Executive Vice President of Sales

Our client is a leading consumer products company that sells its products to the various mass merchandise and specialty retail chains, wholesalers and distributors throughout the United States and Canada.  Their products are primarily marketed through the arts and crafts and scrapbooking industries.

We are seeking an Executive Vice President to lead the company's sales team.  This position is a key member of the Executive Management Team and will report directly to the President and CEO of the company.

 

Responsibilities for this position include:

--Set the strategic direction and establish the goals and objective for the company sales, training and motivating new and established sales people and close interface with marketing/product development.

--Establish and maintain close relationships with key customers.

--Plans, organizes, and develops objectives, goals, policies and programs to maximize sales activities of the organization within the budgets as they have been defined.

--Strengthen relationships with key account buyers and upper management and represent the Company as the overall Sales leader to the major customer accounts.

--Oversees account forecasting process.

--Oversees competitive analysis, market mapping, monitoring, and trend analysis of the marketplace to ensure the company has the most up-to-date competitive and market information with which to make sound business decisions.

--Analyzes, tracks, and translates performance data into actionable specifics in order to increase business opportunities.

--Manages key sales information and systematically reports to CEO and senior management team on progress relative to plan.

--Understands and supports mission and philosophy and communicates them effectively to others.

--Actively participates in senior management team on all functions of the business.

--Provides trade input to the product development team.

--Confers with CEO to review achievements and discuss required changes in goals or objectives resulting from current status and changing conditions.

--Serves as member of the Executive Management Team.

--Represents the company at conferences and trade shows, maintaining a high visibility role in the craft industry.

--Develops and manages compensation plans for the members of the sales team to meet cost-of-sale objectives, reward excellent performance, and retain and grow top performers.

--Leads and serves as a model for others in a collaborative work environment and culture.

--Performs other duties as assigned.

 

Key Qualifications and Competencies for this position include:

--The ideal candidate will have a minimum of twenty years of sales leadership experience in a mass market industry.  Craft industry experience is a plus.

--Proven track record of increasing profitable sales success with high integrity.

--Team builder and motivator; mentoring, critically evaluating, developing and promoting others.

--Able to read, analyze, and interpret financial statements and business reports, general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations.

--Effective at writing business reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals and effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, customers, and the general public.

--Up to 50% of travel is to be expected. 

--Strong written and oral communication skills in management and customer presentations.

--Effective at implementing sales and business plans and forecasts to budgets in order to achieve results.

--Significant experience in working with financial statements and the budget process.

--Strong analytical and information management skills.

--Displays a strong sense of urgency without making rash decisions.

--Able to establish accurate annual sales goals and expectations.

--Able to lead a fast-paced and high growth organization.  Has a demonstrated ability to scale a department at a time of fast growth.  Comfortable with fast change, quick decisions and uncertainty.

--Able to work independently and collaboratively as appropriate; being an aggressive, competitive, entrepreneurial leader and team player at the same time.

--Strong computer skills plus knowledge of MS Office.

 

If you are interested in applying for this position and have the qualifications as listed above, please forward your resume via email to dean@sssclt.com in MS Word format.  Please include your salary history and refer to Job ID Code #07CLT004 when submitting your resume.