National B2B Sales Manager (Bellville )

National B2B Sales Strategy and Business Growth

• Develop and implement the national B2B sales strategy aligned with company objectives, growth plans and profitability targets.
• Translate national business objectives into clear regional sales strategies, targets and execution plans.
• Identify opportunities for geographic expansion, new customer segments and increased market penetration.
• Develop and oversee the national route-to-market strategy to maximise customer coverage, sales productivity and distribution efficiency.
• Analyse market trends, competitor activity, customer insights and industry developments to identify growth opportunities.
• Drive consistent execution of national sales initiatives, promotional campaigns and product category growth strategies.
• Lead national annual sales planning, budgeting and forecasting processes.
• Evaluate regional performance and implement corrective strategies where growth or profitability targets are not achieved.

National Sales Performance and Revenue Growth

• Take overall accountability for achieving national B2B revenue, gross margin, sales volume and customer growth targets.
• Establish and cascade sales targets and performance expectations across regions.
• Monitor national and regional sales performance against approved budgets and forecasts.
• Analyse sales performance by region, customer, territory, sales representative and product category.
• Identify underperforming regions and implement structured performance improvement and recovery plans.
• Drive profitable sales growth through effective pricing, product mix optimisation and customer portfolio management.
• Ensure consistent sales execution and accountability across all regional teams.
• Provide regular consolidated national sales performance reports, insights and recommendations to executive leadership.

National Key Account and Customer Relationship Management

• Provide strategic oversight of key customer relationships and major wholesale accounts across the national B2B portfolio.
• Lead or support negotiations with strategic customers on pricing, commercial terms, contracts and long-term partnerships within approved authority.
• Ensure consistent customer segmentation, account management and customer growth strategies across regions.
• Establish national customer retention and acquisition objectives.
• Oversee the management and resolution of significant escalated customer concerns.
• Drive increased product penetration, cross-selling and B2B Sales profitability.
• Develop strategies to improve customer experience, service levels and long-term customer loyalty.

Regional Sales Leadership and Team Development

• Provide direct leadership, coaching and performance management to Regional B2B Sales Managers.
• Build a high-performance national sales culture centred on accountability, customer obsession and commercial excellence.
• Set clear performance expectations and individual objectives for Regional B2B Sales Managers.
• Conduct structured regional performance reviews and ensure appropriate corrective actions are implemented.
• Support the recruitment, succession planning and development of the Regional sales leadership and oversee it for the later B2B sales team.
• Establish consistent national sales management practices, reporting disciplines and performance standards.
• Ensure appropriate sales capability development, including product knowledge, negotiation, selling skills, customer retention and commercial acumen.
• Conduct regular regional visits and strategic customer engagements to assess execution effectiveness.
• Drive engagement, talent retention and leadership development across the national sales organisation.

Route-to-Market Strategy and Sales Effectiveness

• Develop and oversee the national route-to-market model to maximise customer reach and profitable sales growth.
• Establish national standards for territory planning, customer call cycles, route efficiency and sales representative productivity.
• Review regional territory coverage and identify opportunities to improve market penetration.
• Evaluate sales productivity and the effectiveness of resource allocation across regions.
• Drive improvements in sales processes and sales reporting.
• Ensure Regional B2B Sales Managers implement effective customer visitation and territory management practices.
• Identify opportunities for sales automation, improved systems and operational efficiencies.
• Partner with Logistics to align sales growth plans with distribution capacity and service delivery.

Financial and Commercial Management

• Take accountability for national B2B sales budgets, forecasts and commercial performance.
• Drive gross margin improvement through effective pricing strategies, customer profitability management and product mix optimisation.
• Provide commercial input into pricing structures, discounts, rebates and customer trading terms.
• Monitor customer and regional profitability and implement appropriate improvement initiatives.
• Collaborate with Finance to manage customer credit exposure, overdue accounts and commercial risks.
• Ensure commercial agreements and customer terms comply with company policies and delegated authorities.
• Assess the financial viability of new customer opportunities, market expansion and sales initiatives.
• Balance revenue growth with sustainable profitability and effective cost management.

Cross-Functional Leadership and Operational Excellence

• Work closely with Supply Chain, Logistics, Finance, Merchandising, People Operations and other relevant functions to support national B2B objectives.
• Align sales forecasts and customer demand plans with inventory availability and distribution capacity.
• Collaborate with Merchandising on product range opportunities, category performance, pricing and promotional execution.
• Partner with Finance to strengthen sales reporting, margin management, customer credit control and commercial governance.
• Drive improvements in sales processes, systems, customer service and operational efficiency.
• Ensure regional sales operations adhere to agreed national processes and service standards.
• Escalate and resolve significant operational challenges impacting customer service, revenue or profitability.
• Lead relevant sales transformation and continuous improvement initiatives.

Compliance, Governance and Risk Management

• Ensure national compliance with company sales policies, pricing approvals, customer agreements, trading terms and credit policies.
• Maintain ethical standards and sound commercial governance across all regional sales operations.
• Identify and mitigate commercial, customer, operational and financial risks.
• Ensure accurate and reliable sales information is maintained through approved CRM and reporting systems.
• Oversee appropriate controls relating to discounts, rebates, customer accounts and sales transactions.
• Ensure regional leaders manage sales-related stock loss risks in collaboration with the responsible operational functions.
• Promote accountability, integrity and adherence to the company's HO HOLA values.

Requirements

• Grade 12
• Bachelor’s Degree in Sales / Marketing / Business Management, Commerce or related field (will be an advantage).  
• Postgraduate qualification in Business Management or Commercial Leadership
• 8–10 years progressive sales experience within FMCG, Wholesale or Food Distribution
• Minimum 5 years' experience in senior sales leadership, preferably with multi-regional or national responsibility
• Proven experience leading and developing Regional Sales Managers and geographically dispersed sales teams
• Demonstrated success in achieving significant sales revenue, growth and profitability targets
• Experience managing large sales portfolios and strategic customer relationships
• Proven experience in national sales strategy, budgeting, forecasting and commercial planning
• Experience in route-to-market optimisation and distribution-led sales environments
• Experience within Food Service
• Experience in CRM, sales analytics and business intelligence reporting

KEY PERFORMANCE AREA (KPA'S)

• Revenue Growth: Achievement of national B2B sales revenue budget and growth targets
• Gross Margin: Achievement of national gross margin targets and profitable sales growth
• Sales Volume: Achievement of national volume targets
• Customer Acquisition: Growth in new active and profitable B2B customers
• Customer Retention: Retention and growth of existing customer base and strategic accounts
• Market Expansion: Achievement of approved market penetration and geographic growth objectives
• Regional Performance: Percentage of regions achieving sales and profitability targets
• Sales Productivity: Improvement in sales per representative, customer coverage and route effectiveness
• Forecast Accuracy: Accuracy of national sales forecasts against actual performance
• Commercial Discipline: Compliance with pricing, discount, trading terms and credit policies
• Team Leadership: Performance, engagement, retention and development of Regional B2B Sales Managers
• Operational Excellence: CRM data quality, sales process compliance and cross-functional execution

Specific numerical targets and KPI weightings should be approved through the annual business planning and performance management process.

SKLLS & COMPETENCIES REQUIRED:

Technical Knowledge and Skills

• National Sales Strategy Development and Execution
• Strategic and Commercial Leadership
• Advanced Financial Acumen, Margin and Profitability Management
• Pricing Strategy, Negotiation and Contract Management
• National Route-to-Market Planning and Optimisation
• Sales Budgeting, Forecasting and Performance Management
• FMCG, Wholesale and Food Distribution Market Knowledge
• Strategic Customer and Key Account Management
• Leadership of Multi-Regional Sales Teams
• Data-Driven Decision Making and Sales Analytics
• CRM, Advanced Excel and Business Intelligence Reporting
• Supply Chain and Logistics Fundamentals
• Sales Process Improvement and Automation

Leadership and Behavioural Competencies

The National B2B Sales Manager must demonstrate strong leadership capability and behaviours aligned with the company's HO HOLA values.

• Strategic Thinking
• Leadership and People Development
• Commercial Thinking
• Decision Making
• Delivering Results
• Planning and Organising
• Critical Thinking
• Communication and Influence
• Building Relationships
• Resilience
• Ethics and Values
• Collaboration
• Adaptability
• Creativity and Innovation
• Applying Expertise and Technology

 Key Leadership Expectations

The National B2B Sales Manager is expected to:

• Lead through Regional Managers: Establish accountability and empower Regional B2B Sales Managers to deliver results rather than directly managing day-to-day sales representative activities.
• Think Nationally, Execute Regionally: Ensure a consistent national strategy while accommodating regional market opportunities and challenges.
• Drive Profitable Growth: Balance customer acquisition and revenue growth with margin protection, customer profitability and operational sustainability.
• Build Leadership Capability: Develop a strong pipeline of regional sales leaders and create a performance-driven, customer-focused sales culture.
• Lead Cross-Functionally: Influence and collaborate with executive leadership and operational functions to achieve shared business objectives.
• Live HO HOLA: Demonstrate Helpfulness, Obsession for Customers, Humility, Ownership, Learning and Appreciation

CLOSING DATE

30 OCTOBER 2026