Commercial Officer

Mapalo Pads sells through general trade, wholesale and modern trade outlets, served by a direct sales team operating from Kampala and upcountry bases. Growth to date has come from selling effort rather than commercial structure. The customer database is not organised by geography or channel, journey plans and visit frequencies are not fixed, credit is extended without documented limits, targets are not set by representative, customer or item, and purchasing is reactive.

The Commercial Officer works inside the company, alongside the sales, finance, merchandising and warehouse teams, to rebuild the commercial operating system and hand over documented processes the team can run after the contract ends. This is a hands-on operating role, not an external diagnostic study.

To build and run the commercial system of Mapalo Pads for 6 months and to deliver sales of at least UGX 350,000,000 and collections of at least UGX 200,000,000 in each quarter, while leaving behind the structures, data and documented procedures that allow the in-house team to sustain the results.

Key Objectives

• Rebuild the customer master data so that every customer carries a geography, channel, sub-channel, visit frequency and credit line, maintained in the ERPNext system rather than in spreadsheets.
• Move the sales team from unstructured coverage to a fixed journey plan with measurable daily outputs: calls made, productive calls, invoices raised and new outlets opened.
• Bring credit, collections and stock under control so that sales growth does not create ageing debt or dead stock.
• Open and stabilise 4 to 5 wholesale or sub-distribution accounts on terms that protect price integrity and cash.
• Transfer capability through training and written policies so that sales, merchandising, finance and supply chain keep operating to the same standard after the contract closes.

Customer base, segmentation and route to market

• Audit the customer master (duplicates, inactive and incomplete records) and add geography, channel and sub-channel classification in ERPNext, with a documented update routine and an owner.
• Analyse 2026 purchasing trends by month, volume, value, item and frequency, and classify customers as high, medium or low performing.
• Identify lost opportunities (lapsed customers, partial-range buyers, unopened outlets), estimate their value and act on them.
• Design a promotion engine with differentiated mechanics, clear budget and approval rules, and a way to measure incremental volume.
• Build journey plans and coverage maps for every sales representative and set customer credit lines and payment terms by customer and channel.

Demand planning, stock and supply chain

• Analyse stock by item (cover in days, ageing, slow and non-moving lines) and set minimum, maximum and reorder levels.
• Document replenishment lead time, set the purchasing calendar with finance, and produce a rolling monthly sales forecast by item and channel.
• Report supply chain indicators: stock cover, out-of-stock incidents, forecast accuracy and value of slow-moving stock.

Salesforce performance, targets and incentives

• Map each representative to a territory and set daily activity standards (planned calls, productive calls, invoices, new customers).
• Run daily and weekly reporting on positive and negative calls, strike rate and journey plan adherence.
• Set monthly targets by representative, customer and item, and design and cost an incentive scheme that pays on value, collections, coverage, range selling and new outlets. Any sales incentive is conditional on the same representative’s collection performance.
• Run the scheme for at least one full month and adjust it before handover.

Wholesale and sub-distribution development

• Identify and qualify candidate wholesalers and sub-distributors, and define the commercial offer so that it does not undercut general trade pricing.
• Negotiate written trading agreements covering price, payment terms, credit limit, order minimums, territory and grounds for suspension.
• Apply phased credit, starting on cash or part-cash terms, and monitor ageing weekly with a firm stop-supply rule.

Collections and credit control

• Produce ageing analysis by customer, representative and channel, and agree recovery plans for balances overdue more than 30 days.
• Set monthly collection targets, document the end-to-end collection process, and hold a weekly collection review.
• Define segregation of duties between selling, collecting and posting, and report days sales outstanding, overdue percentage and collection efficiency monthly.

Cash van and last-mile distribution

• Identify routes where van selling is justified and define the cash van operating method.
• Prepare a costed proposal for 1 to 2 vans and a lower-cost boda boda alternative, and pilot the chosen method on 1 to 3 routes for at least 4 weeks.

Modern trade and merchandising

• Review modern trade contracts against actual offtake and margin, and renegotiate, renew or exit where terms do not pay back.
• Set planogram standards, define the merchandiser’s daily routine and reporting, and apply a return-on-investment test to every paid display, shelf rental and rebate.

Sales academy and team capability

• Assess capability through field accompaniment, then design and deliver a multi-module sales academy covering the selling call, product knowledge, journey plan discipline, upselling, merchandising, credit terms and objection handling.
• Produce a trainer pack and participant materials, test participants before and after training, and train supervisors and team leaders to deliver the curriculum after the assignment ends.

Policies, procedures and handover

• Work with managers to write policies for sales, credit and finance, merchandising, inventory and supply chain, and reporting, plus a delegation of authority matrix signed off by the CEO.
• In the final month, run a structured handover with process walkthroughs, an open items list with owners and dates, and a written assessment of continuity risks.

Performance Targets

• Sales value: at least UGX 350,000,000 per quarter, measured on net invoiced sales after returns and discounts.
• Collections: at least UGX 200,000,000 per quarter, measured on cash banked and posted to customer accounts.
• New wholesale or sub-distribution accounts: 4 to 5 accounts opened, trading and within agreed credit terms.
• Customer database: 100% of active customers carrying geography, channel, sub-channel, visit frequency and credit line in the system.
• Journey plan adherence: at least 90% of planned calls executed per representative per week.
• Team capability: all sales and merchandising staff through the academy, with post-training assessment recorded.

Reporting and Decision Rights

• Submits a weekly one-page update, a monthly performance report and a final report at the end of the assignment.
• Recommends and implements within the scope of the role. Decisions on pricing changes, credit limits, promotional spend, incentive payout, write-offs, vehicle investment and staff matters remain with the CEO.

Essential

• A degree in business administration, marketing, commerce, economics or a related field.
• At least 8 years in FMCG sales and distribution, including 4 to 6 years in a commercial, sales management or distribution management role with responsibility for a sales team and a target.
• Demonstrated experience building customer segmentation, journey plans and territory coverage in a distribution business.
• Practical experience of credit control and debt collection in trade, including setting limits and enforcing stop-supply.
• Experience designing and running sales incentive schemes and setting monthly targets by representative and item.
• Working knowledge of a sales automation or ERP system, with the ability to specify master data structures, reports and controls.
• Strong Excel skills, including building a reporting pack and forecast without external support.
• Knowledge of the Ugandan trade (general trade, wholesale, sub-distribution and modern trade), with existing relationships in at least one of these.

Desirable

• Experience in personal care, hygiene or a comparable fast-moving category.
• Experience training and coaching sales teams, with materials the candidate has authored.
• Experience in a company of comparable size moving from owner-led selling to a managed commercial system.
• Experience in multinational FMCG companies is a plus.

Personal Attributes

• An operator rather than an analyst: willing to work in the field, sit with the sales team and build routines personally.
• Comfortable holding people to a standard.
• Direct in reporting problems early.
• Able to leave behind a team that can run the system without them.

All candidates who meet the criteria outlined above are encouraged to apply under the job vacancy “ QSSU – MPLE – Commercial Officer ”.

Application link;

Note: The deadline for applications is not later than 8:00AM Tuesday October 20th, 2026

Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.

Q-SOURCING SERVTEC IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER. ANY SOLICITATION WILL LEAD TO DISQUALIFICATION.