It has been my honor and privilege to serve MANA as its CEO and President since 2011. I have advised MANA’s Board of Directors that I would like to retire. My target date is June 30.
I have agreed to stay on until a highly qualified successor can be identified and an orderly transition can be accomplished.
The search for my successor is being managed by Carla Mahrt, President,
JJM Search, www.JJMSearch.com. I will post the job description below.
All inquiries about the position should be directed to Carla@JJMSearch.com.
Sincerely,
Charles M. Cohon
CEO and President
Manufacturers’ Agents National Association
Job Description
The Manufacturers’ Agents National Association (MANA, www.manaonline.org) is a not-for-profit trade association dedicated to advancing the professionalism and utilization of independent manufacturers’ representatives since 1947.
It is known as North America’s preeminent resource for rep search tools and best practices resources for working with reps. Its members include independent sales representatives throughout North America, as well as manufacturers that use independent sales representatives.
Title: CEO
Position Description: The CEO for MANA is the senior staff position and is charged with overall management of the association. Ideal candidates will have worked as a rep, as a manufacturer who sells through reps, or in a role that gave them a good understanding of the rep function.
Reports To: Manufacturers’ Agents National Association (MANA) Board of Directors,
Direct Reports: Two
- VP/GM
- Art Director for Agency Sales magazine, which is published by MANA
General Responsibilities:
- MANA delivers its services to members mostly online. Its CEO is the architect of MANA’s website, smartphone app, and CRM. As an architect, the CEO guides the look, feel, and content of these resources while working with a rep-savvy IT firm that handles the actual coding.
- MANA’s CEO leads in identifying, developing and executing strategic initiatives for the association that align the organization to serve present and future membership needs while providing a strong resource base to assure the association’s continuing ability to operate.
- MANA’s CEO has final responsibility for all association activities and assures that activities are properly conducted, reported and accounted for to the Board of Directors.
- MANA’s CEO is one of two go-to people that MANA members contact for assistance with business issues and challenges.
- MANA’s CEO’s duties include writing a monthly column and an occasional longer article for Agency Sales magazine and approves the content of all articles before they are included in magazine. MANA’s CEO encourages and leads all association communication efforts, both internal and external, to assure that the association and the industry are presented in a positive manner to all stakeholders, and that association objectives are accomplished.
- MANA’s CEO works with MANA’s outsourced bookkeeping service and its accountant, authorizes payment of invoices and payroll, creates MANA’s annual budget, reviews tax documents and required reports that are needed to prepare MANA’s annual tax return, and works with MANA’s corporate counsel to review contracts.
- MANA’s CEO serves as MANA’s primary representative to external stakeholders such as other industry associations, partner associations, MANA members, and the general public to create positive outcomes for the association.
- MANA’s CEO needs public speaking skills in order to make occasional presentations at trade shows or business conferences.
- MANA’s CEO wears many hats. In addition to the CEO’s managerial role, the CEO also pitches in and backstops other employees, for example during vacations.
Educational Requirements:
A bachelor’s degree or higher is preferred. In the alternative, lengthy experience as a rep or working with reps can be sufficient for highly qualified candidates.
Years of service:
Ten or more years’ experience as a rep or working with reps is preferred.
Location:
MANA employees have worked from virtual home offices since 2013.
Travel expectations:
The successful candidate will have significant input on the amount of travel needed to perform their duties. MANA’s current CEO usually makes four to six domestic US trips and two European trips annually.