VP of Sales – We Don't Need a Closer. We Need an Architect.

Description

VP of Sales —  We Don't Need a Closer. We Need an Architect. 

We are an industrial services business with a clear mandate: Double revenue without breaking the company in the process. Humans will be reviewing your resume, not AI.

This is a hybrid role. You will need to be in our office in Itasca, IL 2 to 3 days a week. You will travel to customers, conferences, and trade shows 1 to 2 weeks a month.

This is not a turnaround. This is not a startup. And this is not a role for someone who needs to "figure it out as they go." You will inherit a functional sales organization — and be accountable for building the system that doubles it. This is not a marketing role. You will collaborate with Marketing.

The Role 

You will lead and develop a multi-function revenue organization: 

• Business Development 
• Account Management 
• Customer Service 

Today, that team totals six. It will grow — with your blueprint, your standards, and your direction.

Your job is to:

• Design and build a repeatable sales system that supports $1M+ deal sizes and a 9-month complex sales cycle
• Set the sales strategy. Own the playbook. Create predictability where none exists today.
• Lead a team carrying $20M in annual growth quota — through structure, coaching, and accountability, not through heroics
• Recruit, onboard, and ramp high-caliber business development talent ahead of the growth curve
• Develop and coach a Sales Director who runs the day-to-day execution while you focus on where this organization needs to be in 18 months
• Hold standards — even when growth pressure tempts everyone to take shortcuts
• Serve as an active member of the Leadership Team — contributing to company-wide decisions, not just sales decisions

You will not carry a personal sales quota. You must have the skills and credibility to sit across from a Fortune 500 buyer and demonstrate that you've carried the bag — without needing to carry it now. You will coach the team that closes deals. You will be accountable for the number they produce.

Requirements

What You Must Bring

This role requires proof — not potential.

• Documented experience building a sales organization that scaled revenue significantly — not just riding the wave, but designing the system that created it
• A track record of hiring, developing, and promoting sales talent — including leaders who went on to run teams of their own
• Leadership of long-cycle, high-value industrial, manufacturing, or services sales where deals take months, involve buying committees, and require organizational patience
• Experience working on a Leadership Team that operates with openness, honesty, and transparency. No egos. No politics. If that sounds uncomfortable, this isn't your role.
• The ability to join a salesperson on a call and demonstrate sales credibility— then walk out of the room and let them own the deal
• A coaching mindset that elevates people instead of replacing them
• 8+ years of combined experience selling and managing in complex B2B environments. Formal sales training during your career — not just "learning on the job."
• Comfort leading through structure, accountability, and expectation — not through charm, force of personality, or "I'll just do it myself"
• Executive presence with customers, owners, and internal leadership
• Proficiency with MS Excel & PowerPoint

If your career story is "I was the top producer, so they promoted me" — this will not be a fit. If your career story is "I built the team, the process, and the culture that produced top producers" — keep reading.

Sales Leadership Experience That Transfers Well 

• Worked on Leadership teams using EOS™  
• Experience in printing, mail, or logistics  
• Industrial manufacturing or engineering services 
• Capital equipment  
• Enterprise sales environments with buying committees   
• Entrepreneurial, founder-led, or family-owned growth businesses where you had to build infrastructure, not just inherit it

Compensation & Structure 

• Base $210,000 plus $140,000 performance-based bonus
• Long Term Deferred Comp  
• On Target Earnings, we need you to be at least $350,000 in 18-months.  

Variable compensation is tied to: 

• Team growth attainment 
• Customer retention [This is already hard-wired into operations & core values] 
• Margin integrity
• Successful hiring and rep ramp 

This role rewards building leverage — not closing deals personally.   

Benefits to include:

• Medical, Dental, Vision, STD, Life Insurance 
• 401k with company match
• Paid time off and holidays

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other status protected by federal, state, or local law. 

 Please, No Third-Party Calls