Business Development Manager - Ireland

Business Development Manager - Ireland 

In support of our continued growth journey, we need to capitalize our capabilities and have identified the need to further expand our sales team as priority area for growth. Our aim is to grow our net new customer acquisition and core business through increased sales focus, driving the growth strategy and delivering sales and revenue targets. As a Sales Lead, you will be instrumental in ensuring we achieve these objectives.

This is an important role with wide-ranging and often complex responsibilities, which call for a depth and breadth of business knowledge beyond the business development discipline. You will be capable of developing long-lasting customer relationships at a senior level and gaining referrals with new accounts. As a Sales Lead, you will have a deep understanding of the needs of the various sales channels and will leverage your experience to maximise return and drive value.

You will be responsible for working in our direct channel (working with Microsoft and direct to market) and have a demonstrable and proven track record in new business experience, in acquisition of white space accounts. With previous, solid consulting services sales experience and a flair for closing deals, you will thrive working with colleagues in a wider team using innovation and exciting customers with your enthusiasm. Your strong connections and your tenacity to be an assertive partner, along with your background in high value solutions across the full Microsoft stack services (from advisory services, system integration, to managed services) will attest to your credibility with senior partners and clients.

You will have the opportunity to be able to support, shape and grow our Irish business within a global business; one who is also the Microsoft® #1 Partner globally and Ireland Advisory Country Partner of the Year.

Day to day, you will:

• Identify new sales opportunities across key channels to increase sales volume.
• Assist management in devising sales plans and strategies.
• Sell a portfolio of Avanade and/or third-party software products directly to end-user organizations.
• Specialize in the sale of one or more key technologies in the Microsoft stack including Apps & Infra; Modern Workplace; Data & AI and Security.
• Generate sales and drive revenue, typically in low-to-medium risk and return sales activities.
• Lead customer relationships for new accounts.
• Prospect, acquire, develop and expand business leads.
• Support the wider Account Leadership team when required and Leadership on specific opportunities.
• Achieve short- and long-term sales growth by increasing cross selling activities within existing and new accounts.
• Be accountable for an individual sales target.
• Be accountable and have solid experience managing the full sales life cycle from origination of opportunities through to contracting and closure.

About You:

You must have extensive experience in selling solutions and are experienced in selling large scale multiyear solutions; working with customer teams to identify opportunities from lead generation to closing deals. You will have in-depth knowledge and experience of the Microsoft eco-system; its channels and how to optimise Avanade’s engagement and success. You will have experience and knowledge of the managed service landscape within Ireland.

Proactive and practical, you will be adept at assessing customer requirements, and selecting appropriate methods to fulfil them leveraging sales leadership and the Solution Area leads and specialists across the UKI business. You will be skilled at settling priorities, establishing a systematic plan to ensure successful completion, and allocating time and resources effectively. Inside and outside Avanade, your social skills will enable you to use your network to facilitate, develop and influence.

Strong customer interface and presentation skills are needed in this role, together with a mind-set of customer service. A skillful negotiator, you will be confident acting as trusted adviser when dealing with customers’ business needs. Experience selling the Microsoft stack is a significant advantage.

Additionally:

• Experience working with average deal sizes in excess of €500k
• Experience successfully achieving sales targets in excess of €3m+ in year (depending on level).
• Superior knowledge and experience with sales pipeline management, and sales and revenue quotas.
• Able to skillfully navigate through negotiation phases at c-suite level.
• Able to act as a trusted adviser in addressing our customer's business needs.
• Solid Account Planning skills (utilizing the global standard account plan document).
• Solid understanding of Avanade solutions, Microsoft products and technology services and of competitive offerings.

Education: Bachelor's degree in business, sales or marketing recommended; advanced degree (M.B.A. or equivalent) preferred

Why Avanade. Because there’s no place like this!

If you’re a self-starter, an optimist and someone who loves to get things done, you’ll fit right in at Avanade. People who thrive here are motivated, interested in learning and genuinely have a desire to be the best at what they do. If that’s sounds like you, you sound good to us.

In return, you’ll have access to the latest technology in the Microsoft ecosystem, partnering with some of the biggest and the best companies across the globe and some seriously forward-thinking people to work with to make career-defining things happen.