European Head of Sales – Industrial Materials

Head of Sales (m/f/d) – Industrial Manufacturing & Materials

About the Company

Our client is a leading European industrial group specialising in high-quality materials and technical products used in surface preparation and industrial applications. With several production sites across Europe and a strong international customer base, the company is experiencing significant growth and is backed by a major strategic investor.

With a long-standing reputation for product quality and operational reliability, the group continues to expand its footprint across 40+ countries, supported by a solid financial foundation and a commitment to sustainable industrial solutions.

The Opportunity

We are seeking a Head of Sales (m/f/d) to lead and transform the commercial organisation across Europe. This role is ideal for a strategic, data-driven sales leader who thrives in a technical B2B environment and enjoys building modern, scalable sales structures.

Reporting directly to the CEO, you will serve as the commercial face of the company and a key member of the management team.

Key Responsibilities

• Translate corporate strategy into actionable sales targets, go-to-market models, and regional plans.
• Drive profitable growth across Europe, strengthening market share in core industrial sectors while developing new applications.
• Design and roll out a modern pricing framework (price lists, discounts, surcharges, indexation, logistics terms).
• Introduce a customer segmentation model and define service levels for each segment in collaboration with Operations and Supply Chain.
• Build and manage a transparent sales performance cockpit (orders, net sales, margins, price realisation, pipeline, win/loss).
• Establish Sales Performance Dialogues / QBRs with regional sales leaders.
• Define standardised sales processes and enablement tools (playbooks, qualification standards, tender process, upsell/cross-sell).
• Partner with Marketing and Product teams to sharpen value propositions across industries.
• Lead and develop an international team of sales managers, fostering a coaching-oriented culture.
• Support strategic negotiations and major tender processes.
• Collaborate closely with Finance on forecasting, budgeting, margin simulation, and profitability analysis.

What You’ll Own

• Full responsibility for sales budget and order intake (~€50m business).
• Price levels, margin development, and commercial profitability.
• Structure and performance of the international sales organisation.
• Execution of the commercial strategy across all regions.
• Transparent communication of commercial KPIs to management.

What We’re Looking For

• Minimum 8 years of B2B industrial sales experience.
• Strong track record leading multi-country sales teams (DACH, Benelux, Nordics, Export).
• Highly analytical and confident working with numbers, pricing, contribution margins, and BI tools.
• Experience implementing or optimising pricing systems.
• A coaching-oriented sales leader able to elevate team performance.
• High intercultural competence and ability to navigate diverse European commercial environments.
• Fluent English; additional European languages (German, Dutch, French) are a plus.
• Comfortable working directly with the CEO in a dynamic, entrepreneurial environment.

Ideal Backgrounds

Candidates may come from:

• Steel, foundry, shipyard, or construction materials industries
• Technical consumables or industrial supply sectors
• International sales management roles in manufacturing or processing companies

Why Join?

• Play a pivotal role in modernising and scaling a European commercial organisation.
• Join an international team with a collaborative, performance-driven culture.
• Shape pricing, segmentation, and commercial structure across multiple markets.
• Work in a company with strong financial backing and strategic expansion plans.