One of the biggest football charities in the country, Foundation of Light, is searching for a passionate, creative and accomplished Commercial Sales Manager to join its team at a very exciting period in the organisation’s history.
The Foundation, which is the official charity of Sunderland AFC and was recently named the Best Football in the Community Scheme outside of the Premier League, is going through a period of significant development following the opening of its new home, the
Beacon of Light, in 2018.
The state-of-the-art community hub has picked up numerous awards in its first year of trading and welcomes an average of 6,000 people a week through its doors to take part in sport, education, employability and health projects.
Boasting state-of-the-art outdoor 3G football pitches, a 4G 9-a-side pitch on its roof, a 2000m
2 sports and events arena, a school and a World of Work Zone which supports training across seven different industries, the building is a unique social enterprise with all proceeds being re-invested into Sunderland, South Tyneside and Durham communities through the Foundation of Light.
At this transformational and exciting time in the charity’s history, the Foundation is looking for a charismatic and commercially astute individual to drive revenue and build new business by identifying new, and selling existing, commercial and sponsorship designations.
The successful candidate will have experience of working in a target driven environment and the hunger to exceed targets, as well as strong communication and relationship building skills, a great track record of achieving success and the ability to create opportunities that deliver upon business needs are a must
This is a really exciting time to be involved in the Foundation of Light and we are excited about the potential growth and opportunities which lie ahead for the charity and for the Beacon.
Foundation of Light’s Head of Partnerships and Donor Care, Clare Wilson
“We are looking for somebody who demonstrates a strong drive and creative commercial vision who is excited by a fast-paced environment but also has a passion for the third sector and wants to make a real difference to local lives.”
About the role
Key accountabilities will include:
- Identify and deliver new commercial opportunities for agreed products and partnerships by generating lead targets, making the relevant approaches to the target organisation and ultimately concluding the sale
- Actively seek out new sales opportunities through cold calling, networking, direct targeting and via business related social media
- Understanding client needs and creating bespoke partnership proposals that incorporate multiple assets to deliver upon them
- Be aware of all opportunities within the organisation to ensure the ability to cross-sell products and identify key areas of interest for the prospect
- Identify possible new products by remaining current on industry trends, market activities, and competitors
- Provide monthly sales reports against targets
- Work with the Marketing and Communications team to produce relevant sales material and identify marketing opportunities to support the sales function
About the Successful Candidate
Skills and experience will include:
- Strong communication skills across all levels
- Ability to demonstrate personal resilience to achieve great results
- Highly self-motivated and confident
- Able to demonstrate financial awareness and a profitable mind-set, continuously thinking of creative ways to drive sales, manage costs and add value
- You will have a strong attention to detail in terms of diary management and following up within agreed timeframes
- You will have a passion for customer service, have a process-orientated approach and be professional and well-presented
- You must have previous sales experience and a proven track record of delivering upon targets
- Flexibility towards work and hours
- You will have a valid UK Driving Licence
