VP of Sales

Job Description

The VP of Life Sciences Sales will lead the field sales team, driving growth and achieving commercial targets. This role includes setting performance metrics, developing account plans, and coaching the team for success. The ideal candidate brings a strong record of key account management in biotech and pharma, with experience in complex sales cycles—ideally related to lab asset management for R&D and manufacturing.

This is a strategic, hands-on role that works closely with marketing, operations, and finance to support broader business goals.

Primary responsibilities

• Lead the life science annual sales plan process including revenues, margins, and budgets to deliver both market and financial growth targets including sales by region, by account, and by offering.
• Achieve or exceed revenue and profitability goals across sales regions and target markets.
• Continuously coach, develop, and direct sales team’s capabilities in strategic account management through organized sales process.
• Actively seek and develop new opportunities to grow revenue in a defined set of accounts/regions.
• Work closely with management and colleagues in leadership to ensure key account initiatives are supported to maximize revenue opportunities.
• Responsible for developing a sales effectiveness scorecard and monitoring team performance; ensure that the sales team commission plans are “fit for purpose” and making appropriate adjustments to ensure staff are motivated to achieve stretch goals.
• Continuously analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of sales initiatives to ensure revenue goals are achieved; ensure effective use of CRM to improve sales management across the business.
• Develop and coordinate the sales selling cycle and methodology and develop process harmonization and best practice sharing across sales regions.
• As needed, drive the recruitment, development, and onboarding of new sales team members.
• Build the necessary structure and processes to support the growth of the life science business including ensuring linkage between sales activities and the availability of support from field applications staff and field service engineers.
• Work with the marketing team to ensure strategic and tactical marketing activities are effective for the life science market.
• Implement consistent service level KPIs across sales regions and strive to continuously improve performance against these agreed KPIs.
• Represent the company at various life science community and/or business meetings to promote the company and promote positive relations with customers, prospects, and other stakeholders.
• Participate in wider internal management meetings and support company initiatives that drive success in the life sciences business as well as the broader company

Candidate Requirements & Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years’ experience in sales management position; 12+ years in sales
• Successful track record of selling into pharma/biotech client base
• Experience is selling laboratory asset management programs, scientific services and equipment in the pharma/biotech R&D and Manufacturing space.
• 4-year degree in relevant discipline; MBA a plus