Director, Infrastructure, Southern Europe West & Africa

Do you have a strong passion for managing large sales teams? And do you equally strive for winning as a team creating profitable growth?

What you can look forward to in this role
Our new Head of Infrastructure Southern Europe West & Africa, will be responsible for leading the commercial activities for Southern Europe West & Africa. In this role you will develop a sales strategy to achieve the organization’s short and long term sales goals with current customers and new customer acquisition, and you will partner with your sales peers, Commercial Excellence, Marketing, Key Account Management, and the Solution Management organizations to drive and implement Hempel’s Double Impact strategy activities.

As Head of Infrastructure Southern Europe West & Africa you will lead, direct and control the activities of a set of countries, so that the Sales Team achieves its short and long-term financial and operating objectives, as set by the Double Impact Strategy. You will be responsible for profitability in the Area, and may also have overall legal and signatory responsibility for Hempel business activities in selected entities within the countries in scope.

This highly visible and impactful position will be based in either France or Spain. The position will manage a team of sales employees across +10 countries incl. most of the African continent (Spain, Portugal, France, Morocco and African Exports). Responsibilities include the management of Field Sales and Inside Sales activities and leading a team of direct and indirect reports.

General Activities

• Establish an overall vision and strategy for the Area
• Lead development of sales strategies, review and advice on policies, such as pricing, product mix, brand portfolio, among others
• Review and monitor sales performance periodically, and refine sales strategies as required
• Lead and direct sales organization to exceed sales plans and achieve sales goals
• Prepare rolling forecast on regional volume allocation, pricing and revenue
• Implement pricing / profitability strategies to assure success while maintaining company profitability
• Drive and implement Transform the way we sell activities including customer classification and Pipeline Management
• Ensure compliance of all Hempel’s procedures and policies
• Represent and protect the interests of the local legal entities under the area of scope against third parties within the business and civil communities and be on board of director in legal entities, as needed
• Overall people management responsibility of Sales
• Acts as key central management figure in the countries they are responsible
• Lead, guide, coach, evaluate and develop a team to ensure that the Area achieves its business objectives and complies with all relevant regulations and laws

Leadership & Direction

• Develop Sales strategy according to Double Impact goals
• Influence stakeholders, and work cross functionally to define an effective sales vision and plan
• Manage and develop talent
• Coach employees to develop their full potential
• Plan actions to ensure proper business understanding, customer knowledge and customer proximity
• Manage people processes (Let's Talk/Key Performance Indicators/Talent Review, etc.)

Client & Customer Management

• Lead strategic plan to enhance engagement and communication as well as the perception of the company's solutions
• Coach team on value selling and sustainable solutions
• Develop a plan to build customer loyalty and strengthen the understanding of the Voice of the Customer
• Plan and Monitor monthly targets

Operational Management

• Develop customer engagement activities
• Ensure Customer Satisfaction
• Ensure Customer complaint corrective action planning
• Drive collaboration cross-functionally and company efficiency

Data Collection & Analysis

• Follow closely on KPIs and dashboards to ensure progress on targets and objectives
• Develop and execute action plans based on Net Promoter Score (NPS-C)
• Work closely with Commercial Excellence for optimal usage of leading indicators

We’re looking for an experienced Sales Leader with the capabilities to lead and grow both the team and the business

In this role we expect you to have at least 7 years of experience with People management and preferably strong experience with managing managers. You need to have at least 10 years of proven experience in a business related environment, including roles of progressive responsibility in Customer Services, Sales, and/or Marketing, and experience with strategic organizational planning.

Having done business in one or more of the geographies within the scope of the position will be seen as an advantage.

We’re also looking for someone with:

Education

• Bachelor degree with a strong preference for a Master of Business Administration (MBA) or Masters related program.
• 8 to 10 years of experience in similar tasks, or as Manager in a Sales, Marketing department, or Technical support

Knowledge/Skills/Traits

• English speaking, combined with either French or Spanish, and could be supplemented by Portuguese
• Quality oriented, with experience of working to quality standards
• Ability to work under high pressure environments to meet aggressive deliverables
• Organised and capable of meeting deadlines
• Flexible and adaptable attitude, open to change
• Strong computer skills and experience with sales software (CRM)
• Strong communication skills working cross functionally and across different levels in the organization
• Proactive, Creative and Innovative mindset
• Strong collaborative skills working cross functionally and in a global environment

Technical Competencies

• ERP system: Microsoft preferred
• MS Office (Advanced Excel & PowerPoint)
• CRM Software

Application and further information

To apply for this position, please submit your application letter with a CV in English via our recruitment system by clicking the link ‘Apply for position’ at the top-right corner.

Final deadline for applications is Thursday the 8th of September 2022.

For more information about the position, please contact Steen Niemann Madsen on either phone:

+45 25 42 12 62 or by email: [email protected].

More about Hempel
At Hempel, we are working together to shape a brighter future with sustainable coating solutions. We believe this is only possible with dedicated employees with diverse perspectives and backgrounds. Hempel is committed to creating an inclusive work environment and culture that embraces the diversity of our employees and the customers we serve, providing equal opportunity for all. 

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Across the globe, Hempel’s coatings solutions protect surfaces, structures and equipment. They extend asset lifetimes, reduce maintenance costs and make homes and workplaces safer and more colourful. Hempel was founded in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1915 by J.C. Hempel, and is solely owned by the Hempel Foundation, which not only ensures a solid economic base for the company, but is dedicated to making a difference in the world by empowering children to learn, supporting coatings science and sustaining biodiversity. ​