The Head of Sales, Commercial – EMEA is responsible for driving and scaling revenue across all commercial verticals in the EMEA region (e.g. robotics & autonomy, survey & mapping, marine, agriculture, and other industrial applications). Operating as a player-coach, this role carries direct personal sales responsibility for a portfolio of strategic accounts while also leading, coaching and developing a small team of Business Development / Account Executives to build a scalable, repeatable commercial sales engine across the territory.
Role & Responsibilities:
● Own the EMEA commercial sales number – personally carrying a quota and closing strategic/key accounts, while also being accountable for total team attainment
● Lead, coach and develop a team of Business Development / Account Executives – setting territory and account plans, running pipeline reviews, and building individual development plans
● Design and execute the EMEA commercial go-to-market strategy across target verticals, in partnership with the Sales Director, EMEA and global Sales leadership
● Research and identify key growth verticals, programs and accounts for our products/solutions portfolio outside of the defence sector across the region
● Identify and develop strategic partnerships, channel and distribution relationships that accelerate commercial growth across EMEA
● Build and maintain a rolodex of key relationships across target industries, including economic buyers, technical decision-makers and channel partners
● Drive top-line revenue and orders by expanding existing accounts, acquiring new logos, and driving cross-sell/upsell across the team's book of business
● Own end-to-end forecasting and pipeline accuracy for the EMEA commercial team, ensuring linearity and predictability of the business
● Partner closely with Marketing, Sales Operations, Products Group, Support and Operations to improve go-to-market execution and acceleration of growth
● Understand customer technical requirements and work closely with Support and the Products Group to guide product direction and roadmap input
● Ensure operational excellence by keeping the CRM (Salesforce / MS Dynamics) consistently updated across the team, guaranteeing forecasting accuracy and business linearity
● Recruit, onboard and ramp new team members as the EMEA commercial team scales
● Develop a solid operational understanding of all aspects of the Company, immersing yourself into the wider organisation to understand how each team contributes to the strategic vision
● Live by our values – setting quantifiable targets that demonstrate commitment to our values
● Live & breathe a safety culture; be an advocate for safety within the workplace; remain compliant with all HSE requirements & obligations
Key Measures:
● Team and individual quota attainment against target
● Timely management and conversion of inbound leads and enquiries
● Development and health of pipeline for new business and existing accounts, across the team
● Progression of opportunities through the sales funnel and conversion of pipeline to orders
● Forecast accuracy and business linearity across the EMEA commercial team
● Team development – ramp time, retention and performance of direct reports
● Collaboration with the wider Advanced Navigation team
Behavioral Attributes for Success:
● Leading & Developing Others – Building the capability of the team through coaching, feedback and development planning; creating an environment where team members are motivated to perform and grow
● Organising Self – Effectively managing own time and resources to ensure that work is prioritised effectively and delivered on time in line with the requirements of the team and business
● Maintaining Positive Energy – Being relentless. Operating with a positive attitude, vigour and determination in the face of challenging situations, consistently maintaining high levels of effectiveness and productivity throughout
● Delivering Excellence – Setting high standards of performance for self and others; assuming responsibility and accountability for successfully completing assignments or tasks; self-imposing standards and expectations of excellence rather than having standards imposed
● Communication – Conducting positive and open interactions with others by conveying information and ideas clearly and concisely in an engaging manner that helps them understand and retain the message; listening actively to others and sharing proactively information
● Decision Making – Identifying and understanding problems and opportunities relevant to role by gathering and analysing quantitative and qualitative information; generating and evaluating alternatives, identifying the best course of action, and making timely decisions within own decision making scope
● Initiating Action – Taking proactive and independent action to accomplish work goals; taking prompt action to achieve results beyond what is required; anticipating and addressing problems without being prompted
● Leveraging Feedback – Taking full advantage of opportunities to receive and explore feedback about own performance; responding favourably to feedback and using it constructively to deliver outcomes and improve knowledge, skills and behaviours
QUALIFICATIONS
● 7+ years of experience in business development, sales and account management within a commercial technology/high-tech solutions environment
● 2+ years of experience directly leading, coaching or mentoring a sales team, ideally in a player-coach capacity
● Experience selling of navigation solutions into one or more of the following: robotics/autonomous systems, survey & mapping, marine/marine autonomy, agriculture, industrial or other technology-led commercial verticals
SKILLS
● Proven ability to lead, coach and develop a small sales team while continuing to personally carry and deliver against a quota
● Deep expertise in selling high-precision navigation and positioning solutions into commercial market segments, with a demonstrated ability to articulate the value proposition of Advanced Navigation’s technology to diverse industrial applications.
● Strong interpersonal skills – the ability to engage with customers and internal stakeholders at all levels, including C-suite
● The ability to build and execute a go-to-market strategy across multiple verticals and navigate a complex, multi-stakeholder buying process
● Strong sales skills, with the understanding of how to qualify a prospective customer and progress them through the sales cycle in a structured and methodical way
● Business development skills – the ability to develop a pipeline of opportunities from scratch across new and existing verticals
● Refined negotiation and closing skills
● Opportunity analysis and development
● Excellent communication and writing skills with the ability to be both technical and analytical
● Strong presentation skills
● The ability to adapt to a fast-changing environment, international cultures, and distributed teams
● Strong self-organisation and planning skills – the ability to set objectives, build a sales plan and execute effectively, both individually and as a team
● Strong skills with Salesforce CRM, including forecasting and pipeline management
EXPERIENCE
● Proven experience building and scaling a commercial sales function, ideally within a high-growth technology company
● Extensive experience selling within the EMEA region
● Experienced in remote and in-person selling and team leadership across a distributed, multi-country territory
● Track record of consistent quota attainment, both individually and as a people leader
Senior Manager, Commercial Sales EMEA in Newcastle employer: Advanced Navigation
Advanced Navigation is an exceptional employer that fosters a dynamic and innovative work culture, perfect for those passionate about precision navigation in the defence sector. With a strong emphasis on employee growth and development, you will have the opportunity to lead impactful marketing initiatives across the EMEA region, while enjoying the benefits of working in a collaborative environment that values creativity and strategic thinking.
