Purpose & Overall Relevance for the Organization:

Support the business in order to achieve sales and market strategy objectives. Ensure a reliable, adequate and competitive customer service level for all assigned customers of the channel.

Responsibilities:

People management:

Ensure a reliable and professional service level by means of disciplinary and functional leadership of the team, which includes the following:

• Fill vacant positions in the team in alignment with the Manager CS.
• Promote a high-performance culture by communicating and monitoring clear expectations and setting individual targets, encouraging the employees to work independently in order to be able to fully meet the specific requirements of the channel customers
• Assess performance and skills of team members as part of the performance evaluation, conduct feedback meetings in a timely manner, steer performance and deal with low performance
• Develop the team’s functional and social competencies based on the Leadership Framework.
• Perform talent management with the aim of developing employees within the context of their potential and talent
• Fulfill the duty of care for team members (this includes working time and absence management, complying with the internal regulations etc.)
• Ensure and support compliance with employee-related adidas guidelines and policies as well as all legal requirements

Functional

• Independently providing customer service support to all assigned customers in the Italy market;              
• Communication with customers via all relevant communication channels (e-mail, tickets, phone) and providing information such as related to orders and articles and compiling various order-related analyses at the request of customers or Sales.
• Working in close cooperation with internal and external interfaces (e.g. Sales, CS Team, Finance, Order Fulfillment) when dealing with the following topics:

• Backlogs, scheduled deliveries, cancellations, launches, pre-pack promotions, procurement, etc.
• Returns and claims
• Monitoring credit-blocked orders and coordinating credit limit increases (credit requests) with Finance and Sales
• Coordinating new customer set-ups and changes to customer master data, customer number closures, order blocks as well as changes to and withdrawal from associations, in cooperation with Finance, IT and Customer Master Management
• Setting and/or authorizing order and invoice value date in accordance with the applicable value date and signature regulations

• Coordinating special handling for new requests and support in processing of returns and complaints;
• Working in close cooperation with the Sales team and supporting them in customer service by providing specific expertise in the processes involved
• Performing special tasks, e.g. SMU business, special conditions, trade agreements, customer-specific management of deliveries for campaigns, promotional goods, launch articles, etc.
• Standing in for and supporting colleagues working in other groups within Customer Service

Key Relationships:

Customers, Sales Channel Management, Customer Service, Global Operations (Purchasing, Warehouses, Finishing, Customer Fulfillment, Inbound and Outbound), IT, Planning, Finance and Controlling, Marketing, external providers such as forwarding companies and finishing companies, associations and central regulation bodies

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Advanced working knowledge of MS Office, SAP/CRM and Business Objects
• A strong customer service focus
• A high level of problem-solving ability
• Highly developed organizational and time management skills
• Excellent communications skills and proven ability to develop strong relationships
• Ability to create a high-performance team.
• Advanced English language skills (written and spoken)
• Fluency in Italian or French (written and spoken)
• Understanding of costs and of sales generation

Requisite Education and Experience/Minimum Qualifications:

• Completed commercial management qualification in the field of industry or logistics with further training or a Bachelor's degree
• 3+ years’ experience in providing customer support in the field of customer service, sales or logistics
• Experience in people management

What are we offering?

• Competitive salary and benefits
• Hybrid work policy and flexible working hours
• Sports and work-life balance incentives
• Upskilling and internal growth (local and international)
• International and diverse work environment
• State-of-art office space and conditions