United Gas & Power
Head of Direct Sales
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Head of Direct Sales
As one of the fastest-growing and highest-rated commercial energy suppliers in the UK, we are looking to recruit Head of Direct Sales based at our office in Guiseley, Leeds.
Our ambition is to become the UK's most trusted business energy supplier by combining exceptional customer service with innovative commercial strategy and operational excellence.
We're looking for an experienced, commercially-minded sales leader to take ownership of one of UGP's largest commercial divisions. This is a Senior Management Team role with direct accountability for new business acquisition, forecasting and the development of a high-performing sales organisation — plus a genuine seat at the table shaping wider commercial strategy.
At UGP we aim to attract people from diverse backgrounds to build on our inclusive culture. We welcome applications from everyone regardless of age, race, gender, religion or beliefs, disability, gender identity or sexual orientation.
Responsibilities
Commercial Strategy & Performance
- Own and deliver the Direct Sales strategy, aligned to wider business objectives, and contribute to commercial strategy as an SMT member.
- Deliver margin targets, own departmental forecasting and pipeline management.
- Track and improve core commercial KPIs: gross margin, pipeline coverage, forecast accuracy, sales productivity, and conversion rate.
- Identify new commercial opportunities, market trends and routes to market; support strategic customer opportunities directly where needed.
People leadership
- Directly manage and develop 9 Account Managers and 1 Sales Performance Coach, with a view of scaling the channel over the next 12 months.
- Directly manage the Sales Performance Coach, directing their focus toward the skills and behaviours that will move team performance fastest — objection handling, negotiation, pitch quality, and consistent use of process and CRM.
- Run regular 1:1s, performance reviews and development plans; build a culture of accountability, ownership and continuous improvement.
- Coach and mentor future sales leaders; drive engagement, retention and succession planning across the department.
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Talent & Recruitment
- Own recruitment across Account Management, partnering with the People team on attraction, assessment and onboarding.
- Build talent pipelines for future growth and structured development plans for high-potential team members.
- Ensure new starters are inducted and ramped to productivity quickly, working with the Sales Performance Coach to accelerate onboarding.
Operational excellence
- Drive continuous improvement in sales process and operational efficiency, including effective use of HubSpot CRM and reporting tools.
- Take ownership of our recently introduced KPI framework and scorecard, embedding it across the department and evolving it to keep driving accountability and measurable improvement.
- Maintain high standards of CRM compliance and sales governance.
Cross-functional collaboration
- Partner closely with Marketing on lead generation, handoff quality and conversion, working alongside the SDR team to maintain effective outbound campaigns feeding the pipeline.
- Support wider initiatives in digital transformation, AI adoption and sales enablement.
As a member of the Senior Management Team, you'll also contribute to company-wide business planning, budgeting and resource planning, and act as a role model for UGP's values and leadership standards.
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The Individual
We’re looking for individuals with strong commercial judgement, inspirational leadership, high accountability, excellent influencing skills, strategic thinking paired with operational rigour, a data-driven approach, resilience and adaptability, and a genuine passion for developing people.
Essential
- 3+ years leading high-performing B2B sales teams, including experience at senior sales leadership / head of department level.
- Experience leading sales managers or team leaders (not just individual contributors).
- Strong commercial awareness, strategic thinking and financial/forecasting capability.
- Demonstrable track record in recruitment, talent development and succession planning.
- Experience managing CRM systems and sales reporting.
- Excellent leadership, coaching and stakeholder management skills.
Desirable
- Experience within the UK business energy sector.
- Experience managing both acquisition and retention teams.
- Experience using HubSpot CRM specifically.
- Experience leading commercial transformation or business improvement initiatives.
Join the Team
- Excellent salary based on your experience
- Mon – Fri 9am till 5pm with some hybrid working.
- Excellent Pension scheme with 8% employer contribution
- 25 days annual leave (plus Bank Holidays)
- Long-Term Service Benefit – Receive an additional day of annual leave every 5 years
- Holiday Purchase Scheme – Buy up to 5 additional days of leave per year
- Ongoing training & guidance provided
- A great working environment with a real team spirit
- Company social events
- Health & Wellbeing program with GP consultations, mental health support and discounted gym memberships.
- Cycle to Work Scheme
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