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Leadership Development Program Associate

Acostaabout 23 hours ago
Toronto, Ontario
$65,000/annual
Senior Level
full_time

About the role

Description Overview: The Leadership Development Program (LDP) at Acosta Group is a full-time, salaried opportunity that prepares you for a pivotal cross-functional role within the organization. Over 18 months, you will rotate through 5–6 organization subgroups, including Retail, Foodservice, Business Intelligence, Sales, Marketing, and more.

This rotational structure provides a comprehensive understanding of our business and the consumer-packaged goods (CPG) industry, positioning you to take on a role that aligns with both your career interests and the company’s strategic needs. Throughout the program, you’ll gain hands on experience, receive executive mentorship, participate in live and virtual leadership training, and broaden your cross-functional knowledge. Together, these elements ensure that upon graduation from the program, you are equipped with the skills, insights, and professional network to accelerate your career.

Responsibilities Rotation Overviews: Retail Field Execution Gain experience and knowledge in the roles of Retail Coverage Merchandiser and Retail Business Manager. This rotation is designed to elevate your knowledge and skills in the following areas:

  • Acosta Group’s foundational business and culture
  • Customer and client relationships
  • Fiscal year planning for in-store execution
  • In-store selling of client products
  • Self-leadership and supervisory management
  • Retail specific technology
  • CPG industry

Foodservice Immerse yourself in one of the fastest growing sectors of our business. This rotation provides exposure to how CORE Foodservice partners with brands, distributors, and operators. Key learning areas include:

  • Understanding the foodservice channel and customer dynamics
  • Developing strategic and tactical selling skills
  • Building strong relationships with key partners and operators
  • Delivering solutions to drive measurable results for clients

Business Intelligence Engage as a Corporate Analyst and Associate Business Manager. This rotation is designed to elevate your knowledge and skills in the following areas:

  • Collecting and analyzing syndicated scan data
  • Delivering high impact strategic value to clients and customers
  • Conducting data analysis for strategic selling and negotiating
  • Techniques for identifying trends and patterns in data
  • Using data to drive decision-making and strategy
  • Building customer and client relationships

Headquarter & Omnichannel Sales Gain experience as a business manager, honing your skills in effective sales and relationship building with clients and retailers. This rotation is designed to elevate your knowledge and skills in the following areas:

  • Advanced selling techniques
  • Consumer data planning, tracking and analysis
  • Prioritizing requirements to serve as a strategic partner in headquarter-selling
  • Translating client and customer needs into practical business objectives
  • Delivering high impact strategic value to clients and customers
  • Managing, growing, and maximizing accounts
  • Achieving client and customer objectives related to sales, productivity, profitability, and marketing strategy
  • Fostering customer and client relationships
  • Best in class ecommerce knowledge and techniques

Brand Advocacy Solutions Engage as an account coordinator working directly with clients and customers. This rotation is designed to elevate your knowledge and skills in the following areas:

  • Coordinating and executing Assisted Sales & Training (AS&T) programs
  • Collaborative efforts between our strategy and creative teams
  • Coordinating and assisting the client services teams on the execution of activations, programs, and live events
  • Understanding Mosaic’s consultative approach and how it delivers ROI to clients

Additional Rotation: The final rotation is customized to align with your interests, skillsets, and organizational priorities. This rotation is designed to help you seamlessly integrate into a team while continuing to advance your professional development.

Qualifications

  • Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration or a related field
  • Minimum GPA: 3.25
  • Reliable transportation to support local and regional travel requirements

Desirable Skills and Attributes:

  • Passionate about diverse subjects including Retail, Foodservice, Business Intelligence, Sales, and Marketing.
  • Proactive, dependable, and personable, with exceptional organizational, interpersonal, and communication skills.
  • A willingness to ask questions, acknowledge mistakes, and continually deepen their knowledge.
  • Strong leadership skills; capable of providing concrete examples of leadership from previous projects or work experiences and articulate their specific contributions as a leader.
  • The ability to assess processes meticulously and formulate well-informed, tangible proposals.
  • Proficient in computer applications such as Microsoft Excel, Word and PowerPoint.

#DiscoverYourPath

About Us Acosta Group is a collective uniting the most trusted retail, marketing, and foodservice agencies—Acosta, ActionLink, CORE Foodservice, CROSSMARK, Mosaic, Premium Retail Services, and Product Connections. Together, we connect consumers with the brands they love through omnichannel selling, merchandising, brand advocacy, and integrated marketing.

We recognize our associates are the foundation of our success. That’s why we prioritize your growth, development, and well-being to help you reach your full potential. With programs designed to support a fulfilling work-life balance, we offer opportunities that fit your lifestyle and ambitions—whether you’re looking for part-time flexibility or full-time career advancement.

Ready for a career path that’s as unique as you? Discover your path at Acosta Group!

Acosta Group is an equal opportunity employer and will ensure that applicants with disabilities are provided with reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed, please contact AskHR@acosta.com. Be sure to include "Applicant Accommodation" in the subject of your email to expedite the request.

Acosta Group believes in good faith that the minimum and maximum annual salary or hourly compensation range for this opportunity is accurate and reasonable at the time of posting.

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#DiscoverYourPath Acosta, and its subsidiaries, is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Job Category: Administration

Position Type: Full time

Business Unit: Corporate

Salary Range: $65,000.00 - $65,000.00

Company: Acosta Employee Holdco LLC

Req ID: 13660

Employer Description: ACOSTA
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About Acosta

Retail
10,000+

Acosta brings simplicity to retail sales. We act as a catalyst to boldly connect brands, retailers and consumers, fueling growth and building long-term value throughout North America and Europe.

We are deeply embedded in every corner of the retail industry, strengthening the local, regional and national relationships between brands and retailers.​ Our team of experts uses deep industry insight, cutting-edge analytics and integrated partnerships to help our clients move ahead with confidence.