CINDY T.

HENSON
631 Baldwin Drive
Joppa, Maryland 21085
H (410) 538-4555
C (443) 831-9531
ch507898@westpost.net
SUMMARY
Analytical professional with 13 years consumer product goods experience. My role
is to support and expand portfolio strategy development to maximize a company's
growth potential. I specialize in creating functional and tactical selling tool
s by applying granular qualitative and quantitative analytics that identify oppo
rtunities to increase profits and revenue, while reducing internal and competiti
ve risks. I possess strong planning, forecasting, cost efficiency, and project m
anagement skills from inception to execution. Areas of expertise include:

- Business Development
- Strategic Sales Planning
- Competitive Analysis
- Planning and Forecasting
- Data Correlation
- Process Implementation
- Leadership and Vision
- Executional Excellence
- Functional Skills
EXPERIENCE
PEPSICO, INC.
Category Development Analyst, Pepsi-Cola North America, Joppa, Maryland 2007-201
0
Identified opportunities to insulate sales and grow tea business against the com
petition. Worked in unison with sales team to identify and achieve sales and di
stribution opportunities in Retail channels and distribution points across the U
nited States. Through consumer insights, I created customized Retail selling sto
ries, promoting portfolio brand strength versus competition. Used shopper-buying
behaviors, casual measures, and data insights to identify sales and share oppor
tunities.
- Interfaced across multiple levels of management and departments to identify an
d solve for growth opportunities.
- Provided analytical support to achieve sales, marketing, and finance objective
s, and revenue goals.
- Led quantitative and qualitative analyst to increase portfolio brand equity, i
dentifying future growth propositions.
- Created insights-based selling stories driving portfolio growth and profitabil
ity, while limiting competing threats. Increasing sales 5-15%
- Identified untapped market opportunities through Strength, Weakness, Opportuni
ty, and Threat (SWOT) analysis.
- Recommended the implementation of a "value" proposition package, which yieled
a 54% increase is sales in four months.
- Analyzed various retail markets to gain an understanding of consumer buying tr
ends and institute sales action plans.
- Designed best-in-class scorecards to identify sales opportunities, and creatin
g and articulating solution development.
- Managed sales tools to measure AOP growth priorities, execute sales strategies
, and combat competition.
- Increased portfolio sales by channel, account, and market through causal measu
res such as pricing, and promotions.
- Measured return on investment (ROI) and break-even analysis.
- Proactively and effectively identified competitive risks and obstacles to achi
eve growth objectives.
- Provided sku optimization recommendations, which increased brand space and sal
es in the Retail channel.
- Provided targeted analysis, which assisted bottlers in rationalizing brand, fl
avor, and package mix to increase sales.
- Created AOP planning models, resulting in planning with accuracy and forecasti
ng with precision.
- Contributed to development of sales initiatives, which increased sales in unta
pped areas resulting, is a 10-54% increase.
- Created portfolio exposure to 100-plus category managers, which aided in incre
asing portfolio sales nationally.
- Led training seminars to increase and expedite team contributions.
Senior Sales Analyst, Pepsi-Cola North America, Columbia, Maryland 2005-2006
Focused on increasing sales team efficiencies by providing granular sales analyt
ics for all segments and levels of business, resulting in driving tea sales more
expediently. Conducted pre-post analysis of sales strategies and provided compe
lling insights of promotional rollouts. Identified program cost ineffectiveness
, contributed to the development of AOP, and presented key findings.
- Contributions led Lipton to become the #1 RTD Iced Tea in the United States, s
urpassing all competitors.
- Develop projects from analysis to implementation with little supervision.
- Designed go-to-market strategies to center growth of portfolio brands.
- Prepared targeted sales analysis non-carb category to insulate and grow portfo
lio offerings.
- Identified actionable insights applied to marketplace trends and sales team go
als.
- Pinpointed growth opportunities in existing and new accounts to increase share
and profits.
- Enhanced planning models to increase accuracy of planning processes and custom
er sales potential.
- Presented sales trends and insights on foodservice team conference calls to ed
ucate team on sales trends.
- Implemented Lipton Brewed Iced Tea (LBIT) tracking system, which identified a
30% sales reporting outages. True assessment of proposition identified product t
o be unprofitable, and new product was instituted to regain profits.
- Created professionally designed business reviews.
Sales Analyst, Pepsi-Cola North America, Columbia, Maryland 2004-2005
Increased the productivity and growth of the foodservice sales, operations, and
marketing division with insights-based analytics, including measuring brand posi
tioning, business development, new product rollouts, and competitive brand impac
ts.
- Created targeted sales analysis, contributing to sales team development of $40
,000 in incremental revenue.
- Pioneered sales reporting and tracking vehicles, which reversed two-year sales
decline and drove sales +14%.
- Created AOP planning model, enabling sales team to achieve planning accuracy t
o grow portfolio with precision.
- Spearheaded key volume-impacting projects to enhance sales with top-100 custom
ers, including brand surveys, Wild Cherry conversion, Aquafina, Sierra Mist, 20-
ounce, brand voids, and contractual compliances.
- Collaborated on several task forces to improve sales strategies and sales effe
ctiveness with LBIT volume per outlet (VPO), strategic foodservice selling deck,
and equipment tracking.
- Led initial and long-term development of LBIT volume and equipment tracking pr
ocesses to raise productivity and manageability of product, equipment, and plan.
- Instituted an asset management program in 5,000 restaurants, eliminating 1,500
non-producing valves, which increased the accuracy and profitability of LBIT.
- Managed sales and operations budget $2.4 million T&E and $3.9 million equipmen
t budget saving $50,000 in spending.
Analyst, Pepsi-Cola North America, Columbia, Maryland 2002-2003
Contributed to the developmental success of a new sales and operations foodservi
ce division for Pepsi-Lipton Partnership, a $130 million joint venture between P
epsiCo and Unilever. Created the first form of processes and procedures for the
fastest-growing provider of tea in the foodservice industry. Contributions led
to the addition of $21,000 in revenue and incremental trademark exposure to 30,
000 points of distribution.
- Developed first form of LBIT volume- and equipment-tracking processes through
complex network of five distinct internal and external networks to gain tactical
measurement of nationwide rollout.
- Created granular sales analysis to identify volume opportunities in selling st
ories and new business acquisitions.
- Created customized scorecards to analyze foodservice volume and equipment tren
ds against targets and plan by overcoming the complexities and constraints of mu
ltiple internal and external data systems to identify actionable insights to imp
roved sales division efficiencies and sales opportunities, effectively growing b
usiness 5% to 25%.
- Provided leadership on key projects, which ensured continual growth and produc
tivity of sales teams such as insulation against cannibalization, product compli
ance, and reducing distribution hurdles, increasing supplier sales year-over-yea
r, addressing reporting outages, and designing a competitive sales deck.
- Evaluation and improvement of internal methodologies, tools, and processes.
- Created professionally designed business reviews.
Trade Account Coordinator, Pepsi-Cola North America, Columbia, Maryland 2000-20
02
Project coordinator for Pizza Hut, PepsiCo's second-largest foodservice customer
. Contributed to the development of fountain, and B&C beverage strategies for f
ranchise- and company-owned restaurants. Developed and managed the first-ever b
ottles-to-go pricing program, orchestrating 255 bottlers, seven distribution cen
ters, and 13 select beverages across the United States. Program exceeded sales g
oal, making Pizza Hut PepsiCo's largest foodservice B&C customer.
- Managed sales analysis of Wild Cherry brand strategy, which eliminated competi
ng brand from 9,000 restaurants, adding $18 million in incremental fountain reve
nue to PepsiCo.
- Led first bottles-to-go pricing program, which solidified PepsiCo's inclusion
in Pizza Hut's annual promotional calendar. This ensured the continuation of B&C
sales strategies and promotions for the next seven years. Program recognized as
a PepsiCo best-selling practice and increased PepsiCo's exposure in the world's
largest casual-dine customer, growing B&C sales 8% to 20%.
- Led execution of bottles-to-go program to 110 national accounts, increasing Pe
psiCo's total B&C sales 25%.
- Instituted pricing audits, reaching 100% compliance of everyday and promotiona
l pricing for all 255 bottler programs.
- Perform as liaison between technical and business groups to develop solutions
to meet all stakeholder needs.
- Created professionally designed business presentations, and customer profiles.
- Meeting and event planning for 50-300 individuals.
- Managed T&E, A&M, and equipment budgets.
Administrative Assistant, Pepsi-Cola North America, Columbia, Maryland 1997-200
0
Administrative Assistant for Taco Bell, PepsiCo's largest foodservice customer.
Assisted sales division in the rollout and execution of fountain beverage strat
egies totaling $70 million in annual sales. Managed and developed brand optimiz
ation model, eliminating competitive brands in 5,000 Taco Bell outlets, which in
creased PepsiCo's fountain business by 19%. Created ground-up processes and pro
cedures for new division, which enhanced sales team penetration, volume sales, a
nd facilitated quarterly bottler strategic planning meetings to gain program ali
gnment throughout Taco Bell's in the United States.
ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE
Office Assistant, Trahan, Burden and Charles Advertising Agency, Baltimore, Mary
land 1996-1997
Served in multifaceted position for one of Maryland's leading advertising and pu
blic relations firms. Contributed to development of direct marketing and media
planning projects, which assisted clients in exceeding sales goals. Streamlined
development of processes and projects, which enabled agency to enhance efficien
cies, effectiveness, and increase sales.
Bally's Total Fitness, Towson, Maryland 1989-1995
Administrative Assistant to Vice President, 1994-1995. Collections Representativ
e Supervisor, 1991-1992. Customer Relations Representative and Renewal Processor
, 1990-1991. Data Entry Clerk and Credit Reporter, 1989-1990.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Business Management Skill Training, 2009, 2010
Category Management Insights Training, 2008, 2009, 2010
Selling the DSD Advantage, GMA Alignment Process, and Partnership Selling Proces
s, 2010
PepsiCo Assortment Optimizer and Plan-o-Gram Designer, 2009
Presentation Skills Training, 2008
Development of Professional Presentation Skills, 2007
360 Sales Processes, PepsiCo AOP, and Non-Carb AOP, 2007
Powerful Communication Skills for Women, 2006
Communicating with Tact and Skill for Managers/Supervisors, 2006
Presentation Advantage, 2005
Finance Assistance and Inclusion Training, 2003
TECHNICAL SKILLS
Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Adobe Professional, Oracle Sales Analyzer, Cr
est, STAR, STAR Bright, Spectra InfiNet, IRI Xlerate Plus, Panel and Builders, S
IA, Enterprise Reporting Tool (ERT), Horizons, Ad Insights, Retail Forward, PEP
Plan-o-Gram Designer, Pepsi Assortment Optimizer, Due to Tool, Scanner Advantage
, Ad View and Feature Vision, IPOP, and LRB Space Tool
EDUCATION
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, 2011
OUTSIDE INTERESTS
MICHAEL A. FIORELLI FOUNDATION FOR ESOPHAGEAL CANCER AWARENESS, Crofton, Marylan
d, Co-Founder and Vice President, 2007-2009. Initiated and managed the developm
ent and production of a new 501(c) non-profit and charity golf event. Developed
individual roles, responsibilities, and lead meetings for a 15-member board of
directors. Designed all facets of charity golf event, including foundation Webs
ite, golf registration, and golf program. Raising $70,000 the first year of bus
iness.
ECLIPSE SPORTS AND MARATHON OF MIRACLES, Volunteer, 2010. Supports initiatives
that raise funds to eradicate cancer.