Head of Commercial Capability

How to Apply: Visit the application link provided on this page to submit your application for this Head of Commercial Capability role at Diageo.

Prove You Can Build Commercial Capability Frameworks, Not Just Sales Numbers

This role is about designing the systems that make sales teams better across East Africa, not carrying a quota yourself. Diageo will screen for people who can translate commercial strategy into capability frameworks, certification standards, and measurable learning journeys that work across multiple markets.

1. Lead with framework design evidence: Your CV should show at least one commercial capability framework you built from scratch, including the competencies, proficiency levels, and assessment methods you defined. Hiring managers want to see the architecture, not just the training sessions you delivered. Quantify adoption across markets or business units where possible.

2. Show multi-market governance experience: Diageo operates across East Africa, so demonstrate how you maintained consistency in capability standards while allowing for local adaptation. Describe a governance process you established, including scorecards, operating rhythms, or review cadences. They will probe how you handled a market that resisted regional standards.

3. Connect capability to commercial outcomes: Be ready to explain how a capability programme you led improved sales execution, distributor management, or route-to-market performance. Use specific metrics like revenue growth, coverage expansion, or customer retention. Avoid vague claims about 'improving skills' without linking to business results.

4. Demonstrate digital commerce and data fluency: The role explicitly mentions future skills in digital commerce and data-led decision making. Prepare examples of how you embedded digital tools or analytics into commercial capability programmes. Even if your experience is traditional FMCG, show you understand where the industry is heading.

5. Prepare for a non-people-manager influence test: This role collaborates with and coaches capability managers in the markets but does not manage them directly. Expect questions on how you drive alignment without authority. Have a story ready about a time you convinced a market leader to adopt a regional framework they initially resisted.

6. Build a certification and assessment portfolio: Bring concrete examples of certification standards, assessment methodologies, or accreditation frameworks you have designed. Diageo wants someone who can define proficiency requirements and measure them objectively. If you have samples (redacted), offer to walk through them in the interview.

7. Show you think in multi-year horizons: The strategy is multi-year, so demonstrate that you can prioritize capability investments based on strategic impact and organizational readiness. Explain how you decided what to build first, what to delay, and how you secured funding. They will test whether you can balance ambition with practical rollout.

8. Know the EABL and Diageo commercial context: Research Diageo's route-to-market models, key customer types, and distributor structures in East Africa. In your interview, reference specific commercial challenges like informal retail, emerging digital channels, or distributor fragmentation. Showing you understand the operating environment will set you apart from generic capability candidates.