Marketing Specialist - Knorr

Role overview

Unilever is seeking a Marketing Specialist for the Knorr brand within its marketing team. This role reports to the Marketing Manager and supports the local East Africa scope, covering Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Rwanda. The position is based in Kenya and is a full-time opportunity.

About Unilever

Unilever reaches billions of people across more than 190 countries through products used every day. The company focuses on creating meaningful impact through brands that serve consumers and communities, with a purpose of making sustainable living the norm. Its approach is rooted in doing business responsibly and building strong performance through purpose-led work. The organization also emphasizes an inclusive, collaborative, and flexible environment where people are supported to shape their own careers.

What the role involves

This opportunity is suited to someone who can combine consumer understanding, creative thinking, analytical judgment, and strong execution. The role requires the ability to interpret data, identify important trends, and turn insights into practical brand plans. It also calls for clear communication, strong coordination, and confident stakeholder management when working with internal teams and partner organizations.

Key responsibilities

• Develop an annual marketing plan for the brand using brand audit insights and the brand’s defined job-to-be-done.
• Support rollout of the marketing plan, including coordination with agencies and building a coherent activity calendar.
• Deeply understand the Royco and Knorr 6Ps, evaluate competition, and lead required actions with the broader team and creative agency.
• Deliver brand business targets and execute plans that support KPIs while balancing consumer insights, market conditions, and available resources.
• Track market trends across East Africa and adapt actions accordingly.
• Partner with the below-the-line agency to create and execute consumer activations in the market.
• Manage budgets, margins, and spending, including agency fees, sampling costs, activation costs, and media investment.
• Work with important stakeholders to support growth for the Royco and Knorr brands.
• Serve as the local lead for innovation projects.
• Lead launch planning, implementation, and review for innovation initiatives, monitor in-market results, and drive improvements where needed.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree is required; a postgraduate degree or master’s degree in a business-related field is preferred.
• Applicants from other academic backgrounds may also be considered if they can demonstrate relevant experience and a strong willingness to learn.
• More than 7 years of experience in marketing, brand management, or a closely related area.
• Strong consumer orientation and interest in understanding shopper and consumer behavior.
• Excellent analytical and logical reasoning ability.
• Creative thinking with a focus on practical impact.
• Strong execution skills and the ability to turn ideas into real-world action.
• Solid operational capability and comfort with reviewing business and brand performance.
• Interest in digital marketing and openness to learning new tools and approaches.
• High accountability and the ability to get work done through others.
• Strong bias for action and the ability to move decisions forward quickly.
• Comfort working as part of internal and external cross-functional teams.
• Strong communication and coordination skills.

Leadership expectations

The role calls for someone who consistently delivers strong results, demonstrates resilience, and seeks better ways of working through collaboration. The successful candidate should take personal ownership of their work, maintain high standards, stay focused on consumer needs, and use data and evidence thoughtfully to identify opportunities and issues. The role also aligns with Unilever’s leadership behaviours of caring deeply, focusing on what matters, staying ahead of change, and delivering with excellence.

Additional information

Function: Marketing

Reporting line: Marketing Manager

Scope: Local responsibility across East Africa, including Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Rwanda

Employment terms: Full time

Inclusion statement

Unilever is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion and welcomes applicants from all backgrounds. The company provides fair consideration to all applicants regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, or pregnancy and maternity. If you need any support or accessibility arrangements during the hiring process, you are encouraged to share those needs when applying.