BOOK PUBLISHING INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

Applicants will require a minimum of 5-10 years’ sales experience in the bookselling/publishing industry with a minimum  2-3 years sales experience within the Sharjah / Dubai, Middle East market 

This is a contractor position based in Sharjah, operating from the Sharjah Publishing City Free Zone for a proposed joint venture between Lightning Source and Sharjah Book Authority.

Become a part of an innovative team helping to revolutionize the way publishers make books available in an on-demand world and helping to revolutionize the way that publisher content reaches readers around the world! 

Lightning Source LLC, an Ingram Content Group Company, is a leader in providing a comprehensive suite of inventory-free print-on-demand and distribution services for books to the publishing industry. Lightning Source gives the publishing community options to print books in any quantity, one to 10,000, and provides its customers access to the most comprehensive worldwide bookselling channel in the industry.

BOOK PUBLISHING INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

Applicants will require a minimum of 5-10 years’ sales experience in the bookselling/publishing industry with a minimum  2-3 years sales experience within the Sharjah / Dubai, Middle East market 

Business Development Sales Manager - Sharjah (Contractor)
Publishing City Building, Al Arouba Street, Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
Contractor status

Job Description
Working with the SVP, the successful contractor will:
Pursue opportunities that support business strategy and growth for the Sharjah Company business and Middle Eastern markets.
Develop new business with a focus on developing new markets. 
Meet with principal executives at retailers, national book publishing and distribution companies.
Plan and execute sales and business development initiatives to maximize revenue, margin and inventory opportunities for the Sharjah Company, and deliver long-term partner relationships.
Analyze sales data as it pertains to the budgeting, forecasting and creating strategies to grow the Sharjah Company presence in the markets.
Create and customize presentations to potential customers.
 

Essential Job Duties:  
•    Identifies potential initiatives that promote long-term growth and proposes deals in response to business opportunities in assigned territories.
•    Manages market sales objectives and strategy for delivering sales plan.
•    Reviews daily sales objectives against target and prospective client status.
•    Identifies and prioritizes key accounts.  Provide insight for marketing objectives to support sales growth and targets.
•    Prepare deal proposals for review by management.
•    Present pricing and contracts with reference to the Deal Forms process as appropriate
•    Participate in planning and implementation through to contract signature stage, following agreed protocols.
•    Assist with relevant Lightning Source business units in the development of project execution and implementation planning post contract signature.
•    Regularly report on activities and completed sales across the range of solutions.
•    Provides market, product information, and competitor feedback to SVP and regular customer, competitor and market feedback to senior management as required.
•    Liaise with customer, client relations, operations, and finance teams and where sales teams on global accounts to support immediate client needs and resolve queries.
•    Liaise with the marketing department as required.
•    Liaise with the finance team regarding billing, invoicing and other related financial matters.
•    Attend trade events associated with assigned client portfolios.
•    To be responsible for your own health and safety.

Skills:
•    Ability to manage complex sales and integration projects.
•    Proven business development driven project success.
•    Excellent communication skills; both personally and in with regards to project management.
•    Financial acumen when it comes to sales, opportunity and business analysis.
•    Knowledge of export markets for books and book related content.
•    Network of export contacts in the book trade.
•    Technical acumen with regards to bibliographic and metadata.
•    Conversant in technical business practices regarding the international book trade.
•    Requires demonstrable sales focused and customer centric approach.
•    Flexible and proactive.
•    Must possess effective oral and written communication skills and be computer literate.
•    Must be able to manage workload by establishing priorities; be detail-oriented; and possess the ability to operate successfully within a fast-paced environment.
•    A flexible approach to work, hours and be adaptable to change are critical attributes.

Note: This is a standalone role based in the Sharjah Publishing City Free Zone and will be responsible for growing the Sharjah Company business relationships within the book industry.  The contractor will be the local point of contact for the region, including serving as a liaison with other Lightning Source departments to support customers in the territory, assisting with collections,  and assisting with other  Client Service queries as may be required.The contractor will abide by all Lightning Source policies regarding contract pricing and contract approvals and will not hold themselves out to any party as having the authority to act for, bind, or contract on behalf of Lightning Source or any of its affiliates.   

BOOK PUBLISHING INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

Applicants will require a minimum of 5-10 years’ sales experience in the bookselling/publishing industry with a minimum  2-3 years sales experience within the Sharjah / Dubai, Middle East market 

BOOK PUBLISHING INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

Applicants will require a minimum of 5-10 years’ sales experience in the bookselling/publishing industry with a minimum  2-3 years sales experience within the Sharjah / Dubai, Middle East market 

Qualifications
Degree level 
Additional languages – Arabic essential 

Additional information
Essential Physical Demands:  
•    Ability to work out of office hours as client time zone needs dictate.
•    Ability to sit at workstation for extended periods of time.
•    Ability to work effectively using a personal computer for long periods of time.
•    Ability to operate computer equipment, including keyboard and monitor, phone equipment and other necessary office equipment.
•    Ability to travel internationally and locally and be eligible for Visa status as required (UK /International / Middle East).
•    Overnight international travel will be required.

Perks/Benefits:

• Competitive salary
• Training Opportunities
• Holiday
• Sales Incentive Commission