leadership position suited to experienced professionals who enjoy building strong customer relationships, coaching teams, and delivering measurable business results.
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Key Responsibilities
The Cluster Sales Lead will oversee multiple aspects of the business to ensure sustainable sales growth and operational excellence.
Sales Strategy and Planning
The successful candidate will:
- Develop comprehensive 90-day sales plans.
- Establish realistic sales goals and targets.
- Forecast future sales performance using historical data and market trends.
- Identify new business opportunities.
- Monitor competitor activity.
- Develop strategies to increase market penetration.
- Grow overall sales volumes and revenue.
- Ensure profitability across sales activities.
Strong planning and analytical skills will be essential to ensure the business consistently exceeds performance targets.
Drive Business Growth
Business development is a major focus of this role.
Responsibilities include:
- Acquiring new business opportunities.
- Expanding existing customer relationships.
- Growing market share.
- Supporting customer loyalty initiatives.
- Identifying opportunities within micro markets.
- Maximizing sales performance across all assigned territories.
The Cluster Sales Lead will play an important role in identifying growth opportunities while strengthening PepsiCo’s position in the market.
Customer Relationship Management
Building long-term customer partnerships is essential.
Key responsibilities include:
- Managing relationships with key customers.
- Ensuring excellent customer service.
- Supporting the Win Every Customer (WEC) strategy.
- Working closely with customers to understand their needs.
- Driving customer satisfaction and loyalty.
- Managing trade calendars and promotional activities.
The ideal candidate understands that sustainable business growth starts with exceptional customer relationships.
Sales Performance Management
The role requires ongoing monitoring of sales performance.
Responsibilities include:
- Tracking sales KPIs.
- Monitoring route performance.
- Evaluating sales productivity.
- Managing distributor performance.
- Ensuring sales targets are achieved.
- Optimizing operational costs.
- Managing promotional activities.
- Monitoring pricing strategies.
- Maintaining sales budgets.
Strong analytical and reporting skills will be highly valuable.
Lead and Develop High-Performing Teams
Leadership is a critical component of this position.
The Cluster Sales Lead will:
- Recruit talented sales professionals.
- Train and mentor employees.
- Develop future leaders.
- Conduct regular performance reviews.
- Set measurable KPIs.
- Provide coaching and constructive feedback.
- Recognize and reward strong performance.
- Foster a culture of accountability.
- Inspire continuous improvement.
The successful candidate will create an environment where employees are motivated to achieve their full potential.
Training and Skills Development
Continuous learning is important at PepsiCo.
Responsibilities include:
- Identifying employee skill gaps.
- Organizing relevant training programmes.
- Conducting workshops.
- Supporting professional development.
- Holding regular Gate-to-Gate meetings.
- Identifying opportunities to improve sales execution.
Developing people is viewed as a key driver of business success.
Systems and Reporting
The successful candidate will be comfortable working with business systems and data.
Required responsibilities include:
- Understanding Business Intelligence (BI) tools.
- Interpreting bakery scorecard reports.
- Monitoring daily sales reports.
- Using Distribution Resource Management (DRM) systems.
- Evaluating operational reports.
- Making data-driven business decisions.
Candidates with strong analytical abilities and ERP system experience will have an advantage.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
The Cluster Sales Lead will collaborate with multiple departments across the organization.
This includes working closely with:
- Marketing teams
- Operations
- Logistics
- Distribution partners
- External sales channels
- Retail customers
Effective communication and collaboration will help ensure excellent service delivery and business performance.
Compliance and Ethical Leadership
PepsiCo places a strong emphasis on ethical leadership.
The successful candidate will:
- Ensure compliance with legal requirements.
- Follow company policies.
- Promote ethical business practices.
- Protect customer trust.
- Maintain PepsiCo’s strong reputation.
Integrity remains one of the company’s core values.
PepsiCo Core Values
Employees are expected to demonstrate the following values in their daily work:
- Ownership
- Integrity
- Respect
- Empowerment
- Teamwork
- Consumer and Customer Focus
These values shape the company’s culture and guide decision-making across the business.
Minimum Requirements
To qualify for this exciting opportunity, applicants should possess:
- A Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field.
- A minimum of 10 years’ relevant experience.
- Experience working within a unionised environment.
- At least 5 years of leadership or management experience.
- Strong knowledge of Microsoft Office.
- Experience using SAP or a similar ERP system.
- Excellent communication skills.
- Strong leadership and coaching abilities.
- Strategic thinking and planning skills.
- Strong financial and commercial understanding.
Candidates who possess both technical expertise and strong people management skills will be well positioned for success.
Skills That Will Help You Succeed
The ideal Cluster Sales Lead will demonstrate:
- Outstanding leadership abilities.
- Strategic planning expertise.
- Strong commercial awareness.
- Customer-focused thinking.
- Excellent negotiation skills.
- Business development experience.
- Financial management capabilities.
- Analytical problem-solving.
- Performance management skills.
- Relationship-building abilities.
- Team development expertise.
- Excellent communication.
- Time management.
- Decision-making confidence.
- Results-driven leadership.
These skills will enable the successful candidate to lead effectively while delivering outstanding business outcomes.
Why Join PepsiCo?
PepsiCo offers employees the opportunity to build rewarding careers within a globally recognized organization.
Benefits of working at PepsiCo include:
- Career development opportunities.
- Leadership growth.
- Exposure to internationally recognized brands.
- Inclusive workplace culture.
- Collaborative working environment.
- Continuous learning opportunities.
- Competitive employee benefits.
- Opportunity to make a meaningful impact.
- Working with talented professionals.
- A company committed to sustainability and innovation.
Employees become part of a business that values people as much as performance.
Equal Opportunity Employer
PepsiCo is committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed.
The company supports diversity and inclusion and operates in accordance with the Employment Equity Act.
Qualified candidates from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply.
How to Apply
Interested candidates should submit their application directly through the official PepsiCo Careers portal.
Ensure your CV is updated and clearly highlights your leadership experience, sales achievements, business development successes, ERP knowledge, and management capabilities.
Applications will be reviewed by PepsiCo’s recruitment team, and shortlisted candidates will be contacted for the next stage of the recruitment process.
Final Thoughts
This Cluster Sales Lead opportunity in Polokwane offers experienced sales professionals the chance to lead regional business growth for one of the world’s most respected FMCG companies.
If you have extensive sales leadership experience, enjoy developing people, excel at building customer relationships, and have a proven track record of delivering results, this role could be the ideal next step in your career.
Don’t miss the opportunity to join PepsiCo and become part of a company that is shaping the future of food and beverages while creating positive impact for consumers, communities, and the planet.