Contract Sales Executive | IKEA

Job description / Role

One of the companies bearing Al-Futtaim name is IKEA.
IKEA is the world's largest home furnishings store, founded in Sweden over 60 years ago. At IKEA not only our furniture is down to earth, straightforward and inspiring, but so is our work ethics. Despite being the leading home furnishing retail franchisee across the world, we at IKEA still give you the room to grow! At IKEA creating a better everyday life for the many isn't only our vision, it's our way of life!
Effectively promote the IKEA concept and use it as a tool to promote and secure the sale of IKEA products to corporate business customers through telephone calls, personal contacts, referrals and calling on companies towards the achievements of established contract sales targets.

Requirements

Financial:
Finalize and consolidate the annual sales and profit targets (based on last year's performance) and submit to the Contract Sales Manager to provide realistic guidelines in order to be able to achieve a feasible contract sales contribution to the total store sales turnover (relevant to store allocation).
Operational:

* Prepare weekly and monthly contract sales statistics (Actual sales; Budgeted Sales; Last Year's Sales; Overview of ongoing & new projects) to be able to identify variances and based on that to establish corrective actions if needed with the guidance of the Contract Sales Manager.
* Uphold complete and up to date knowledge of IKEA products and concept to be able to provide corporate business customers with state of the art solutions and alternatives, which will contribute to closing a deal.

Customers:
Solve customer problems during the assembly process and follow up 2 days after installation to guarantee that the order has been finalized to the customer's utmost satisfaction and at the same time to establish goodwill for future business.
Follow up with the Contract Sales Executives and make sure that the delivery and assembly process is going smooth and as per the customers' requirements.
Commercial:

* Continually assess the market & competition in terms of style, furnishings and prices to maximize market impact and penetration towards the achievement of sales and profit objectives.
* Consolidate all the necessary information related to competitors' activities and submit a competitor analysis report on a quarterly basis.
* Actively source new customers within the market.

People Management and Development:

* Assist in the product knowledge training for the Contract Sales Executives.
* Make sure that the after sales service (eg. warranty issues, manufacturing defects, exchange items, etc) is provided to our clients by the Contract Sales Executives to maintain excellent relationships and reliable service.
* Supervise the ordering of goods initiated by the Contract Sales Executives and closely monitor shipping schedules with the Range Department, so as to meet delivery commitments and fulfill customers' requirements.
* Meet with the Range Department on a monthly basis to discuss stocks situation and share related information with the contract Sales Executives to enhance the sales of certain products.
* Follow up with the Contract Sales Executives on customers' inquiries and make sure that quotations are submitted within the set deadlines.
* Prepare and oversee the quotations done by the Contract Sales Executives and present them to the clients as per pre-defined requirements to ensure excellent customer satisfaction and repeat business. In conjunction with that to efficiently follow up within standardized time frames (as per IKEA policy), and to negotiate terms & conditions of payments as to safeguard & materialize a closed sales deal (as per IKEA policy).
Take all contract Sales related decisions and complementing Sales manager's tasks in achieving budget which requires the use of analytical thinking to solve problems and challenges on a long term basis and ability to successfully drive the sales target.

About the Company

Established in the 1930's, the Al-Futtaim Group initially operated as a trading enterprise. Rapid development throughout the 1940's and 50's saw it establish itself regionally as an integrated commercial, industrial and services organisation, positioning itself one of the leading business houses in the lower Gulf region. Today, it operates collectively over 40 companies bearing the Al-Futtaim name, dominates many market segments in the UAE, and has expanded its sphere of operation to include Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Egypt.

The Group comprises a diverse range of strategically positioned operating subsidiaries and associate companies, structured to give the Al-Futtaim Group the flexibility and versatility to keep ahead of local competition while keeping pace with the ever-evolving global business scenario. The Groups continued investment in world-class systems technology is clear evidence of its commitment to maintain leading edge performance and service delivery.

The success of the Al-Futtaim Group can be attributed to a business approach that combines the ability to change with the traditional values of integrity, service and social responsibility that define its core business philosophy. This, linked with the Groups belief in decentralisation, gives the heads of the operating companies a high degree of functional autonomy and authority, providing the Group with essential flexibility, and individual employees a clearly defined work culture and sense of responsibility.