Commercial Partner - Strategic Accounts-1

About the Role

We are seeking a commercially focused and analytically driven Commercial Partner – Strategic Accounts to join the UK Retail Cluster. This role acts as the commercial co-pilot to Strategic Account Managers, providing pricing expertise, commercial insights, demand planning support, and value creation initiatives that drive profitable growth across a portfolio of strategic customers.

The successful candidate will combine strong commercial acumen, financial analysis capabilities, and stakeholder management skills to influence decision-making and maximise volume, revenue, and margin performance

Key responsibilities

• Lead pricing activities across a portfolio of strategic accounts, including tenders, innovation, and price reviews.

• Partner with Strategic Account Managers to optimise revenue, volume, and margin opportunities.

• Analyse customer performance data to provide commercial insights and support decision-making.

• Identify and drive profit enhancement and commercial excellence initiatives across accounts.

• Support demand planning and forecasting, highlighting risks and opportunities.

• Build strong relationships with Sales, Finance, Operations, and other key stakeholders.

• Support tender submissions and wider business development opportunities.

• Share commercial insights, best practice, and market knowledge across the business.

What We're Looking For

Qualifications

• A-Level education or equivalent.

• Commercial or finance-related experience.

• Strong analytical and numerical capability.

• Ability to influence stakeholders at all levels.

Knowledge & Skills

• Strong commercial and financial acumen with experience in pricing, profitability, and margin management.

• Advanced Excel and Power BI skills, with excellent analytical and problem-solving capabilities.

• Commercially focused and results driven, able to translate data into actionable insights.

• Skilled at building relationships, influencing stakeholders, and constructively challenging to drive business performance.

• Excellent communication and presentation skills with the ability to engage both financial and non-financial audiences.

• Proactive, collaborative, highly organised, and able to manage multiple priorities effectively.

Experience

• Experience in Commercial Finance, Commercial Analysis, Pricing, Revenue Management, FP&A or a similar commercial role.

• Strong track record of partnering with Sales, Commercial and Finance teams.

• Experience in manufacturing, FMCG, retail or multi-site environments is advantageous.

• Exposure to pricing, forecasting, tenders and performance management

Benefits 

• Competitive salary 

• 25 days holiday, plus bank holidays 

• Pension, life assurance and income protection 

• Employee Assistance Program 

• Digital GP and Health Checks 

• Retail and leisure discounts 

• Cycle to work scheme 

Location: Hybrid Role – working across various locations in the business

About us

We are DS Smith, together with International Paper, we are a global leader in sustainable packaging solutions and other fibre-based products. We believe a better, more sustainable tomorrow is possible with the right people, who challenge and support one another to enact positive change. We employ more than 65,000 colleagues in North America and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), who are experts in innovation, manufacturing, design, sales, sustainability, supply chain, and much more. Together with our customers, we make the world safer and more productive, one sustainable packaging solution at a time. Become part of a world-leading organisation and do your best work with us!

Fair recruitment at DS Smith

To fulfil our purpose of redefining packaging for a changing world, we aim to build a diverse, motivated, and engaged workforce. Our goal is to create a culture of inclusion where everyone is treated fairly, differences are valued, and everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed.

Our people come from diverse backgrounds, bring different perspectives, ideas and experiences to generate unique solutions focused on present and future sustainability challenges. We welcome all candidates to apply, even those not meeting all criteria