Account Executive

Ntsumi HR Partners; Gauteng; On-site; ZAR 420,000 - 600,000; Full time

Job summary

Ntsumi HR Partners is seeking an Account Executive in Gauteng to own the full new business sales cycle for merchant partners. This hunter role focuses on closing deals, managing pipeline, and onboarding new merchants to drive revenue.

You will collaborate with SDRs, Onboarding, and the Head of Marketplace to ensure a clean end-to-end process from lead to live merchant, with strong emphasis on contract accuracy and rapid cycle times.

Qualifications

• A proven track record in new business or field sales (FMCG/retail/hospitality/delivery or on-demand platform environments).
• Hunter mentality: energised by closing deals and high-volume outbound activity.
• Strong pipeline and CRM discipline with weekly forecasting and reporting cadence.
• Excellent negotiation, listening and relationship-building skills across all levels, internal and external.
• High attention to detail around contracts, documentation and commercial terms.
• A resilient, self motivated operator who can work independently under pressure.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Proactively source, pitch and close new merchant partners, with a target of 20+ signed merchants per month.
• Own the full sales cycle from first discovery meeting to signed agreement, averaging no more than 14 calendar days.
• Convert at least 50% of qualified leads into signed merchant agreements.
• Be accountable for the quality of merchants signed, not just the volume: signed merchants must generate minimum of R150,000 in first 90 days on platform.
• Deliver a complete, written handoff brief for every signed merchant to Onboarding.

Skills

New business sales

Hunter mentality

CRM discipline

Negotiation skills

Communication skills

Attention to detail

Self-motivation

Job description

THE ROLE:

As Account Executive, you will own the full new business sales cycle for merchant partners, from first outreach through to a signed, fully onboarded agreement. This is a hunter role for someone who is energised by closing deals, disciplined about pipeline management, and genuinely invested in signing the right merchants, not just the most merchants. You will work closely with the SDR team, the Onboarding Specialist and the Head of Marketplace to keep the sales engine running cleanly from lead to live merchant.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

New Business & Revenue Generation

• Proactively source, pitch and close new merchant partners, with a target of 20+ signed merchants per month.
• Own the full sales cycle from first discovery meeting to signed agreement, averaging no more than 14 calendar days.
• Convert at least 50% of qualified leads into signed merchant agreements.
• Be accountable for the quality of merchants signed, not just the volume: closed merchants are expected to generate a minimum of R150,000 in cumulative sales value within their first 90 days on the platform.

Pipeline Management & Forecasting

• Maintain a live, qualified pipeline of 40+ active leads with disciplined CRM hygiene, updated within 24 hours of every merchant interaction.
• Respond to all new qualified leads within 4 business hours and schedule first meetings within 48 hours.
• Submit an accurate, probability weighted pipeline forecast and weekly reporting summary every Friday.

Merchant Quality & Fit

• Sign merchants that align with the approved category and territory mix, avoiding over concentration in any single catchment.
• Ensure a smooth go live: at least 90% of signed merchants should process their first customer order within 7 days.
• Set merchants up to succeed long term: a minimum of 80% retention is expected 90 days after go live.

Commercial Discipline

• Execute all merchant agreements on standard commercial terms (fees, notice periods, settlement cycles), escalating any exceptions for prior approval.
• Ensure every signed agreement is complete: verified business documentation, signed terms and conditions, agreed operating hours and a completed product catalogue.

Collaboration & Handoff

• Deliver a complete, written handoff brief for every signed merchant to the Onboarding team, including a warm introduction.
• Work collaboratively with the SDR team, providing regular, constructive feedback on lead quality.
• Share competitive and market intelligence with the Head of Marketplace on a monthly basis.

Professional Standards

• Represent the brand professionally in every merchant interaction and maintain strong working knowledge of the platform, commercial model and support services.
• Engage actively in training, coaching and performance reviews, and take ownership of your own development.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

• A proven track record in new business or field sales, ideally within FMCG, retail, hospitality, delivery or on demand platform environments.
• A genuine hunter mentality: energised by closing deals and comfortable with high volume outbound activity.
• Strong pipeline and CRM discipline, and comfort working to a weekly forecasting and reporting cadence.
• Excellent negotiation, listening and relationship building skills across all levels, internal and external.
• High attention to detail, particularly around contracts, documentation and commercial terms.
• A resilient, self motivated operator who can work independently under pressure.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.

COMPENSATION

• Market related basic salary plus a performance based commission structure. Full details will be shared with shortlisted candidates.