Sales Manager

About azakaw

azakaw is a purpose-built RegTech compliance platform for financial institutions, fintechs, and professional services firms. Core modules include Digital KYC/KYB, AML Screening, Transaction Monitoring, and Corporate Compliance. The platform is backed by j. awan & partners and supported by more than 50 compliance specialists.

azakaw is entering its next growth phase, including new markets, accelerated client acquisition, and a scaling commercial team. The commercial function has proven unit economics per BDM and is expanding simultaneously across GCC, South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, Brazil, and Eastern Europe. Operating markets sit within a two-hour time zone spread. This role exists to lead the sales team through that expansion.

Mission

The Sales Manager owns revenue delivery and pipeline growth across all azakaw markets. Reporting to the Group Director, this role is accountable for turning proven unit economics into predictable, scalable revenue across GCC, South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, and Brazil.

You own the daily engine: pipeline reviews, deal coaching, forecast accuracy, team development, competitive displacement, account expansion, new hire onboarding, and third-party lead generation management. You are not coordinating activity: you are accountable for the team's revenue number.

If pipeline coverage is light, you fix it. If a market is underperforming, you identify whether the issue is messaging, targeting, pricing, or effort, and you act. If a BDM is not progressing deals, you coach them until they do or you make a change. This role requires prior experience carrying a quota.

12–18 Month Mission Outcomes (What Success Looks Like)

Revenue Delivery

• The team hits 100% of quarterly revenue targets. Revenue is tracked by BDM, by market, and by deal type (new business versus expansion). By year-end, revenue is diversified across at least three markets, with no single geography carrying the full target.
• Pipeline, Forecasting, and CRM Discipline
• Every BDM maintains a minimum of 3x pipeline coverage. At least 60% of qualified deals advance one stage per month. Deals stale for 30 days are flagged. Bi-weekly forecasts are within 10% of actual results. HubSpot is updated within 24 hours, with zero deals missing documented next steps.

Team Performance, Coaching, and Marketing Alignment

• No BDM remains below 80% of target for two consecutive quarters. SDR call-to-meeting conversion exceeds 3%, and demo show rates remain above 75%. Underperformance is addressed within 30 days.
• Third-party lead generation is managed to SLA. A structured feedback loop with marketing operates continuously, with lead-quality issues raised within the week—not at quarterly reviews.

Competitive Displacement

• BDMs consistently win deals against World-Check, Sumsub, ComplyAdvantage, and manual-process incumbents. Win themes are documented per competitor. Displacement playbooks are current and actively used. Win rates on competitive deals are tracked and improve over time.
• Customer Expansion and Deal Quality
• Expansion revenue from upsells, cross-module sales, and tier upgrades is tracked separately and grows as a percentage of total revenue. BDMs review accounts for expansion within 90 days of go-live.
• Average deal size is maintained or growing by market, with discounting kept within approved thresholds.

New Market Development

• Expansion markets generate qualified pipeline within 90 days of BDM deployment. Win/loss data, regulatory triggers, and ICP nuances are documented per market. Quarterly recommendations are delivered to the Group Director on where to invest, hold, or pull back—based on data.
• Hiring, Onboarding, and Training
• New hires are onboarded using the structured three-week programme, including defined gates, role plays, and a buddy system. Time to first deal reduces with each hire. Onboarding quality is consistent across jurisdictions, and sales materials are continuously refined using live deal feedback.

Key Accountabilities

Revenue and Pipeline Management

• You own the team revenue target across all markets. Responsibilities include weekly pipeline reviews with every BDM, enforcing 3x coverage, coaching on deal strategy, pricing discipline, competitive displacement, and close plans. You deliver bi-weekly forecasts with deal commentary and risk flags, escalate at-risk deals with action plans, and hold discounting authority.
• You plan forward by identifying the source of future revenue by market and BDM, flag capacity needs before misses occur, and present quarterly capacity and revenue plans with scenarios rather than single-point forecasts.
• Success is reflected in revenue on target, maintained pipeline coverage, forecasts within 10%, pricing discipline, and proactive capacity planning.

Team Coaching, SDR Development, and Performance

• You run daily 15-minute stand-ups, weekly or bi-weekly 1:1s, and monthly performance conversations using KPI data. You coach BDMs on outcomes—pipeline progression, deal quality, and competitive wins—and SDRs on inputs such as call quality, conversion rates, and objection handling.
• Underperformance is identified within 30 days, with coaching plans implemented before escalation. Third-party lead generation is actively managed against SLAs.
• Success means no rep under 80% target for two consecutive quarters, SDR call-to-meeting conversion above 3%, and documented coaching activity.

Deal Strategy and Commercial Governance

• You review pricing tiers, discount justification, contract terms, multi-module bundles, and upsell opportunities on all qualified deals. You coach BDMs on value-based pricing, approve or reject discounts within authority, and monitor average deal size by BDM and market.
• Success is measured by growing average deal size, controlled discounting, and no deals below the pricing floor without Group Director approval.

Customer Expansion and Account Growth

• You build expansion discipline into the team's rhythm. BDMs review accounts for upsell and tier upgrades within 90 days of go-live. Expansion revenue is tracked as a separate, high-margin pipeline category and treated as a core growth lever.
• Success is visible through growing expansion revenue as a percentage of total sales and a consistent 90-day review cadence.

Sales Process Optimization and Deal Velocity

• You own conversion rates between every pipeline stage. You diagnose stalled deals, demo-to-proposal drop-offs, and decision delays, tracking sales cycle length by market and deal type. Using data, you implement improvements that shorten cycle time.
• Success is measured by improved stage conversion, shorter sales cycles, and resolved bottlenecks within the quarter.

Market Development and Competitive Intelligence

• You support BDMs in new markets with territory planning, ICP refinement, and competitive intelligence. You maintain displacement playbooks, identify regulatory triggers and market entry opportunities, and deliver quarterly market recommendations to the Group Director.
• Success is defined by new markets generating pipeline within 90 days and playbooks that are current and used.

Hiring, Onboarding, and Sales Enablement

• You lead hiring alongside HR, assessing candidates on competencies rather than CVs. You own onboarding through the structured training programme and maintain battle cards, talk tracks, and displacement materials based on live feedback. You coordinate with marketing on enablement needs.
• Success means time to first deal is decreasing, materials remain current, and the enablement feedback loop is active.

Reporting and SLT Communication

• You deliver a weekly commercial summary to the Group Director covering revenue, pipeline, forecast, team performance, and market insights, along with a monthly SLT report. Risks and anomalies are surfaced proactively using data, not narrative.
• Success is reflected in on-time reporting, trusted data, and full SLT visibility without prompting.

Core Competencies

• B2B SaaS sales leadership with a proven team revenue track record
• Multi-jurisdiction, distributed team management
• Sales coaching and competitive displacement expertise
• Pipeline management and forecast accuracy
• Account expansion and revenue growth discipline
• Market identification and data-driven entry evaluation
• Marketing and sales alignment
• Commercial acumen and pricing governance
• Hiring, onboarding, and talent assessment
• Revenue operations and HubSpot CRM discipline

Education and Experience

• A bachelor's degree in business, Finance, or a related field is expected, though commercial track record outweighs credentials.
• Candidates should have 7–12 years of B2B SaaS sales experience, with at least three years managing teams of eight or more across multiple geographies. Full-cycle sales experience is required.
• Preferred experience includes RegTech, compliance technology, GRC, or financial services SaaS, exposure to GCC, Africa, or emerging markets, HubSpot CRM proficiency, competitive displacement experience against established vendors, and Arabic language skills.

Culture and Values

• Growth mindset, resilience, accountability, and adaptability in a fast-paced scaling environment
• Client-first philosophy where every interaction reflects azakaw's advisory heritage and compliance expertise
• Data over opinion: pipeline decisions, forecasts, and performance conversations grounded in CRM data, not gut feel

Rewards and Growth

• Competitive base salary with performance bonus tied to team revenue and pipeline quality
• Career progression into Regional Sales Director or Head of Business Development
• Opportunity to build a multi-market sales function during an aggressive growth phase
• Direct ownership of a commercially proven sales engine
• Medical insurance, paid leave, and additional benefits detailed at the offer stage.