Enterprise Software – VP Sales

Our client is a software firm focused exclusively on enabling financial services firms to help individual financial advisors become better ‘CEOs’ of their business.

Our client’s product suite is a patented combination of personalized intelligence reports and practice management tools designed solely to enable advisors and managers, at all levels, to proactively identify and close client, product and pricing opportunities. Our client users typically realize increases in assets, revenue and fee-based advisory business, as well as improvements in client mix and pricing.

Founded in 2000, Our client has its principal place of business in Toronto, Ontario, and services a broad range of clients within Canada and the United States.

Scope of Position

Based in Toronto and reporting to the President & CEO, the Vice President, Sales is responsible to manage a team that will meet corporate sales and renewal objectives, while developing productive redistribution/channel partnerships.
This results-focused and innovative leader will bring in-depth experience at defining and managing sales processes to successfully shorten sales cycles and yield high closing rates. Direct experience managing large ticket, complex sales to enterprises is a requirement for the role.

The ideal candidate will have an in-depth understanding of the key business drivers in the retail brokerage industry and will work collaboratively with the sales and executive teams to ensure that business and sales solutions align with the company’s corporate objectives and meet the needs of our clients.

Success in this role will be measured by the ability to reliably define and meet sales quotas; train, coach and lead a team of sales people; contribute to the executive leadership of the firm; and work collaboratively with the sales, service, operations, R & D and executive teams.

Extensive travel within North America is required in this role.

Functional Tasks

• Create and follow a systematic approach to identify future opportunities, manage the sales process, meet sales and renewal quotas, and support internal forecasting requirements
• Develop, coach, and grow the sales team
• Collaborate with firm executives on business development with strategic partnerships
• Develop and maintain productive professional relationships with existing and prospective executive clients within target markets
• Develop, maintain and leverage a personal and corporate network to create sales opportunities and identify sales recruits
• Obtain, evaluate and communicate market intelligence
• Collaborate with engineering in the development of new product ideas
• Represent and promote firm in the marketplace through attendance and participation at industry conferences and events
• Collaborate with the CEO and other senior executives on the annual business planning process, contributing an Annual Sales Plan

Key Performance Deliverables
In light of the identified responsibilities, the following are specific deliverables that the position is designed to achieve.

• Revenue growth as per targets agreed upon at the outset
• Build confidence and productive relationships across the executive team
• Retention of existing client and revenue base

Competency Profile

The following competencies listed below define the role of Vice President Sales:

Results Orientation
Focuses strongly on achieving agreed upon outcomes and ensures that key objectives are met. Conveys a sense of urgency and drives issues to closure. Aims to improve upon past performance. Establishes aggressive personal targets and strives to achieve them.

Commercial Acumen
Applies appropriate commercial and financial principles. Understands situations in terms of costs, profits, added-value and return on investment. Appreciates the commercial impact of own work on the organization’s total expenses and revenues.

Planning & Objective Setting
Systematic in approach to work. Produces action plans in which objectives are defined and steps for achieving them are clearly specified. Plans by breaking down large task into subtasks. Develops plans that anticipate obstacles. Is realistic about time-scales and builds in appropriate checkpoints, milestones and controls in order to…