Business Development Manager

The incumbent will work closely with the management team to develop business strategies and play a significant role in furtherance of the overall growth of the business.

Position Description:

As a member of senior management, the Sales and Customer Service Manager (SCSM) will have oversight of Sales, Collections, Customer Service and Delivery.   The incumbent will work closely with the management team to develop business strategies and play a significant role in furtherance of the overall growth of the business.  With in-depth knowledge of the business and products, the SCSM will be responsible for engaging key customers to identify, assess and close on new opportunities.

Major Areas of Responsibility

• Efficiently coordinate the day-to-day activities of the Sales and Customer Service department to grow sales revenue and maximize profitability and ensure excellent customer service delivery.
• Drive company-wide operations in a customer service focused direction.
• Manage major accounts i.e., distributors and key accounts.
• Coordinate export process and function as primary contact for overseas customers.
• Ensure process efficiency and accuracy within the department.
• Travel with sales and business executives to visit customers and territories.
• Conduct territory visits independent of the sales executives to build independent relationships, evaluate and verify team performance, gather market intelligence and assess market coverage to identify and capture unidentified opportunities.
• Provide feedback to MD regarding competition, pricing, and marketing opportunities
• Meet established sales budget volume, revenue and profit goals.
• Develop effective marketing strategies and lead launch of new products.
• Ensure department achieves key metrics e.g. budget management, customer visits, cold calls and prospect engagement.

Specific Responsibilities of the Job:

SALES & CUSTOMER SERVICE 

• Develop comprehensive sales plans, budgets and forecasts   
• Monitor budget vs performance to ensure targets are being met; presentation of agreed reports and analysis  
• Oversee pre- to post-sales support activities while guaranteeing the greatest level of customer satisfaction
• Ensure that individuals and the department consistently meet volume, revenue and margin goals.
• Identify new business opportunities, new markets, growth areas, trends, customers, products, and services; actively look for possibilities to upsell and cross-sell to existing customers
• Act as of point of contact for resolution and escalation of all customer issues providing product support where necessary
• Provide solutions to complex business problems for areas of responsibility where analysis of situation requires in depth knowledge of organization’s objectives
• Obtain referrals from the current clientele to widen the sales pipeline
• Recognize customer needs and provide insights for improving the product portfolio based on interactions with and feedback from customers
• Negotiate and close new business deals
• Ensure quality of service for all sales and service delivery engagements.
• Act as direct point of contact for overseas customers, manage their service delivery process.
• Nurture relationships with key customers. 
• Continuously meet with existing and potential customers to gain feedback on existing products and explore new business possibilities.
• Evaluate customer satisfaction levels to determine areas for improvement.
• Analyze department operations to identify trends or opportunities for improvement in customer service.

COLLECTIONS

• Review the company debtor list, monitor and manage levels of exposure, credit terms, limits and receivables aging.
• Oversee the collections process by ensuring that timely customer payments are made, contact customers as necessary.
• Alongside the Administrative and Accounting Manager, ensure the preparation and timely distribution of customer statements as required.
• In collaboration with the Administrative and Accounting Manager, engage delinquent customers, negotiating payment plans and issuing demand notices as necessary, following up until resolution.