Senior Sales Manager (Air Freight)

PinnacleU; Greater Noida; On-site; INR 3,500,000 - 7,000,000; Full time

Job summary

PinnacleU in Greater Noida, India is seeking an accomplished Air Export Sales Leader with 15-20 years of freight forwarding experience to drive business strategy, revenue growth, and an overseas agent network.

You will lead the sales team, set targets, manage budgets, negotiate with airlines, and coordinate with operations and pricing teams to ensure profitable shipments. Excellent leadership, communication, and strategic thinking are essential to succeed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Logistics, or related field.
• 15-20 years of experience in freight forwarding and air export sales.
• 5-8 years in a team leadership or managerial role.
• Proven experience in business development, pricing, and revenue growth.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute air export sales strategies and targets.
• Identify new markets, trade lanes, and business opportunities.
• Lead client meetings, negotiations, and pricing discussions.
• Build a strong pipeline of international partners and customers.
• Coordinate with operations, pricing, and finance for smooth shipments.
• Coach and manage the sales team to achieve daily, weekly, and monthly goals.

Skills

Air export sales

Strategic planning

Team leadership

Pricing & revenue growth

Client negotiations

Operations coordination

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Business/Logistics

Job description

Experience Required: 15-20 years

Key Responsibilities

A. Business Strategy & Department Leadership

• Develop and execute short- and long-term air export sales strategies.
• Set monthly, quarterly, and annual revenue, gross profit, and shipment targets.
• Identify new markets, trade lanes, industries, and business opportunities.
• Prepare sales forecasts, budgets, and performance reports for management.

B. Business Development & Overseas Agent Network

• Generate new business from exporters, manufacturers, direct shippers, and freight forwarders.
• Build a strong pipeline of prospective customers and international partners.
• Lead client meetings, negotiations, presentations, and commercial discussions.
• Maintain existing accounts and increase repeat business.
• Coordinate with airlines, procurement, and pricing teams to secure competitive rates and space.
• Ensure quotations are commercially competitive while meeting gross profit targets.
• Monitor shipment profitability, pricing trends, and customer-specific performance.
• Develop pricing strategies for key trade lanes and target industries.

D. Team Management & Performance

• Lead, train, and motivate the air export sales team.
• Assign individual targets and monitor daily, weekly, and monthly performance.
• Conduct regular reviews of calls, meetings, quotations, conversions, and customer acquisition.
• Coach team members to improve negotiation, follow-up, and closing skills.

E. Operations & Customer Service Coordination

• Work closely with operations, documentation, pricing, and finance teams to ensure smooth shipment execution.
• Ensure timely quotations, accurate documentation, proactive communication, and service quality.
• Resolve escalated customer issues and coordinate corrective actions.
• Support timely collections and adherence to approved credit policies.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Performance will be measured against agreed targets for:

• Air export revenue and gross profit (GP).
• New customers acquired and existing customers retained.
• Quotation turnaround time and conversion ratio.
• Gross profit per shipment and overall department profitability.
• Team productivity and target achievement.
• Customer satisfaction, service quality, and payment collections.

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Logistics, or a related field preferred.
• 15-20 years of experience in freight forwarding and air export sales.
• At least 5-8 years in a team leadership or managerial role.
• Proven experience in business development, customer acquisition, pricing, and revenue growth.
• Strong understanding of air export operations, airline procurement, international trade lanes, and freight forwarding documentation.
• Strategic planning and business development.
• Strong sales leadership, negotiation, and relationship management.
• Commercial understanding of pricing, gross profit, and profitability.
• Team building, coaching, and performance management.
• Customer-focused decision-making and problem-solving.
• Strong communication, reporting, forecasting, and analytical skills.