Head of Sales UK SME in Manchester

As Head of Sales – UK SME, you will lead the UK SME sales function to deliver ambitious growth targets across new business acquisition and profitable revenue expansion. You will build, coach, and performance-manage a high-performing national team of B2B sales professionals, while working closely with Operations, Finance, Marketing and Customer Services to ensure seamless customer onboarding and mobilisation. This is a hands‑on, visible leadership role, combining strategic direction with frontline sales execution, deal support, and rigorous performance management.

Key Accountabilities

• Sales Leadership & Performance
  • Lead, mentor and coach a national team of New Business-focused Business Development Managers and Sales Executives.
  • Set clear performance expectations and KPIs aligned to revenue growth, margin, and activity targets.
  • Build and sustain a high-performance, proactive sales culture with a strong bias toward new business win-rate and account expansion within the SME sector.
  • Conduct regular performance reviews, pipeline inspections, and structured coaching sessions.
  • Identify skills gaps and lead training and development initiatives to continuously raise capability across the team.
• Sales Execution & Growth Delivery
  • Own and drive the UK SME new business pipeline across defined regions, territories and target verticals.
  • Maintain a highly visible, hands‑on presence to support the team in closing high‑value and complex deals.
  • Lead and approve pricing models and P&Ls for larger or more complex SME opportunities, ensuring profitable growth aligned to business objectives.
  • Identify and exploit market opportunities across core service lines including general waste, recycling, equipment, shredding, and hazardous waste.
  • Ensure sales activity delivers both short‑term wins and sustainable long‑term customer value.
• Opportunity & Pipeline Management
  • Embed best-in-class CRM discipline across the SME sales function to ensure accurate, timely and value‑driven data capture.
  • Oversee prospecting, lead generation and pipeline management activity to support reliable forecasting and reporting.
  • Ensure all sales activity is tracked and reported to inform commercial decision‑making.
  • Work closely with Telesales, Marketing and Tendering teams to align campaigns, bids and lead generation activity to SME growth objectives.
• Collaboration, Mobilisation & Customer Handover
  • Own and lead the end‑to‑end onboarding and mobilisation process for all new SME customer wins.
  • Work cross‑functionally with Operations, Finance, Customer Services and Commercial Support teams to ensure smooth, compliant and timely contract mobilisation.
  • Lead and formally sign off all sales‑to‑account handovers, ensuring clarity of scope, service expectations and commercial terms.
  • Support early‑stage account management transition to protect revenue, margin and customer experience.

Key Requirements

• Experience & Skills
  • 5–8 years’ experience in B2B new business sales, with at least 2 years in a senior sales leadership role.
  • Proven experience leading and managing managers (e.g. Regional Sales Managers) to deliver consistent performance.
  • Demonstrated success in building, scaling and leading SME-focused sales teams.
  • Strong commercial acumen with the ability to assess pricing, margin and deal profitability.
  • Excellent negotiation, presentation, and stakeholder management skills.
  • Ability to translate high‑level sales strategy into clear, executable tactical plans.
  • Results‑driven, resilient and hands‑on leadership style.
• Knowledge & Attributes
  • Strong understanding of SME customer behaviour and buying cycles.
  • Confident user of CRM systems and data‑led sales performance tracking.
  • Commercially astute with a strong grasp of pricing models and margin management.
  • Willingness to travel nationally across the UK as required.
  • Collaborative leadership style with the ability to influence cross‑functional teams.

Qualifications

• Degree‑level qualification in Business, Sales, Marketing or a related discipline (or equivalent experience).
• Experience within waste management, recycling, environmental services or a similar operationally complex sector is highly desirable.
• Knowledge of waste and environmental regulations is advantageous.
• High level of data literacy and comfort working with reporting and analytics tools.

About Us

We are Panda. We value waste. We’re in the business of waste management but that doesn’t just mean collecting bins. Behind every collection is a passionate team of people finding smarter, safer, and more sustainable ways to recycle and repurpose materials that would otherwise go to waste. Over the past 30 years, Panda has grown into a leading resource recovery business, bringing together almost 3,000 people across multiple brands, united by a shared vision and strong values. While our operations are diverse, our purpose is clear: to protect our people, support our customers, and create positive impact for the communities and environments we serve. At Panda, people are at the heart of everything we do. We work as one team, combining different skills, experiences, and perspectives to achieve shared goals. We care for each other’s wellbeing, encourage development, and support growth because we know we’re stronger together. We expect excellence in how we operate. High standards, bold thinking, and continuous improvement drive our passion for innovation. We challenge the ordinary, put safety first, and embrace new ideas while delivering practical, cost‑effective solutions that move our business forward. We own what we do. From day‑to‑day tasks to major projects, we take pride in our work and responsibility for the outcome. We don’t walk past problems we address them together. Our expertise, reliability, and care reflect who we are and the difference we make. And above all, we act with trust and integrity. Trust is built through open communication, honesty, and accountability. It allows us to move quickly, make confident decisions, and deliver results — knowing our people are empowered to do the right thing. Our journey depends on talented, committed people who want to make an impact. Take the first step and join us on the journey. Panda is committed to attracting and retaining a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the communities in which we operate and the people we serve.