Regional Sales Vice President, East

Regional Vice President of Sales, East

Department: Sales

Reports To: Vice President, Sales

Zaner-Bloser is an educational solutions company specializing in delivering instruction focused on developing foundational skills for PreK-6 students in ELA & Math. Our programs include Building Fact Fluency, Kickstart Number Sense, Spelling Connections, Zaner-Bloser Handwriting, Superkids and more. As a member of the Highlights Family of Companies, we strive to always do what's right for children and make a significant contribution to their education.

Position Summary:

The Regional Vice President of Sales will lead and drive the growth of Zaner-Bloser's sales initiatives across the Eastern U.S., focusing on new business acquisition and long-term partnerships. This senior leader will be responsible for achieving revenue goals, managing complex sales cycles, and developing a high-performing team. A strategic thinker with exceptional leadership and coaching skills, the Regional VP will influence key decision-makers, build strategic alliances, and ensure the alignment of sales strategies with regional needs and state-specific legislation.

Key Responsibilities:

• Revenue Growth: Drive new business and achieve sales targets across the Eastern region.
• Sales Leadership: Lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing sales team, setting clear objectives and overseeing performance management.
• Strategic Sales Management: Oversee all stages of the sales cycle, from prospecting and presentations to commitment and forecasting, ensuring pipeline accuracy in Salesforce.
• Senior-Level Influence: Cultivate relationships with state departments of education and regional key stakeholders to shape decisions on state lists, RFPs, and grant opportunities.
• Strategic Partnerships & Revenue Development: Identify and establish new partnerships to drive revenue growth, work directly with grant and funding opportunities, and leverage expertise in state-level DOE legislation to influence funding decisions that create new business avenues.
• Regional Strategy: Develop and execute state-specific strategies for core and supplemental business lines, ensuring alignment with local legislation and market needs.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Foster a culture of collaboration across internal teams (Sales, Marketing, Product, Operations, Finance) to optimize sales outcomes and drive innovation.
• Change Management: Lead organizational change initiatives, promoting a growth mindset and continuous improvement within the sales team.
• Ongoing Coaching & Development: Continuously coach and develop the sales team, ensuring the consistent enhancement of skills, product knowledge, and sales tactics for sustained performance.
• Market & Product Expertise: Deeply understand Zaner-Bloser products and competitive offerings to effectively position solutions and enhance customer engagement.
• Financial Oversight: Manage budget allocation for samples, events, conferences, and regional marketing to maximize ROI.
• Product Knowledge & Competitive Analysis: Maintain in-depth knowledge of Zaner-Bloser products and analyze competitor offerings to strategically position solutions and identify market opportunities.
• Accurate Forecasting: Ensure accurate sales forecasting based on market trends, CRM data, and team feedback to inform business decisions and resource allocation.

• Knowledge about, and passion for, PK-5 needs in the marketplace.
• Develop and execute a strategic territory plan to achieve new business revenue targets
• Lead with positive intent and curiosity.
• Superior communication and coaching skills

• Learn how Zaner-Bloser's suite of supplemental and core reading solutions enables impactful, joyful learning.
• Meet your team, peers, and colleagues in cross-functional departments to build relationships.
• Build understanding of our sales cycle and pipeline using Salesforce.
• Identify and grow your understanding of educational market conditions, competitive intelligence, and strategic differentiators.
• Establish a cadence of communication with stakeholders.

• Assess and make recommendations for our processes and procedures to build for future growth.
• Actively work towards achieving the team's revenue goals.
• Create development plans for members of the team to ensure quota achievement and personal growth.
• Refine strategic territory plans to maximize outcomes for the current fiscal year and beyond.
• Forecast accurately based on data and market conditions that bridge to financial goals.
• Foster alignment by working collaboratively and cross-functionally to meet revenue and leadership goals.

• Work within a territory budget for samples, customer events, conferences, marketing requests, and travel for maximum effectiveness.

Supervisory Responsibilities: 9 Fields Sales Professionals & 2 Independent Consultants

Education and Experience:

• Bachelors' Degree with 10+ years of experience in solution selling.
• Minimum 5 years of management experience.
• Experience managing a remote sales team.
• Proven experience of achieving or exceeding revenue targets while managing within an expense budget.

Qualifications:

• Superior business acumen and understanding of solution sales processes.
• Proven success in using market research and data to inform strategies and tactics.
• Superior communication and collaboration skills.
• Success in recruiting & developing high-achieving sales professionals.
• Excellent relationship building skills with both external customers and internal partners.
• Demonstrated experience in implementing effective and consistent sales processes.
• Superior knowledge of Customer Relationship Management software (e.g. Salesforce), remote meeting platforms, and MS Office
• Ability to travel up to 70%

Highlights for Children provides reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities. Please tell us if you require a reasonable accommodation to apply for a job or to perform your job. Examples of reasonable accommodation include making a change to the application process or work procedures, providing documents in an alternate format, using a sign language interpreter, or using specialized equipment.