Marketing Manager, Japan

Job Purpose:  

Glanbia Performance Nutrition’s purpose is to inspire people everywhere to achieve their performance goals! We are the world’s leading premium sports nutrition company with Optimum Nutrition, Isopure, BSN, Amazing Grass and Nutramino among the brands in the portfolio today. We have ambitious plans for the future, and as a values-led organisation, we’re focused on driving sustainable business performance the right way.

In Japan, Glanbia Performance Nutrition aims to inspire and educate consumers while driving sustainable brand growth in a highly competitive and evolving market. The Marketing Manager will be responsible for developing and executing the Japan marketing strategy across brand building, product portfolio, and demand generation. This role will lead the creation of high-impact campaigns and activation plans, while acting as a key counterpart to the sales team and external partners (including distributors) to ensure marketing initiatives translate into commercial impact across channels. The role will be accountable for driving execution through agencies and internal teams in a lean operating environment.

Principal Accountabilities

• Develop and drive the Japan marketing strategy, translating global direction into locally relevant, prioritized plans aligned with business objectives
• Act as the primary marketing counterpart to the sales team and key distribution partners, aligning marketing plans to support sell-out growth across channels
• Lead the development and execution of high-impact, focused campaigns that drive both brand demand and commercial performance across e-commerce and retail channels
• Support development and execution of a commercially viable product portfolio in partnership with regional and global teams, ensuring strong local fit and execution readiness
• Manage and lead external agencies and partners across content, media, and activation, ensuring high-quality output and strong alignment with business objectives
• Provide structured coaching, prioritization, and performance guidance to junior marketing team members (e.g., social, influencers, events), while raising the overall standard of marketing execution and planning within the Japan team
• Drive alignment and decision-making across internal stakeholders (sales, finance, regional teams) to ensure effective execution and delivery
• Build more effective and scalable ways of working across internal and external resources in a lean team environment
• Manage the marketing budget with discipline, ensuring strong prioritization and return on investment

Key Challenges

• Operating effectively in a lean team environment with limited internal resources and high reliance on external partners
• Driving marketing impact in a distributor-led and partner-driven business model, requiring strong influence without direct control
• Balancing global brand direction with local market realities and constraints in Japan
• Prioritizing effectively to deliver impact within limited budgets and competing business needs

Key Challenges

• Operating effectively in a lean team environment with limited internal resources and high reliance on external partners
• Driving marketing impact in a distributor-led and partner-driven business model, requiring strong influence without direct control
• Balancing global brand direction with local market realities and constraints in Japan
• Prioritizing effectively to deliver impact within limited budgets and competing business needs

Skills, Know How and experience

• 10-12 years of experience in marketing, trade marketing, or a related commercial function within Japan
• Strong understanding of both brand marketing and commercial execution, with the ability to link marketing activities to business outcomes
• Experience working cross-functionally and managing external agencies or partners
• Ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced, resource-constrained, and ambiguous environment
• Strong project management and prioritization skills, with the ability to manage multiple initiatives simultaneously
• Analytical mindset with the ability to interpret data and translate insights into actionable plans
• Experience working in a distributor-led or partner-driven business model
• Experience supporting product launches and portfolio management
• Exposure to e-commerce and retail channel dynamics in Japan
• Interest in health, fitness, or nutrition categories
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence without direct authority
• Native-level Japanese and strong business English (written and verbal)