Assistant Activation Manager

Role Purpose

Zydus Wellness is looking for a hands-on activation professional to support planning and independently drive the execution of BTL, consumer promotion, retail/shopper and experiential marketing programs. The role requires strong on-ground ownership, agency coordination and disciplined operational and commercial closure of every activation.

Key Responsibilities

• Translate approved activation briefs into detailed execution plans, timelines, deployment schedules, checklists and activity calendars.
• Drive end-to-end execution of consumer activations, sampling programs, retail initiatives, events, promotions and experiential campaigns.
• Coordinate with Brand, Sales, Procurement, Finance and other internal stakeholders for timely implementation.
• Manage activation agencies, vendors, promoters and field teams against agreed scope, timelines, quality standards and deliverables.
• Conduct field visits and execution audits to monitor consumer experience, brand compliance, hygiene, promoter performance and overall activity quality.
• Identify execution risks, resolve on-ground challenges and escalate critical issues appropriately.
• Manage activation assets, collaterals and inventory, including deployment, return, storage and stock reconciliation.
• Track activity budgets against approved estimates and maintain documentation related to estimates, purchase orders, approvals and vendor bills.
• Validate proof of execution and agency invoices against approved scope and actual delivery.
• Track agreed activity KPIs and prepare accurate post-activity reports, presentations, learnings and closure documentation.
• Recommend practical improvements to strengthen execution quality, efficiency and overall activation effectiveness.

Qualifications & Experience

• 2-6 years of directly relevant experience in BTL marketing, brand activation, experiential marketing, consumer promotions, retail/shopper activation or field operations.
• Demonstrable experience of personally managing live consumer-brand activations from planning through execution and closure.
• Candidates from both consumer brands and activation/experiential agencies will be considered.
• Prior experience in FMCG, consumer products or consumer wellness is preferred.
• Bachelors degree in Marketing, Business Management or a related discipline; a postgraduate qualification is preferred but not mandatory.
• Strong working knowledge of MS Excel, PowerPoint and Word.
• Familiarity with activation budgets, estimates, purchase orders, agency billing and execution documentation.
• Strong communication, stakeholder-management and agency-management capabilities.

Candidate Profile

• Highly organized and detail-oriented, with strong execution discipline.
• Proactive and comfortable taking ownership of activation execution.
• Strong problem-solving skills and ability to work effectively under field conditions and tight timelines.
• Capable of managing multiple activities, agencies and stakeholders simultaneously.
• Comfortable holding agencies, vendors and field teams accountable for agreed deliverables.
• Willing to travel and remain on-ground whenever campaign execution requires it.
• Currently based in Ahmedabad or genuinely willing to relocate.

Key Competencies

BTL & Brand Activation | Experiential Marketing | Consumer Promotions | Retail/Shopper Activation | Agency & Vendor Management | Field Execution | Budget & Commercial Management | Stakeholder Management | Execution Audits | Reporting & Analytics

Role Expectations

This is an execution-intensive role with regular on-ground involvement. The incumbent is expected to take ownership from approved brief to final closure, ensuring strong consumer experience, brand compliance, timely execution, commercial discipline and measurable activation outcomes.