France - Country Sales Leader

The Country Manager leads SUSE's business in France, focusing on achieving strategic growth and market share for SUSE. This role is responsible for guiding the entire French team to drive revenue, build strong customer relationships, and deliver tailored solutions that align with customer goals and SUSE's value proposition. Success in this role requires a mix of strategic vision, sales acumen, and team leadership, with an emphasis on meeting revenue targets, fostering high-performance culture, championing customer success across key accounts and representing SUSE in France.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the Account Executive team in setting and achieving quarterly and annual sales targets, ensuring alignment with SUSE's overall growth strategy. Foster a high-performance sales culture, focusing on skill development, strategic planning, and ongoing coaching to help each team member succeed in their roles.
• Oversee and guide Account Executives in developing customer-centric strategies that align SUSE's offerings with customer objectives, emphasising consultative-selling techniques. Ensure the team consistently identifies and seizes upselling and cross-selling opportunities that drive long-term value for both SUSE and its customers.
• Manage and maintain sales pipeline and forecasting accuracy across the team, leveraging CRM tools to track performance, identify trends, and adapt strategies. Ensure CRM hygiene and data integrity to support executive decision-making and track performance against targets.
• Support Account Executives in building and nurturing relationships with key stakeholders, including CXO-level executives and key account influencers. Serve as an escalation point and strategic advisor, enabling the team to handle complex account dynamics and drive deep engagement.
• Partner closely with cross-functional teams, including Pre-Sales, Inside Sales, Partner Ecosystem, and Specialist Sales, to drive comprehensive account strategies. Facilitate collaboration across teams to ensure seamless delivery of tailored solutions that meet complex client needs and enhance customer satisfaction.
• Monitor and assess market trends, competitor activities, and industry shifts. Lead the team in refining sales strategies to stay competitive and help SUSE achieve market share growth in high-potential accounts, especially within key sectors like cloud-native, Linux infrastructure, and AI.
• Promote a growth mindset within the team by encouraging continuous learning and professional development. Provide guidance on best practices in enterprise sales methodologies (e.g., MEDDPICC, Challenger) and support team members in advancing their knowledge of SUSE's solutions.
• Actively engage in best-practice talent acquisition processes, with a focus on hiring a diverse team that reflects SUSE's values and fosters innovation. Collaborate with Talent Acquisition to define hiring needs, engage diverse candidate pools, and ensure an unbiased selection process that supports the inclusion of varied perspectives.
• Foster an inclusive team culture where all voices are heard, and team members feel valued. Encourage open communication, celebrate diverse perspectives, and promote practices that drive collaboration and innovation. Advocate for inclusion and diversity as essential factors that enhance team performance and customer engagement.

• Demonstrated experience leading a high-performance sales or account management team within the enterprise software industry, with a strong focus on strategic growth and customer satisfaction.
• Ability to analyse and interpret data on market trends, customer needs, and team performance. Use insights to refine team strategies and adapt to evolving business conditions.
• Skilled in fostering relationships with CXO-level executives and senior stakeholders. Proven ability to navigate complex sales dynamics and advocate for both customer and company goals to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes.
• Deep understanding of enterprise sales methodologies, including MEDDPICC or Challenger, with a history of leveraging these techniques to guide the team through high-value, multi-stakeholder deals.
• Skilled in collaborating with cross-functional teams and aligning diverse resources to deliver value-driven, comprehensive solutions. Experienced in developing cohesive sales strategies that integrate the Partner Ecosystem and other internal resources.
• Ability to communicate SUSE's value proposition effectively, translating complex technical solutions into compelling business cases for senior stakeholders. Strong focus on innovative, customer-centric solutions to overcome client challenges.
• In-depth understanding of industry solutions such as Linux Infrastructure, Hybrid Cloud, Container Management, Edge, and Security. Familiarity with open-source transformation topics is highly desirable.
• Demonstrated experience in hiring diverse talent and creating inclusive team environments. Skilled in fostering a sense of belonging and valuing varied perspectives, with a focus on enhancing innovation, collaboration, and overall team performance.