Sales Apprentice Program

Schneider Electric; South Africa; On-site; ZAR 67,000 - 112,000; Full time

Job summary

Schneider Electric is launching a Sales Apprentice Programme in South Africa to develop unemployed graduates and early career professionals in sales, customer engagement and business development within Home Solutions.

The programme blends structured learning with on-the-job experience, aiming to build a career in sales and customer-facing roles, including CRM usage, demonstrations, and support for channel partners.

Qualifications

• Applicants must have a related commercial or technical National Diploma or undergraduate degree.
• Be a South African citizen.
• Between 18 and 35 years of age.
• Unemployed and not currently participating in another learnership or internship programme.
• Valid driver's licence advantageous.
• Willingness to travel.
• Basic Microsoft Office skills.
• Good verbal and written communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Prospecting & Business Development: Identify and engage potential customers; Generate qualified sales leads; Conduct cold calling and customer outreach; Build and maintain a sales pipeline.
• Customer Engagement: Visit customers and channel partners; Understand customer needs and recommend solutions; Deliver product presentations and demonstrations; Maintain strong customer relationships.
• Sales Support: Assist with quotations and sales proposals; Promote campaigns; Track opportunities using CRM tools; Follow up on customer enquiries.
• Learning & Development: Participate in structured sales training; Complete all learning assignments; Demonstrate application of learning in the field; Uphold professional standards and company values.

Skills

Verbal communication

Written communication

Strong learning agility

Education

National Diploma or Undergraduate Degree (related field)

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

The Schneider Electric Sales Apprentice Programme is designed to provide unemployed graduates and early career professionals (18-35 years) with practical workplace experience in sales, customer engagement and business development within the Home Solutions business.

The programme combines structured learning with on-the-job experience, equipping participants with the skills required to build a successful career in sales and customer-facing commercial roles.

Sales Apprentices will learn how to:

• Prospect and identify new sales opportunities
• Build customer relationships
• Promote Schneider Electric Home Solutions products
• Generate leads and sales pipeline
• Conduct product demonstrations
• Support channel and retail partners
• Manage customer enquiries
• Utilize CRM tools and sales processes
• Develop commercial and negotiation skills

Key Responsibilities

Prospecting & Business Development

• Identify and engage potential customers.
• Generate qualified sales leads.
• Conduct cold calling and customer outreach activities.
• Build and maintain a sales pipeline.

Customer Engagement

• Visit customers and channel partners.
• Understand customer needs and recommend solutions.
• Deliver product presentations and demonstrations.
• Maintain strong customer relationships.

Sales Support

• Assist with quotations and sales proposals.
• Support promotional campaigns and activations.
• Track opportunities using CRM tools.
• Follow up on customer enquiries.

Learning & Development

• Participate in structured sales training.
• Complete all learning assignments.
• Demonstrate application of learning in the field.
• Maintain professional standards and company values.

Success Profile

The ideal Sales Apprentice is someone who Is ambitious, energetic and eager to build a career in sales. They enjoy meeting new people, are comfortable initiating conversations, can handle rejection positively and are motivated by achieving results. They demonstrate strong learning agility, customer focus and a passion for technology and energy management solutions.

Minimum Qualification Requirements

Essential

Applicants must:

• have completed a related commerical or technical National Diploma or Undergraduate Degree at a registered institute in South Africa
• Be a South African citizen
• Between 18 and 35 years of age
• Unemployed and not currently participating in another learnership or internship programme
• Valid driver's licence advantageous
• Willingness to travel
• Basic Microsoft Office skills
• Good verbal and written communication skills

Looking to make an IMPACT with your career?

When you are thinking about joining a new team, culture matters. At Schneider Electric, our values and behaviors are the foundation for creating a great culture to support business success. We believe that our IMPACT values – Inclusion, Mastery, Purpose, Action, Curiosity, Teamwork – starts with us.

IMPACT is also your invitation to join Schneider Electric where you can contribute to turning sustainability ambition into actions, no matter what role you play. It is a call to connect your career with the ambition of achieving a more resilient, efficient, and sustainable world.

We are looking for IMPACT Makers; exceptional people who turn sustainability ambitions into actions at the intersection of automation, electrification, and digitization. We celebrate IMPACT Makers and believe everyone has the potential to be one.

€40 billion global revenue
+9% organic growth
150 000+ employees in 100+ countries

Schneider Electric aspires to be the most inclusive and caring company in the world, by providing equitable opportunities to everyone, everywhere, and ensuring all employees feel uniquely valued and safe to contribute their best. We mirror the diversity of the communities in which we operate, and ‘inclusion’ is one of our core values. We believe our differences make us stronger as a company and as individuals and we are committed to championing inclusivity in everything we do.

At Schneider Electric, we uphold the highest standards of ethics and compliance, and we believe that trust is a foundational value. Our Trust Charter is our Code of Conduct and demonstrates our commitment to ethics, safety, sustainability, quality and cybersecurity, underpinning every aspect of our business and our willingness to behave and respond respectfully and in good faith to all our stakeholders. You can find out more about our Trust Charter here

Schneider Electric is an Equal Opportunity Employer. It is our policy to provide equal employment and advancement opportunities in the areas of recruiting, hiring, training, transferring, and promoting all qualified individuals regardless of race, religion, color, gender, disability, national origin, ancestry, age, military status, sexual orientation, marital status, or any other legally protected characteristic or conduct.