WHAT DOES AN INTERNATIONAL SALES MANAGER DO?

Published: Oct 07, 2025 - The International Sales Manager oversees global key accounts and distributors while developing and executing strategies to drive revenue growth and strengthen market presence. This role leads and mentors a sales team to achieve performance targets, enhance customer partnerships, and deliver on international P&L objectives. The manager also identifies new market opportunities, aligns trade and marketing initiatives, and ensures consistent brand execution across all regions.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for International Sales Manager

1. International Sales Manager Duties

  • Client Acquisition: Prospect and extend the client portfolio in the region
  • Market Leadership: Build up a leading position in the performance-based mobile marketing market
  • Project Management: Follow-up projects to help clients develop their mobile user acquisition strategy
  • Global Expansion: Contribute to growth worldwide
  • Team Recruitment: Recruit and staff the team
  • Brand Awareness: Develop the Addict Mobile brand awareness
  • Business Planning: Create detailed business plans designed to attain predetermined goals and quotas
  • Sales Cycle: Manage the entire sales cycle from finding a client to securing a deal and acquire new customers by winning them over from competitors and discovering new opportunities
  • Networking Skills: Unearth new sales opportunities through networking and turn them into long-term partnerships
  • Product Presentation: Present products to prospective clients
  • Customer Support: Support professional after-sales to maximize customer loyalty
  • Client Relations: Remain in regular contact with clients to understand and meet their needs
  • Issue Resolution: Respond to complaints and resolve issues to the customer's satisfaction and to maintain the company's reputation
  • Contract Negotiation: Negotiate agreements and keep records of sales and data

2. International Sales Manager Details

  • Sales Leadership: Take the lead and manage Sales, Marketing and Export functions and drive international sales and market share, profitably
  • Team Direction: Provide direction and support to the company, sales team and management team
  • Customer Engagement: Be actively involved with "key" customers and conduct regular visits, cementing solid business relationships
  • Business Growth: Maintain and grow existing business levels and nurture/grow existing customers' spend
  • Opportunity Management: Monitor, manage and capitalise on new business opportunities, ensuring sufficient procedures and processes are implemented to quantify all new business leads
  • Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work in tandem with other company divisions from purchasing, operations and ensure connectivity for the sales and marketing division through other departments across the business
  • Product Launch: Lead the launch of new products from a sales and introduction capacity to all customers
  • Performance Tracking: Constantly track achievement versus plan, maintain, and revise the sales business plan to react to results achievement to hit annual targets
  • Productivity Improvement: Propose ways to increase the productivity and effectiveness of the sales in the Area
  • Market Expansion: Drive profitable and sustainable market share growth by developing processes, tools and metrics, service-oriented initiatives, performance management and territory/account/visit planning
  • Account Planning: Guide the development of individual Account Plans for the key distributors
  • Skill Development: Identify key development needs (agronomy, product knowledge, sales skills, and competencies) to focus on coaching and broader training efforts for all members of the sales team
  • Training Support: Support with knowledge testing, assessment, tracking, and reporting and prepare and implement development plans
  • Data Analysis: Ensure collection, compliance, and evaluation of data and information gathered from multiple sources (market, customer, competition)

3. International Sales Manager Responsibilities

  • Sales Operations: Conducts all sales activities and processes within the parameters of the Herman Miller Sales process, utilizing corporate tools/resources provided
  • Account Strategy: Develops, implements, and maintains account strategies and business plans for assigned accounts, providing forecasts of account potential
  • Relationship Management: Develops and maintains A and D relationships with appropriate A and D Reps based on specific account requirements
  • Revenue Growth: Guides and influences strategy for assigned International accounts to increase sales revenue and profitability
  • CRM Management: Maintains Salesforce information so the Regional Lead can accurately complete monthly forecasts of expected sales volume by account and product line
  • Market Research: Manages up-to-date information on international markets, the Education market sector, products, services, and distribution capabilities and facilitates learning for multinational lead development
  • Budget Control: Manages within the assigned expense budget
  • Business Support: Provides consultation to GAMs and the distribution channel on multinational accounts, projects, and required support
  • Account Research: Provides and maintains account research to support all account inquiries and regional focus markets
  • Client Representation: Represents International markets on client visits
  • Issue Resolution: Resolves operational and other issues for assigned accounts and participates in the global pricing and contract development with appropriate Herman Miller resources and clients

4. International Sales Manager Job Summary

  • Sales Strategy: Develops and implements strategic sales plans to accommodate corporate goals
  • Forecast Management: Directs sales forecasting activities and sets performance goals accordingly
  • Demand Coordination: Coordinates production forecasting with sales demands
  • Market Analysis: Reviews market analysis to determine customer needs, price schedules, and discount rates
  • Client Advising: Advises clients internationally concerning sales and advertising techniques
  • Relationship Management: Meets with key clients, assisting sales representatives with maintaining relationships and negotiating and closing sales
  • Sales Reporting: Prepares periodic sales reports showing countries status for opportunities and programs
  • Competitor Evaluation: Monitors and evaluates the activities and products of the competition
  • Trade Representation: Attends major trade shows and represents the Company at important Demo events
  • Market Expansion: Prospects new markets, ensuring sales growth
  • Bid Management: Prepares quotations and responds to international bids
  • Team Collaboration: Works in cross-functional teams to respond to bids
  • Proposal Development: Prepare technical proposals and define a strategy to win international tenders and bids
  • Country Strategy: Creates individual country strategies to increase presence

5. International Sales Manager Accountabilities

  • Sales Management: Manage and oversee the sales effort for KiwiTech's technology solutions in the regions
  • Partnership Development: Leverage existing relationships with key partners to onboard clients directly onto KiwiTech's platform
  • Data Analysis: Analyze and interpret key sales metrics to create marketing strategies that produce the best results for partners
  • Performance Monitoring: Maintain awareness about performance related to monthly, quarterly, and annual goals, and conduct sales forecasts regularly
  • Team Leadership: Hold team members accountable for revenue goal achievements, KPIs, and engagement in all sales initiatives
  • Employee Coaching: Coach, develop, and support all team members while leading by example
  • Market Assessment: Strategically assess current market trends for new sales opportunities and make recommendations for changing service offerings
  • Alliance Building: Develop strategic alliances with Entrepreneurs, Incubators, and Accelerators in multiple cities in the target region
  • Pipeline Development: Participate in finding opportunities and creating the pipeline
  • Needs Analysis: Uncover primary technical and business needs, and communicate how KiwiTech can meet those needs and solve the prospect's problems
  • Proposal Coordination: Follow up with the proposal team for timely delivery to the client

6. International Sales Manager Functions

  • Strategic Planning: Refinement, implementation and drive of the strategic 5-year growth plan
  • Global Management: Create and implement plans by continent, country and distributor across the globe, setting targets and objectives to meet business requirements and address external opportunities or threats
  • Revenue Growth: Achieve targets for revenue and sales growth for the department
  • Event Coordination: Manage the attendance and costs of international medical conferences that support international and business strategies, whilst representing the brand
  • Team Leadership: Management and development of the International Sales Team
  • Distributor Relations: Dedicated visits to key distributors to increase product awareness, train on products, build meaningful relationships, and increase their ability to demonstrate and sell products
  • Product Presentation: Deliver effective demonstrations and sales presentations to distributors and their clients, promoting the company and explaining the concept and ethos underpinning the product range
  • Partnership Development: As part of the overall strategy review, distributor performance, identify new distributor partnership opportunities, sales and business potential that will drive new revenue to meet company objectives
  • Customer Support: Assist customers with clinical, technical and commercial enquiries
  • Market Awareness: Keep up to date with market conditions and competition
  • Performance Reporting: Regular reporting to the Commercial Director on the performance of the business, both past and future

7. International Sales Manager Job Description

  • Sales Strategy: Planning, developing and executing a winning sales strategy
  • Partnership Building: Building new commercial partnerships
  • Product Sales: Sell company products and services to new customers
  • Opportunity Management: Identify opportunities and manage the sales pipeline
  • Independent Work: Work independently and with limited supervision and guidance
  • Stakeholder Relations: Develop strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders
  • Event Representation: Representing the company at industry or other networking/promotional events
  • Customer Engagement: Maintaining regular contact with customers, introducing new products to customers, and identifying new revenue streams
  • Proposal Preparation: Preparing and submitting customer proposals
  • Market Knowledge: Develop a comprehensive knowledge of the product portfolio and the global mobility market as a whole

8. International Sales Manager Overview

  • Contact Identification: Finding Key Contacts from the Targeted Accounts or Region
  • Executive Networking: Networking and Initiating Dialogues with Senior Executives in Universities
  • Lead Generation: Recognize the decision makers and generate interest among them via phone calls and emails
  • Proposal Development: Develop presentations and proposals for key accounts in line with client requirements
  • Deal Negotiation: Managing end-to-end negotiation with the prospects and closing the deals
  • Relationship Building: Engage with prospects on an ongoing basis for requirement gathering and relationship building throughout the sales cycle
  • Strategic Insight: Provide strategic inputs for the business based on interactions with prospective customers
  • Target Achievement: Ambitious, tenacious and determined in meeting agreed sales targets and resilient in handling any buyer objections
  • Presentation Skills: Articulate, confident and persuasive with the meeting presence and presentation skills necessary to sell effectively to individuals, small groups and larger groups for whom English may be a second language
  • Data Analysis: Analyse customer and market data and identify and anticipate new opportunities

9. International Sales Manager Details and Accountabilities

  • Business Strategy: Develop and implement long-term business strategies and marketing plans for the international market
  • Sales Management: Business development and sales management for international sales to grow sales and improve profitability
  • Market Intelligence: Ensure consistent market intelligence for related products
  • Market Anticipation: Anticipate changes in the market environment
  • Pricing Execution: Execute pricing strategy with the team
  • Project Implementation: Implement key project initiative
  • Sales Strategy: Develop and implement effective sales strategies to deliver company growth
  • Competitive Analysis: Analyze and understand the competitive landscape in each market
  • Business Negotiation: Generate new business and negotiate business terms
  • Distributor Network: Build a network of distributors and agents
  • Customer Relations: Building and maintaining strong, long-lasting customer relationships
  • Product Innovation: Lead product development and innovation for markets
  • Sales Forecasting: Forecast and track sales metrics
  • Sales Reporting: Prepare reports and analytics on sales status

10. International Sales Manager Tasks

  • Account Management: Oversee all Major and National accounts and Distributors internationally
  • Sales Strategy: Develop a sales strategy that drives enhanced revenue generation and implement internationally
  • Team Leadership: Coach, lead, and develop a sales team of 10+ to maximize potential with retail partners and develop strong JBPs
  • Customer Focus: Drive the focus of customers in each market whilst ensuring all metrics and targets are achieved
  • Investment Strategy: Serve as a key contributor towards the delivery of global P&L ambitions by leading the customer investment strategy internationally
  • Market Expansion: Identify new markets and channels to maximize commercial opportunities
  • Client Negotiation: Manage the largest customers directly and negotiate terms
  • Forecast Management: Liaise with the team and head office to support the monthly S&OP meeting, overseeing the top-line forecasting requirements for the channel
  • Omnichannel Development: Partner with the Head of eCommerce to maximize presence and execution in Omnichannel retailers
  • Sales Collaboration: Collaborate with Heads of Sales for key markets on country plans and customer JBPs to double the business in focus territories
  • Model Optimization: Review and rejuvenate the current RTM model by market
  • Strategic Alignment: Coordinate with the Specialty Sales Lead to align on country strategies and top-line tactical plans
  • Trade Marketing: Develop and implement Trade Marketing initiatives to build brand awareness across markets
  • Program Support: Partner with Marketing to support programs
  • Inspirational Leadership: Lead by example and inspire the team and organization through a passion for brand and mission