Senior Sales Manager - Zambia

About Cellulant:

Cellulant is Africa’s leading payments company, providing seamless, secure and innovative solutions that empower businesses, banks, and global brands to thrive in a fast-changing global economy. 

With a presence in over 24 countries and 200+ payment methods, including cards, bank transfers, and mobile money, our single API payment platform, Tingg, simplifies collections, disbursements, and reconciliations. It processes over 4.5 million transactions daily for market leaders across
sectors such as
Airlines, Telecoms, E-commerce, Ride-Hailing, Retail, and Remittances. 

By simplifying how people pay and get paid, we drive trust, commerce and scale – and connect companies to their ambitions.
 

Our Story:

Across Africa, payments are more than transactions. They are gateways to prosperity, connecting people, businesses and communities to opportunities and growth.

From enabling a logistics company in Lusaka to pay suppliers across borders, to enabling a hospitality brand in Lagos to scale effortlessly, to supporting an airline in Nairobi to reconcile payments from multiple platforms, Cellulant is the bridge that makes it all possible. 

Through trusted technology and customer-centric innovation, we build connections that inspire progress, strengthen economies and transform payments into a tool for progress.

Since our founding in 2003, we've continuously adapted and grown, leveraging our experiences to simplify payments for businesses. We are driven by an unshakable belief that seamless people-centred payments are the key to unlocking prosperity. 

Today, Cellulant powers online and offline payment processing, allowing businesses to collect payments, send payouts, and accelerate business growth.

Our Mission: 

To deliver seamless, secure and innovative payment solutions for businesses. 

Our Vision: 

To create a connected world where businesses move money as easily as they share ideas.

Role Overview: 

As the Senior Sales Manager , you will be the pioneering commercial and operational engine behind our expansion in Zambia. Reporting directly to the Country Manager/Regional Manager for Zambia, Mozambique, and Botswana, this role demands an entrepreneurial, "build-from-scratch" mindset  to accelerate market growth and strengthen commercial performance, and is the most senior dedicated commercial leader in-market where that structure exists.

You will take total ownership of market penetration strategy identifying new sectors, building high-value corporate partnerships, and negotiating lucrative service agreements. This is a hybrid commercial-operational position; you will simultaneously hunt for new revenue pipelines while coordinating with regional headquarters to ensure local regulatory compliance, smooth service delivery, and flawless operational execution.

The role owns in-country sales strategy delivery, pipeline generation and conversion, key account growth, and achievement of revenue and gross profit targets across Cellulant's product portfolio.

Working Relationships: 

• Country Manager (primary line)SVP, Local Markets (dotted line)Group CROSales Enablement & Performance ManagementProduct & Innovation TeamsCompliance & Legal TeamsCustomer Success Teams
• Strategic customers & merchantsBanking & payment partnersEcosystem partnersIndustry associationsRegulators (where required for commercial engagements e.g. LONOs)

What You'll do:

• Develop and execute the country sales plan, aligned to the overall market strategy and Group commercial priorities set by the Country Manager and SVP Local Markets.
• Translate revenue targets into actionable sales plans, pipeline requirements, territory allocations, and account growth initiatives.
• Own pipeline development, pipeline quality, and conversion performance across the market.
• Maintain pipeline coverage ratios adequate to hit revenue targets at all times.
• Lead weekly sales pipeline reviews, forecasting sessions, and opportunity management processes.
• Deliver or exceed agreed revenue, transaction volume, and gross profit targets.
• Proactively identify and pursue new business opportunities, customer segments, partnerships, and use cases.
• Lead strategic commercial negotiations and support closure of high-value opportunities.
• Build long-term relationships with strategic customers and ecosystem partners.
• Drive customer retention, satisfaction improvement, and share-of-wallet growth.
  
• Maintain accurate sales forecasts and provide regular commercial performance updates to the Country Manager and SVP Local Markets.
• Collaborate with Product, Innovation, Marketing, and Customer Success teams to improve commercial outcomes.
• Where a sales team exists: lead, coach, and motivate in-country sales and business development colleagues; drive a high-performance sales culture and execution discipline.
• Ensure all sales and business development activities comply with local regulations and internal Cellulant policies.
• Work with Compliance and Legal teams to ensure customer onboarding and partnership structures meet regulatory requirements.
• Support AML/CFT, KYC, and data privacy obligations within commercial processes.
• Escalate emerging commercial compliance risks or regulatory concerns to the Country Manager.
• Promote ethical sales conduct and adherence to Cellulant governance standards.
• Ensure commercial team members complete required compliance and policy training.
  

What we are looking for:

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Economics, Information Technology, or a related field.
•  5+ years of hands-on experience in business development, B2B sales, corporate account management, or market expansion.
• Significant progressive experience in enterprise sales, business development, or commercial leadership — depth and track record of delivery matter more than years.
• Strong background in fintech, payments, banking, telecommunications, or digital financial services.
• Proven record of delivering consistent revenue growth and managing large commercial pipelines.
• Demonstrated experience managing strategic customer relationships and enterprise sales cycles.
• Experience leading or coordinating a commercial team; coaching and developing commercial talent.
• A clear, demonstrable history of driving revenue growth and taking a product or service from entry-level visibility to a scaled market presence.

• A deep, native understanding of the Zambian corporate ecosystem, local business etiquette, and regulatory landscapes (Lusaka-based network preferred).
•  A distinct "build-from-scratch" attitude with the resilience required to establish operations in a lean, fast-growing environment.
• Strong commercial acumen with a proven ability to interface with executive-level decision-makers and close complex agreements.
•  Highly self-motivated and comfortable working independently with minimal day-to-day oversight, while maintaining reporting discipline.
• Excellent data analysis, presentation, and communication skills to effectively report market realities back to regional stakeholders

Skills & Competencies:

• Sales strategy executionPipeline & forecast managementStrategic account managementCommercial acumen & deal structuring negotiation.
  
• Team leadership & coachingStakeholder engagement & influencingCross-functional collaborationCustomer relationship managementPresentation & communication.
  
• Regulated commercial environment awarenessCompliance and KYC processesEthical conduct & governance standards.

Personal Attributes:

• High integrity, personal accountability, and commercial drive.
• Strong communication and influencing skills.
• Resilient and execution-oriented, energised by targets and commercial complexity.
• Customer-centric mindset with a long-term relationship orientation.
• Comfortable operating in complex, fast-changing, regulated environments.

Why this role matters?

Expanding a business across diverse African markets requires navigating localized corporate cultures, unique financial networks, and rapidly evolving regulatory frameworks.This role matters because you are the definitive face and architect of our brand in Zambia.

You aren't just managing an existing portfolio; you are establishing a sustainable market footprint from the ground up. In a fast-growing, dynamic business environment, your ability to unlock local enterprise partnerships, secure market share, and circumvent operational bottlenecks is what transforms strategic intent into real, scalable revenue. Your successes will not only define our trajectory in Zambia but will also set the blueprint for our wider growth strategy across the Southern African region.

Why Work for Us?

At Cellulant, we are more than a payments company: we are bridge-builders. We believe that by simplifying the way people pay and get paid, we are connecting companies to their ambitions, people to opportunities, and Africa to the global economy. Our work goes beyond payments—it’s about what people, businesses, and communities can do when the movement of money becomes more dependable, seamless, and secure. 

Some exciting things about us...

• We have an extensive footprint: We have an office presence in 10 countries, and our products serve 24 countries across Africa, with a global workforce of about 300 employees. 
• We believe innovation is at the heart of Fintech: Thousands of market leaders and top enterprises trust our technology to power their payments. Our customers are in various sectors, including financial services, travel and hospitality, telecom, e-commerce, remittance companies, SaaS, and the gig economy. 
• We support a diverse and inclusive workforce: We focus on the growth and development of our employees through well-developed, individualised career paths, ensuring you reach your full potential in a supportive and delivery-oriented environment. 
• We put our employees first: At Cellulant, your contribution is rewarded competitively. We use clear career levels and role titles, and benchmark our base pay against data and a well-established internal process. Your actual salary will reflect your experience, skills, impact and the scope of the role, as well as our business needs and prevailing market conditions. We also offer generous personal time off, and medical and life insurance benefits (markets permitting).
• We seek collaborative builders: At Cellulant, we believe that great ideas happen when we come together. Therefore, we nurture a collaborative work environment that challenges, engages, and empowers each person to contribute to the growth and success of the business. 
• We solve Africa's digital economy: We’re solving payment challenges on the continent to create opportunities and accelerate economic growth for all of Africa.