Regional Sales Director DACH & CEE
About us:
Tate & Lyle is a global provider of distinctive, high-quality ingredients and solutions for the food, beverage and other industries. Listed on the London Stock Exchange, the company was founded in 1921 and is considered a global leader in the production and worldwide marketing of industrial and nutritional ingredients.
At Tate & Lyle, we are dedicated to making more than extraordinary ingredients. We are a purpose driven company dedicated to transforming lives through the science of food by supporting healthy living, building thriving communities, and caring for our planet.
About this role:
The Regional Sales Director for DACH & Eastern Europe (Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Eastern Europe countries) leads the commercial go-to-market for one of three Europe regional territorial clusters, overseeing a diverse portfolio of direct accounts and distribution partners driving profitable growth across the assigned geography. The role manages a team of Sales Account Managers and Distribution Managers and ensures delivery of tailored customer solutions that align with business priorities.
As the commercial leader for the regional cluster, the Regional Sales Director translates strategy into actionable go-to-market plans, manages cluster/sub-region‑level P&L contribution, leads key negotiations, and serves as the primary point of escalation for major customers and distributors. The role also owns the management and optimisation of the portfolio of customers within the cluster by balancing deployment of direct resources and leveraging distribution partnerships, ensuring channel efficiency and customer satisfaction.
Success in the role includes developing and leading a high-performance sales team, coaching a solutions and growth mindset, stewarding the culture and behaviours of Tate & Lyle, and navigating successfully across the matrix internally and at the customer face. This is a key leadership role in unlocking the potential in the Tate & Lyle business and crafting the future of food.
Accountabilities:
Financial:
Deliver the Annual Operating Plan for the regional cluster (volume/revenue/margin)
Ownership of the sub regional P&L and associated opportunity pipeline metrics
Customers:
Build and maintain strong relationships with a portfolio of territory-based customer accounts, acting as a primary point of escalation for the sales team
Develop and execute comprehensive sales plans to meet and exceed commercial targets for the account portfolio, driving revenue growth, profitability and customer satisfaction
Develop strategic account plans to drive revenue growth, profitability and customer satisfaction aligned with company strategy (preferred products / solutions)
Own distribution partnerships within the region, to enable productive relationships and outcomes for the customer and the company
Drive identification of prospects for accelerating growth
Commercial leadership
Set commercial goals and performance cadence for the sales team, driving progress toward achieving targets across the region, ensuring alignment with objectives and fostering a collaborative and results-driven culture across the function
Contribute to forecasting and budgeting processes, establishment of targets and projections across the region, ensuring accuracy, alignment with objectives and efficient use of resources
Analyse account performance and sales data to identify key trends, areas for growth, and strategic / tactical opportunities using data-driven insights to provide recommendations to senior leadership
Lead negotiations for complex contracts with key customers, ensuring mutually beneficial agreements are achieved and risks managed
Ensure efficient deployment of resources between direct sales and distribution partners
Ways of working:
Lead and inspire teams of Sales professionals in the pursuit of accelerated revenue growth and customer satisfaction
Provide guidance on developing customer-tailored solutions by working closely with cross-functional teams, including Technical Sales, Marketing, Commercial Excellence and Science & Innovation; Role model and champion value selling/consultative selling capabilities
Collaborate with teams in other functions such as Customer Service and Marketing to ensure seamless service delivery and the highest levels of customer satisfaction.
Work effectively as part of a global matrix structure developing and maintaining strong effective relationships across the teams.
About you:
Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience.
Expert knowledge in multiple related specialised fields, disciplines, tools and approaches within the Sales & Account Management function.
Advanced communication skills to convey highly complicated and sometimes commercially sensitive information with a diverse audience.
Developing short to mid-term (1-3 years) strategies and delivering longer-term strategies (3-5 years) for the Region
Able to significantly influence the decision-making for a specific region or global sub-function within Sales & Account Management Function.
A self-starter and able to solve highly complex problems which require advanced decision-making, original thought and new solutions.
Demonstrate ability to manage and coach a team of account managers, driving performance through hands on leadership
Proven ability to close critical deals or contracts by effectively influencing and negotiating with internal stakeholders, including the Executive Committee (ExCo) and Leadership Team.
Demonstrated success in negotiating and securing high-value deals with senior external stakeholders, showcasing strong persuasion and negotiation skills.
Able to work under pressurised situations in a controlled, effective and collaborative manner, and lead a team in the same environment.
Experience of working within global, multi-site organisation
Ability to balance financial and business goals in a collaborative fashion
Comfortable with ambiguity
Cultural flexibility
Excellent team leader that can drive up employee engagement across the function, using EQ, thought leadership and motivational practises.
Effective succession planner and nurturer of talent
Desired Competency Profile:
This role requires advanced ‘Portfolio Expertise’. Acting as a trusted advisor to customers, this role leverages understanding of ingredient solution applications and market trends to proactively identify growth opportunities and influence senior stakeholders.
This role requires expert ‘Business Development & Opportunity Prioritisation’ skills, demonstrated by the ability to analyse market data and customer behaviour to identify high-value opportunities and unmet needs. Provides strategic oversight, orchestrating opportunity pursuit and multi-year growth initiatives, while proactively managing execution risks.
This role requires an advanced level of ‘Account Planning & Execution’, enabling the individual to anticipate customer needs and identify strategic growth opportunities. This includes collaborating on joint business plans that drive mutual value, overseeing execution, and proactively course-correcting to optimise plan value.
Demonstrates an expert level of 'Solution Selling' by partnering with senior customer stakeholders to understand future strategic requirements and deliver complete solutions, establishing themselves as trusted partners. Communicates impactful narratives and navigates complex customer organisations to secure cross-functional support.
Expert ‘Commercial & Financial Effectiveness’ will be essential for this role, exemplified by the ability to successfully manage commercial P&L at a business unit or regional level. Acts as a trusted advisor to senior customer stakeholders, leveraging financial insights to drive long-term value creation and aligning sales efforts with broader financial objectives.
Expert ‘Deal Creation, Negotiation & Execution’ involves anticipating customer tactics and strategically preparing for negotiations to maximise value. Identifies unique levers, provides guidance on concessions, and resolves conflicts, leveraging network to navigate challenging situations. Also provides strategic input on contracts and ensures alignment and compliance.
Expert 'Customer Insight & Relationship Management’ is essential for this role, leveraging deep customer and industry knowledge to anticipate requirements and cultivate long-term, strategic relationships. Adapts approach based on evolving customer requirements, earning trusted advisor status. Also proactively analyses and navigates changing relationship dynamics, ensuring strategies are flexible to maintain strong partnerships.
An advanced level of ‘Capability Development & Coaching’ involves identifying the root causes of competency gaps and tailoring development approaches to meet individual and team needs. Individuals will deliver a mix of coaching and training, champion high-performing individuals, and leverage KPIs and feedback to monitor and enhance development efforts.
What we can offer you
As a business operating in 50 countries worldwide, we offer a global rewards package to all employees alongside a range of country-specific benefits. In addition to the flexible working policy, hybrid working model & competitive salary we offer.
Tate & Lyle is an equal opportunity employer, committed to the strength of an inclusive workforce.
