Sales & Partnerships Director

Last updated: November 2024

Hey you! Come and change the world with us.

Shape History works with NGOs, brands, and institutions all over the world, maximising creativity and communications to deliver equitable, real world impact. We know our shit, and our work is the shit!

These are some big, tough, hairy challenges. To meet them, we’re looking for an experienced, ambitious  Sales & Partnerships Director to drive our growth strategy and help scale the agency. 

If you’re that rare someone who leads teams to both happiness and success, and you’ve got a passion for making the world a better place, then we want to talk to you. 

This role is full time, with at least 2 days in our London office, reporting to our Co-Managing Directors. 

  • Develop and execute strategic sales plans to achieve revenue targets and expand our client base in the social impact sector
  • Identify, cultivate and secure new partnerships to a total value of £1m per annum, with a focus on opportunities >£100k
  • Secure selection onto new rosters/frameworks/LTAs with prospects
  • Build and maintain strong relationships with decision makers at leading charities, brands,  institutions. 
  • Lead the development of compelling proposals and pitches, in collaboration with our Creative and Strategy teams
  • Lead prospect meetings, presentations, and negotiations, ensuring the agency’s services are positioned as market-leading solutions.
  • Identify new business opportunities and market trends in the social impact communications space
  • Work closely with Account Management & Operations to ensure seamless transition from pitch to delivery of partnerships and  projects
  • Maintain a robust pipeline of opportunities, providing regular updates and forecasts to the leadership team
  • Attend networking and sector events solo or as part of a team as required
  • Actively engage with potential leads on social media, regularly using personal channels to develop relationships and leads
  • Actively collaborating with Marketing to align sales strategies with marketing activity

  • Business development: Extensive experience in business development, with a strong network of contacts.
  • Conversion: Proven track record of achieving and exceeding sales targets in a B2B environment.
  • Relationship building: Exceptional negotiation and communication skills, with the ability to build and maintain relationships at all levels.
  • Communication: Exhibiting exceptional written and verbal communication skills, as well as presentation skills for outstanding pitches
  • Trend tracking: An awareness of current trends in advertising and design
  • Entrepreneurialism:  Showing a self-starting attitude and an open outlook
  • Resilience: Maintaining resilience under pressure and against deadlines
  • Creative tools: Proficiency with the software and applications involved in the creative process
  • Time management: Excellent at managing time and juggling multiple plates

What’s that, you say?  You have a bank of relationships and contacts across brands and NGOs you can introduce Shape History? 

Or sector-specific knowledge in the social impact/sustainability/charity/political sector?

Oh, you speak another language

Any and all of these things would be the icing on the cake. 

We are committed to having an inclusive culture in which everyone feels safe and supported to achieve their potential. We recognise that there is a long way to go in implementing race equity in the sector and we have a robust strategy in place for delivering this at Shape History. We actively encourage applications from underrepresented and minority groups, including those with lived experience of social issues we are working to address. 

Equally, we are committed to creating an environment that both celebrates and supports neurodiversity. We’ve put measures in place to support you throughout this recruitment but actively encourage you to ask us for any additional support.

Salary range: Base salary of 50,000-60,000 + generous commission scheme with OTE up to 80,000

  • Applications open on Monday 18th November
  • Applications close on Thursday 2nd January at 9am GMT
  • A short task will be shared in advance of interviews, in which there will be two, with the first held in person w/c 13th January 
  • We aim to make a decision on the chosen candidate by Friday 17th January 

Please note that we may review applications on a rolling basis