Key Account Technical Manager, Meat & Animal Food Testing

Position Summary

The Key Account Technical Manager, Meat & Animal Food Testing, serves as the dedicated, single point of contact for large, strategic key accounts within a third-party commercial food testing laboratory, with a specialized focus on meat and animal food testing services. This role combines deep technical understanding of laboratory testing methodologies with strong client relationship management.

The position is responsible for managing all client communications, strengthening relationships, resolving issues, and proactively delivering technical guidance, insights, and performance metrics to enhance transparency, trust, and long-term partnership value. A key aspect of this role is acting as a technical advisor to clients, helping translate complex laboratory science, regulatory requirements, and testing strategies into actionable business decisions.

The ideal candidate excels at cross-functional coordination, problem-solving, and translating both operational and scientific data into meaningful client-facing insights and technical recommendations.

Responsibilities

Client Relationship Ownership

• Act as the primary point of contact for assigned key accounts, ensuring consistent, professional, and proactive communication.
• Build strong, trusted relationships with client stakeholders across quality, regulatory, procurement, and operations teams.
• Participate in regular business reviews and maintain ongoing engagement cadence.

Communication & Liaison

• Serve as the central liaison between clients and internal teams (laboratory operations, quality assurance, logistics, billing).
• Coordinate and streamline communication to ensure clarity, accuracy, and timely responses.
• Translate technical laboratory information into client-friendly language.
• Collaborate with internal Quality and Tech Services teams to help answer customer questions.

Issue Resolution & Problem Solving

• Own end-to-end resolution of client issues, including escalations related to testing, turnaround times, reporting, or service delivery.
• Partner with internal stakeholders to identify root causes and implement corrective/preventive actions.
• Proactively anticipate potential challenges and mitigate risks before they impact the client.

Performance Metrics & Visibility

• Develop and deliver regular performance reports and dashboards (e.g., turnaround time, sample volumes, service levels, quality metrics).
• Manage weekly reports for key customers.
• Proactively share insights, trends, and opportunities for improvement with clients.
• Use data to drive strategic conversations and continuous improvement initiatives.

Account Retention

• Support contract renewals and commercial discussions in partnership with sales.
• Ensure high client satisfaction and retention through exceptional service delivery.

Process Improvement

• Champion initiatives that improve client experience, communication flow, and operational efficiency.
• Standardize best practices for account management across key clients.

Technical Advisory

• Serve as a technical advisor to clients on meat and animal food testing requirements, methodologies, and regulatory expectations.
• Provide guidance on appropriate test selection, sampling strategies, and interpretation of microbiological, chemical, and quality results.
• Translate complex laboratory data, validation information, and method limitations into clear, client-actionable insights.
• Partner with internal laboratory subject matter experts (microbiology, chemistry, QA, validation) to resolve technical client questions.
• Support clients in understanding regulatory frameworks (e.g., USDA, FDA, ISO) as they relate to testing programs.
• Identify opportunities to improve testing programs, optimize workflows, and enhance analytical accuracy or turnaround times.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Food Science, Microbiology, or related field
• 5+ years of experience in account management, client services, or customer success within the Beef or Animal Protein industry
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills
• Proven ability to manage complex accounts and cross-functional coordination
• Analytical mindset with experience interpreting and presenting performance metrics

Preferred

• Experience in third-party laboratory services or food safety/quality environments
• Familiarity with regulatory standards (e.g., FDA, USDA, ISO)
• Experience with CRM tools and data visualization platforms (e.g., Salesforce, Power BI, Tableau)

Key Competencies

• Client-centric mindset
• Technical credibility and advisory capability
• Proactive communication
• Problem-solving and critical thinking
• Data storytelling and scientific/technical translation
• Organizational and project management skills
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, high-accountability environment