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Regional Sales Manager
Job#: 273159
Positions: 1
Posted: 03/23/2015
Job Type: Full Time
Location: Atlanta, GA
Department: Sales
Category: Sales
Salary: Salary + Commission
Benefits: Full-time Benefits
Contact: Pam Sheriff
Business Unit: Sales
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Job Description

AFL provides industry-leading products and services to the electric utility, broadband, communications, OEM, enterprise, wireless and transit rail markets as well as the emerging markets of oil and gas, mining, nuclear, avionics, medical, renewable and intelligent grid. The company's diverse product portfolio includes fiber optic cable, transmission and substation accessories, outside plant equipment, connectors, fusion splicers, test equipment and training. AFL's service portfolio includes market-leading positions with the foremost communications companies supporting inside plant central office, EF&I, outside plant, enterprise and wireless areas.

Founded in 1984, AFL is proud to offer engineering expertise, exceptional products and reliable service that help our customers improve their critical and electrical infrastructure. AFL has operations in the U.S., Mexico, Europe, Asia and the South Pacific. The company is headquartered in Spartanburg, SC, and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fujikura Ltd. of Japan.

AFL is seeking a Regional Sales Manager in the Southeastern United States. The Regional Sales Manager will be responsible for maximizing sales of all AFL products and services to assigned accounts and/or targeted market segments within the OEM market.  The territory to be covered will include Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. 

Responsibilities: 

  • Meet or exceed established FY sales plan.
  • Work with AFL’s internal BUs (Business Units) to set, and attain, goals for each specific area; targeted accounts, product needs, etc. 
  • Using professional selling skills generate preference for AFL’s products and services.
  • Maintain a high level of knowledge regarding AFL’s products and services and their applications to the potential customers.  Act in a consultative role to the customer to insure that they can easily order, install, and add value to their internal programs with AFL’s products and services.
  • Maintain sufficient knowledge of customer’s business to recognize opportunities and be perceived by the customer as a problem solver and cost displacement specialist.  New opportunities as well as their business potential should be communicated to the National Sales Manager on a timely basis.
  • Manage all selling expenses within the established travel & expense budgets.
  • Establish sources to provide information or competitive pricing, market activities, transaction usage and other information about the assigned account(s) or target markets.
  • Provide direction to the customer service representatives in support of customer needs. 
  • Provide information as required by the National Sales Manager to assist in development of twelve-month rolling forecasts.
  • Report all customer problems to the National Sales Manager as quickly as possible to ensure the problem is resolved in a timely manner.  Track the progress of the problem resolution and insure that it meets the requirements of the customer.
  • Manage the flow of information and communications between AFL and key account(s) and/or target markets in accordance with the account strategy and in coordination with the NSM, with the objective of improving customer relationships.
  • Assist in training and orientation of new customer sales organizations as required.
  • Continually improve selling skills through participation in training and seminars, supervisory feedback, self-evaluation, and customer feedback.
  • Achieve or exceed planned sales levels for all products and services at targeted accounts and/or targeted market segments.
  • Develop sales plans for the overall market and strategic account plans for the respective targeted accounts.
  • Understand market and technology trends in sales volumes for AFL’s products.
  • Provide specific guidance and direction to AFL product groups on new products and technologies needed for said market.
  • Position AFL for growth in the market.
  • Conduct sales calls to implement account and/or target market strategies as developed in conjunction with the marketing manager in support of AFL’s business objectives.
  • Provide weekly call summaries and call reports to the National Sales Manager and internal support personnel on a timely basis.  A call report or a brief summary should be written for all meetings or telephone contacts where significant issues are discussed, or actions are required.
  • Utilize salesforce.com as the key communication mechanism.
  • Participate in national and regional trade shows and/or conferences in accordance with the account or target market strategy and in coordination with the NSM, with the objective of maintaining or improving customer relationships and prospecting for new business.
  • Maintain a current organizational chart with the names, titles, phone numbers, and addresses for all key customer contacts.  Develop position relationship with all levels of the customer’s organization.

 





Skills/Requirements
  • Bachelor’s degree is required.   Strong preference is given to individuals with technical degrees.  MBA, or other master degree, is a strong plus.
  • Minimum of 3 years selling experience.  Targeted background in a relevant field; Telecommunications, fiber optics, photonics, technical sales to OEM customers.
  • Strong computer skills.  Basic requirements are Microsoft office suite of products
  • Strong communication skills.  Must be able to clearly articulate thoughts, strategies, and develop logical action plans.
  • Ability to travel at least 50%. 

Competencies for Success:

  • Looking for a strong and energetic sales person who wants to grow with a dynamic organization.  Individual needs to be self-motivated and driven.
  • Knowledge of the customers and distribution channels that serve the customer base.
  • Ability to lead a  cross cultural  team remotely; Has strong interpersonal influence: builds strong business partnerships; Ability to accomplish technical analysis on cable designs and understand cable manufacturing
  • Strong interpersonal skills. 
  • Extremely strong technical aptitude.  The products this team sells are some of AFL’s most technical products.  The majority of the customers are going to be degreed engineers.  The best candidate will have experience, both educational and work, in dealing with technical issue and solving complex problems.
  • Ability to deal with senior level management at customers. 
  • Account & territory management to optimize productive use of time.
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