Driving Growth. Leading Sales. Shaping the Future.
In this role, you will take full responsibility for national sales strategy, team performance and commercial growth in Japan. As part of a globally positioned logistics group, you’ll lead a high-performing team across all sales channels, aligning local execution with international ambitions. This role offers a unique opportunity to combine strategic impact with hands-on leadership in a fast-moving, performance-driven environment.
The position is embedded within an international logistics and supply chain company, recognized for its integrated services across freight forwarding, contract logistics, and multimodal solutions. Known for operational excellence, ESG commitment and customer-driven innovation, the organization supports global and local businesses through scalable, future-proof logistics strategies.
Key Responsibilities
National Sales Strategy & Execution
Develop and implement the national sales strategy in line with global and regional frameworks
Build and manage annual sales budgets and planning processes using a bottom-up approach
Define field sales territories, segment key and global accounts, and allocate active customer ownership
Ensure salesforce productivity through optimized contact frequency, CRM discipline, and ROI-based activity planning
Deploy sales incentive structures and individual sales targets aligned with company goals
Drive communication and alignment across commercial teams
Business Development & Market Expansion
Create a high-performing, customer-centric sales culture across all channels
Lead sales enablement through training, messaging, and competitive positioning
Ensure effective coaching, mentoring, and performance monitoring through pipeline reviews, joint visits and KPIs
Coordinate with regional marketing and vertical leads to shape go-to-market strategy and scalable offers
Recruit and retain top sales talent and develop succession planning in collaboration with HR
Financial & Performance Management
Ensure profitability and alignment with national sales plan and budget targets
Analyze underperforming customers and drive turnaround strategies with account owners
Oversee credit control compliance and support collections together with sales leads
Deliver accurate performance reporting using CRM, BI tools and dashboards
Continuously identify areas of improvement and operationalize performance initiatives
Leadership & People Development
Lead, coach and motivate direct and functional reports across sales functions
Conduct structured performance reviews, set development goals, and follow up on progress
Foster an open leadership culture based on transparency, inclusion and trust
Support individual career paths and leadership succession planning
Recognize outstanding performance across teams in a fair and impactful manner
Your Profile
University degree in business, logistics or a related field
10+ years of industry experience in logistics or freight management
Proven track record in sales leadership, preferably in an international logistics environment
Strong analytical, organizational, and project management skills
Excellent communication, negotiation and coaching ability
Strategic mindset paired with operational execution strength
Proficiency in Microsoft 365, CRM, and analytics tools (BI, AI-driven tools preferred)
Fluency in Japanese (native or near-native) and business-level English
Travel
Domestic travel up to 25%, international travel approx. 5%
Are you Interested?
If you are ready to take on a high-impact role in a global logistics group, and would like more information, please contact our Executive Search consultant Christian Nebel in confidence: cn@wcl.de. Christian is available to answer any questions and discuss how you can make a difference in this exciting role.