Head of Sales & Marketing

The Head of Sales & Marketing will lead the Sales and Marketing department, set the commercial direction for the venue and personally drive new business. The role will take ownership of sales strategy, business development, major accounts, agency relationships, marketing activity, brand awareness, pipeline management and revenue forecasting.
This is not a desk-based management position and it is not simply an escalation point for incoming enquiries. The successful candidate will be expected to be visible in the market, build relationships, open doors and convert opportunities.
Create the structure, standards and commercial discipline needed for the team to perform consistently.
The immediate priority is to secure at least £200,000 of additional external business by 31 July in the first year. Alongside this, the postholder will build the client base, qualified pipeline and market presence needed to support annual external conference revenue of £1 million in the following financial year, with a longer-term ambition to grow beyond £2 million.
Strong experience in a senior sales, commercial or business development role within conference venues, hotels, meetings and events, hospitality, venue finding or a closely related sector.
Clear evidence of personally winning new business, developing high-value accounts and delivering measurable revenue growth. Applicants should be able to explain the sales actions they took and the results achieved.
Experience of leading and developing a sales, events or commercial team, including setting objectives, reviewing performance, coaching individuals and creating clear accountability.
Strong proactive business development skills. This must include prospecting, networking, account planning, negotiation, proposal development, closing and maintaining relationships after the first sale.
A working understanding of sales and marketing as connected commercial functions. The successful candidate must be able to turn marketing activity into awareness, qualified demand, client engagement and revenue.
Strong pipeline management and forecasting capability, with confidence using CRM or booking systems to manage opportunities and report performance accurately.
Commercial confidence with budgets, pricing, targets, conversion, average booking value and revenue reporting.
Credibility with senior clients, university stakeholders, agencies, partners and internal leaders. The postholder must be able to present a clear commercial case and handle challenging conversations constructively.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including proposal writing, client presentations, commercial reports and team communication.
Good judgement. The role requires someone who can balance immediate revenue opportunities against operational capacity, margin, client experience and long-term account value.
A full understanding of the conference and events sales journey, from lead generation and qualification through to proposal, negotiation, contracting, handover and rebooking.

Employment type
Full-time

Work arrangement
No