Sales Manager, Total Account Management (Sydney)

About Our Client

Our client is a globally recognised leader in life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets. With a presence in over 110 countries and a reputation built on scientific innovation and customer-centric solutions, the organisation partners with laboratories, researchers, and scientists to advance the quality of life worldwide.

In Australia, the business is undergoing a significant and exciting transformation in direct response to customer demand. This is a critical inflection point in the organisation's journey, and the successful candidate will play a central role in shaping its future direction.

The Opportunity

Our client is seeking a commercially driven and people-focused Sales Manager, Total Account Management to lead one of Australia's most strategically important markets. Based in Sydney, this senior leadership role covers NSW, QLD and more with up to approximately 50% travel nationally and occasional travel to Singapore.

This is a pivotal role at a pivotal time. You will take clear ownership of the local market, champion the shift to integrated solution selling, and serve as the senior commercial leader on the ground for the organisation's most important customer relationships in the region.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Account Leadership & Customer Engagement

• Serve as the primary sales leader for major strategic accounts across your territory, engaging directly with senior decision-makers and key influencers.
• Lead executive-level engagement, conducting regular business reviews, strategic planning sessions, and escalation management with customers.
• Drive growth across strategic accounts by identifying expansion opportunities, cross-business collaboration, and solutions alignment under the new integrated model.
• Ensure rapid, localised responsiveness and proactive issue resolution to elevate the customer experience.

Team Leadership & Organisational Transformation

• Lead and develop a team of account managers and specialists, fostering a high-performance, customer-centric culture that inspires trust, enthusiasm, and commercial success.
• Stabilise and re-energise the team following more than a year of organisational transformation, rebuilding confidence and trust while maintaining delivery momentum.
• Champion the cultural shift from siloed divisional selling to fully integrated solution selling, coaching the team through the change with clarity and conviction.
• Set clear goals, provide ongoing coaching, and create career development pathways to build long-term team capability.

Revenue Growth & Commercial Strategy

• Own and drive the commercial strategy for your territory, delivering sustainable revenue growth through disciplined pipeline management, forecasting, and execution.
• Identify and convert new business opportunities, leveraging the full breadth of the organisation's integrated portfolio to deliver complete solutions to customers.
• Negotiate high-value contracts and pricing agreements, balancing commercial outcomes with long-term relationship value.
• Monitor competitive activity and market dynamics, adapting strategy to maintain and grow market share.

Operational Management & Reporting

• Manage territory budgets, sales forecasts, and reporting with rigour and transparency.
• Leverage CRM and analytics tools to track performance, identify trends, and drive data-informed decision-making.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with marketing, applications, service, and product teams to ensure seamless customer delivery.
• Build strong working relationships with Singapore-based regional leadership, navigating the evolving reporting structure with professionalism and political acumen.

Talent Development & Culture

• Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Rebuild trust and confidence within the team following the recent period of transformation, providing stability and clarity of direction.

Strategic Leadership Presence

• Represent the organisation at industry events, conferences, and key customer forums as the senior commercial presence in market.
• Contribute to regional and global strategic planning, ensuring Australia's voice is heard at leadership level.
• Lead from the front with a sense of urgency, proactive industry engagement, and a willingness to take ownership and act without waiting for direction.

What You'll Bring

This role requires a rare combination of commercial acumen, people leadership, and change management capability. You are someone who understands this is a critical inflection point and is excited to be part of the transformation.

Specifically, you will bring:

• Proven experience in strategic account leadership within a complex B2B environment – ideally in life sciences, analytical instrumentation, or a complementary industry.
• Strong change management capability, with experience leading teams through organisational transformation and cultural shifts.
• Deep industry and customer understanding, with the ability to engage credibly at executive level.
• Experience operating within a global or matrix organisation, ideally with exposure to APAC regional structures.
• A track record of delivering commercial growth through strategic thinking, disciplined execution, and proactive market engagement.
• Strong team leadership, coaching, and organisational stabilisation skills – you build high-performing teams, not just manage them.
• Excellent problem-solving, operational discipline, and communication skills.
• A field-facing, agile, and customer-centric approach to leadership – you thrive on being where the action is.
• Bachelor's or Master's degree (or equivalent), with 5–10 years' experience leading people, projects, or programs.

What's on Offer

• A senior leadership role within a globally respected organisation at a genuinely exciting point in its transformation.
• Competitive remuneration package consisting base, incentives, car allowance, health insurance leave loading and volunteer days.

Make no mistake – this is an incredibly demanding role that requires huge commitment. But for the right leader, it is equally rewarding: the chance to shape the future of a world-class organisation in its most strategically significant Australian market, with genuine leadership autonomy and the backing of a global brand.

How to Apply

If you are a commercially astute, people-focused sales leader who is excited by the prospect of leading a critical market through a period of transformation, we would love to hear from you.

To apply, please submit your CV and a brief cover letter outlining your relevant experience. For a confidential discussion, contact: Paul van Maanen at ESE Recruitment on 03 9272 6109