NEW YORK – Breakthru Beverage Group, a leading North American beverage distributor with operations across the United States and Canada, has announced an evolution of the company’s executive leadership structure reporting to CEO Greg Baird, reinforcing its dedication to continued innovation and growth. Effective immediately, former EVP of Corporate Strategy and Communications,Maggie Lapcewich, will assume the new role of Chief Growth Officer (CGO),working in close partnership with E. Lloyd Sobel who will transition from Chief Operating Officer to the role of Chief Commercial Officer (CCO).
As evolving consumer demands and market dynamics continue to change the industry at a rapid pace, Breakthru’s corporate strategy underscores the company’s commitment to bold strategic initiatives and driving long-term growth and performance for its business and that of its supplier and customer partners. Across its footprint, Breakthru is taking innovative steps to evolve its route-to-market approach and advanced capabilities in channel and strategic account excellence, operations and supply chain, analytics and insights, and digital and e-Commerce, to better serve its partners and today’s end consumer.
In their new roles, Lapcewich and Sobel will serve as key advisors to Breakthru CEO Greg Baird and will work together to drive effectiveness and standardize market commercial capabilities to support future growth and business expansion. In partnership with other executive leaders, they will develop and drive the company-wide strategic agenda to achieve Breakthru’s long-term vision, define and implement critical initiatives and focus resources on new pathways to growth including its digital roadmap, which continues to be a critical area of focus for Breakthru’s business.
As CGO, Lapcewich will lead Breakthru’s digital and e-Commerce vision and strategy, in close collaboration with CIO Joe Bruhin, as the company continues to accelerate enhancements to its commercial technology platform to better serve its supplier and customer partners. In addition to Digital and e-Commerce, she will have oversight for all Corporate Strategy, Communications and Commercial Capabilities Centers of Excellence.
“Maggie has been a force in the industry throughout her career and a valued member of Breakthru’s leadership team who brings extraordinary insights and experience to this new role,” explained Baird. “She has been integral to every major strategic endeavor we’ve undertaken since Breakthru was formed from integrating our multi-billion-dollar businesses to advancing our cross-functional corporate initiatives.”
As CCO, Sobel will play a key role in harnessing the full commercial power across the company’s footprint and work across functions to maximize Breakthru’s long-term growth and profitability. He will advance Breakthru’s commercial agenda and have oversight for the bulk of North American Sales and Supplier Development activities as well as responsibility for National Accounts, Government and Regulatory Affairs and Customer Care functions. Brian Albenze, EVP United Division, also reporting to Baird, will continue to lead Breakthru’s Diageo and Moët Hennessy USA business across the organization.
“Commercial excellence is foundational in our rapidly evolving industry and under Lloyd’s leadership, we will continue to advance our go-to-market capabilities, execution and performance,” Baird noted. “We have always operated as a nimble, future-focused company and we understand that by not just responding to change, but driving it, we can strengthen results for our business and our partners.”
Breakthru Beverage Group is one of the leading alcohol wholesalers in the United States and the largest broker in Canada representing a full total beverage alcohol portfolio of spirits, wine and beer. Breakthru is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion and supports a wide range of notable organizations as well as local charitable initiatives across its North American footprint. Across all markets, Breakthru aligns a nimble and insightful approach to sales, marketing and operations. Family ownership is active in the business and committed to being stewards of heritage and champions of innovation. For more information, visit www.BreakthruBev.com.
A
, or Chief Marketing Officer, is in charge of marketing efforts to build brand awareness to drive business. A CGO also wants to drive business growth, as their title implies. But they do a lot more than just dealing with marketing.
How A Chief Growth Officer Can Make or Break Your Year
What is a chief growth officer?
A chief growth officer (CGO), also known as a chief revenue officer (CRO), is responsible for helping their company sustain a pattern of growth by ensuring satisfied customers. They may work in collaboration with a wide number of departments, including sales, business development finance and information technology, to find new ideas for company success. They may also stay up to date on current market trends to understand customer needs to make educated predictions about beneficial business decisions for growth. The CGO reports to the CEO of a company.
Other primary responsibilities of the CGO include:
What is a chief commercial officer?
A chief commercial officer (CCO), also called the chief business officer (CBO), is an executive who focuses on commercial strategy, including product development, marketing, sales and customer service. This individual may work to ensure that a companys commercial strategy is both lucrative in the moment and sustainable over time. To accomplish this, the CCO may help oversee the sales department of a company and offer advice, manage team members and review financial decisions. CCOs may manage a companys advertising or marketing departments in a similar manner. The CCO reports directly to the chief executive officer (CEO) of a company.
Specific key responsibilities of the CCO may include:
What is a vice president of sales?
The vice president, or VP, of sales is a company executive who oversees the sales department, promoting the products and services of the company. These professionals may help set sales goals, contribute to sales predictions and help develop sales practices and plans for the department. They may also promote the products and services of the company. The management of the sales team may entail recruiting and hiring sales staff and providing feedback, guidance and motivation for current team members. The VP of sales reports to the CEO of the company.
Other specific responsibilities of the VP of sales may include:
What are the differences between chief commercial officer, chief growth officer and vice president of sales?
The roles of chief commercial officer, chief growth officer and vice president of sales are all vital to the financial success of a company. There are some elements that these positions have in common and others that differentiate them from each other. Here are a few factors that you can use to help distinguish between these three high-level positions:
Responsibilities
While there are some areas of overlap, including working with sales and marketing departments to facilitate company profit and growth, there are also a number of responsibilities that set these positions apart from each other. For example, the primary responsibility of the VP of sales is to help companies create accurate revenue projections and then meet or exceed those projections. A CCO is generally responsible for a wider range areas related to sales, public relations, marketing and the management of consumer accounts. The work of the CGO focuses on creating customer satisfaction at all stages of the customer journey.
Individuals in these roles may also interact with or be responsible for different departments. The VP of sales oversees the sales department exclusively. The CCO generally works with the sales and marketing departments, and the CGO often works across a wide range of departments, from marketing to technology development. This is because CGOs may be more likely to use the latest technological advances to help connect with customers.
Skills
Specific skills can also be a good measure of distinction for these roles. CGOs skills may include fraud detection, research, strategic planning, product positioning, business management, financial skills, forecasting, enterprises sales and presentation skills. CCO skills may include organizational management, business development, territory management, relationship management, financial report interpretation, automotive diagnostics, profit and loss, treasury management, banking skills and customer support skills. VP of sales skills may include sales management, negotiation, leadership, business development, strategic planning, sales pipeline and pricing.
Typical company size
CGOs often work for relatively small companies with 200 team members or fewer. Many also work for marketing, internet technology or e-commerce companies in which growth and development is particularly important to company success. A VP of sales is a common position among companies of many different sizes, including major corporations. The CCO or CBO position may appear at companies of numerous sizes.
Job requirements
The educational and experience requirements for a CGO generally involve a masters degree in business administration and at least 10 years of related experience. CCO positions have very similar requirements, although there are a greater number of CCOs than CGOs with a bachelors degree as the highest level of education. A VP of sales may be more likely to hold a bachelors degree in marketing, finance or business. This means that more experienced candidates might consider looking for CGO or COO positions, while mid-level candidates looking to advance their career might consider applying for a VP of sales position.
Salary and benefits
FAQ
What is the difference between a chief growth officer and a Chief Revenue Officer?
What makes a good chief growth officer?
What is a CGO position?
