Account Manager

Role Overview

• Prepare and maintain updated account plans for major customers and high-potential prospects within the assigned territory, including growth strategies, risk assessments, and competitive intelligence.
• Provide the Director, Sales Segment and cross-functional partners with regular progress reports summarizing account activity, pipeline development, and commercial opportunities.
• Establish, execute, and continuously refine a territory call plan to ensure consistent engagement with all customers and prospects, including multi-level and multi-plant touchpoints.
• Maintain accurate, up-to-date visibility into gross margins, cost-to-serve, and pricing structures for all major accounts; make informed pricing recommendations that support profitable growth.
• Build and sustain multi-level relationships across customer organizations—procurement, operations, engineering, quality, and leadership—to strengthen Sonoco’s preferred-vendor position.
• Identify opportunities for value-based engineering, packaging optimization, and cost-reduction initiatives that reinforce Sonoco’s technical and service differentiation.
• Collaborate with internal operations, customer service, and supply chain teams to ensure flawless execution, service reliability, and proactive issue resolution.
• Monitor market trends, competitor activity, and customer shifts to help shape territory strategy and protect Sonoco’s position in served markets.
• Travel approximately 60% of the time across the Midwest to maintain strong customer engagement and support business development activities.

Requirements

• You have a 4-year undergraduate degree or equivalent professional experience.
• You bring 5+ years of sales experience, ideally in B2B manufacturing, packaging, or industrial products.
• You have knowledge or experience in protective packaging—including molded foam, plastics, fiber, thermoforming, or paper-based protective solutions.
• You are skilled in value-based selling, solution development, and navigating complex customer organizations.
• You are comfortable managing a multi-state territory and maintaining a strong presence with customers across the Midwest.
• You thrive in a fast-paced environment and can balance strategic planning with hands-on commercial execution.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision coverage for you and your dependents, including FSA and HSA options
• 401(k) retirement plan with company match
• Wellbeing tools and resources to support holistic health, including an Employee Assistance Program with a variety of services
• Paid time off and holidays to recreate, rejuvenate and care for the health of yourself and family
• Variety of company paid and voluntary employee-paid insurance plans including life, personal accident, and disability insurance
• Tuition reimbursement