Director of Sales – Publishing Markets UK & Europe | Senior Individual Contributor / Player-Manager | Hunter Role A highly regarded global EdTech and digital transformation organisation is seeking a commercially driven Director of Sales to lead growth across the UK and European education publishing sector. For more than 20 years, the business has been building digital learning ecosystems for some of the world’s largest publishers, universities, and training providers — powering everything from learning platforms and assessment engines to large-scale corporate upskilling solutions used by millions globally. Their expertise sits at the intersection of accessibility, AI-driven personalisation, digital publishing, and scalable content delivery. While not a household name, the organisation plays a critical behind-the-scenes role in shaping how modern learners engage with education across higher education, professional learning, and publishing markets. This is a newly created role focused on winning and expanding strategic publisher accounts at a time of significant market change - driven by AI adoption, accessibility legislation, digital-first learning models, and platform modernisation initiatives. The successful candidate will take ownership of a high-value territory, operating as a senior new-business hunter responsible for building pipeline, closing enterprise deals, and developing long-term publisher partnerships. The Director of Sales – Publishing Markets will be responsible for generating new business revenue across UK and European education publishers while growing strategic existing accounts. The successful candidate will lead complex consultative sales cycles, engage senior publisher stakeholders, and collaborate closely with international presales and delivery teams to ensure commercially strong and deliverable solutions. The role suits an experienced enterprise sales professional with strong publishing or EdTech sector expertise and a proven track record of developing opportunities from zero through to contract signature. Identify, engage, and close new publisher accounts across the UK and Europe Build and manage a high-quality pipeline through proactive outbound activity and strategic networking Lead full enterprise sales cycles from discovery through to commercial negotiation and contract close Engage senior stakeholders including CTOs, Chief Product Officers, Heads of Digital, and VP-level leaders Develop consultative, pain-led sales strategies aligned to publisher transformation priorities Represent the organisation at major industry events and conferences across publishing and EdTech Account Growth & Strategic Relationship Management Develop strategic account plans for existing publisher relationships Identify cross-sell and upsell opportunities across digital, accessibility, platform, and content services Build multi-threaded stakeholder relationships within enterprise accounts Act as the commercial lead between clients and offshore presales/delivery teams Manage client expectations around delivery models, governance, and implementation Provide market feedback and competitive intelligence to internal teams Maintain a strategic target list of publisher accounts across UK and Europe Proven success winning new enterprise accounts within technology services, EdTech, digital publishing, or related sectors Strong understanding of publisher buying cycles, digital transformation initiatives, and stakeholder structures Experience operating within consultative, solution-led sales environments Ability to manage complex, multi-stakeholder sales processes involving technical, commercial, and procurement functions Existing relationships within the UK or European education publishing market Understanding of accessibility legislation (EAA/WCAG) and its commercial impact on publishers Experience working alongside offshore or international delivery teams Additional European language skills would be advantageous Strong market curiosity and ability to identify emerging commercial opportunities Flexible/home-based UK working model ~ International travel opportunities ~
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