Channel Manager

Reporting to the Sales Director / General Manager – Australia (confirm), the Channel Manager is responsible for delivering profitable growth through Justrite Australia’s distributor and channel partner network. The role will develop and execute the national channel strategy, strengthen partner capability and engagement, expand market coverage and increase adoption of the Justrite workplace safety portfolio. This is a commercially focused, field-based role that works closely with distributor leadership and sales teams, Justrite territory sales, Customer Service, Marketing, Operations and Product Management. The Channel Manager will balance strategic partner management with disciplined execution, including joint business planning, pipeline development, product training, new product introductions and end-user pull-through activity. The Contribution You’ll bring to this Role This role contributes to sustained business growth by building a high-performing channel network that increases market reach, improves distributor effectiveness and creates profitable demand for Justrite solutions. Success will be achieved through clear channel segmentation, strong commercial relationships, joint planning, consistent execution and close collaboration with the Australian sales team. What You’ll Do at Justrite Channel Strategy & Growth Develop and execute a national channel business plan aligned with annual sales, gross margin and strategic objectives. Achieve and exceed channel sales and gross margin targets. Segment and prioritise channel partners based on growth potential, market coverage, capability and strategic fit. Identify, recruit and onboard new distributor partners where additional market or geographic coverage is required. Develop short-, medium- and long-term initiatives to grow Justrite share through the channel. Partner Development Build strong relationships with distributor owners, senior leaders, category managers, branch managers and sales teams. Develop joint business plans with strategic distributors, including growth priorities, target markets, account opportunities and activity plans. Educate and enable distributor sales teams to confidently position and sell Justrite workplace safety solutions. Conduct joint customer visits, product demonstrations and field activity with distributor and Justrite sales teams. Increase partner engagement across the complete Justrite portfolio and support cross-selling and new category adoption. Commercial & Account Management Own commercial performance and growth plans for assigned national and strategic channel accounts. Negotiate trading arrangements and commercial initiatives within approved authority and company policy. Monitor partner performance, sales trends, profitability and return on commercial investment. Maintain a healthy opportunity pipeline and provide accurate monthly sales forecasts. Use Salesforce or other approved CRM tools to maintain accurate account, activity and opportunity records. Market Development & New Products Drive new product introductions through focused channel partners and coordinated end-user specification activity. Identify priority vertical markets and end-user opportunities that can be developed jointly with channel partners and Territory Business Development Managers. Monitor competitor activity, channel trends, pricing and changes in market coverage. Provide Voice of Customer and channel feedback to Marketing and Product Management to support future product and market development. Collaboration & Representation Work closely with Territory Business Development Managers to align distributor activity, end-user opportunities and account ownership. Partner with Customer Service, Marketing, Operations and Product Management to improve the customer and distributor experience. Represent Justrite at distributor conferences, trade shows, industry events and customer meetings. Travel nationally as required to distributor locations, customer sites and company meetings. Competencies Customer & Market Focus - Develops a strong understanding of distributor, end-user and market needs and uses these insights to identify growth opportunities. Maintains awareness of competitor activity, market trends, customer requirements and changing channel dynamics, translating these into actions that strengthen Justrite’s market position and customer value proposition. Channel Development - Builds and develops a high-performing distributor network that expands market reach and drives profitable growth. Assesses partner potential and capability, identifies coverage gaps, recruits and onboards appropriate partners, and improves distributor effectiveness through engagement, training, joint field activity and portfolio development. Commercial Acumen - Understands the commercial drivers of the business and makes decisions that balance revenue growth, gross margin, investment and long-term value. Uses sales, profitability, pricing, pipeline and market data to identify opportunities, assess commercial performance and prioritize resources and activities. Strategic Account Management - Develops productive, long-term relationships with strategic channel partners at multiple organizational levels. Creates and executes joint business plans based on shared growth priorities, target markets and account opportunities, while proactively identifying ways to increase partner performance, portfolio penetration and mutual value. Negotiation & Influencing - Builds commitment and achieves commercially sound outcomes through effective negotiation and influencing. Understands stakeholder priorities, prepares clear commercial positions, handles objections constructively and gains support from distributor partners, customers and internal stakeholders without compromising long-term relationships or company policies. Business Planning - Translates business strategy and sales objectives into clear, actionable channel plans. Establishes priorities, targets, activities and measures of success across short-, medium- and long term horizons, and regularly reviews performance to adjust plans based on results, pipeline, market conditions and emerging opportunities. Drive for Results - Demonstrates a strong focus on achieving and exceeding sales, gross margin and growth objectives. Proactively identifies opportunities, maintains momentum, follows through on commitments and addresses performance gaps. Balances strategic thinking with disciplined execution to convert plans and opportunities into measurable commercial results. Communication & Presentation - Communicates clearly, confidently and persuasively with audiences ranging from distributor owners and senior leaders to branch sales teams and end users. Delivers effective presentations, product training and commercial discussions, adapting the message and level of detail to the audience and desired outcome. Collaboration - Works effectively across organizational and company boundaries to achieve shared commercial outcomes. Builds strong working relationships with Territory Business Development Managers, Customer Service, Marketing, Operations and Product Management, ensuring channel activity and end-user opportunities are coordinated and responsibilities are clear. Accountability - Takes ownership for commitments, decisions and commercial outcomes. Maintains high standards of planning, follow-through, CRM discipline, forecasting and reporting. Identifies issues early, takes appropriate corrective action and can be relied upon to deliver agreed actions without requiring excessive oversight. Position Requirements Essential Minimum 7 years’ B2B sales or channel management experience in technical, industrial or related markets. Demonstrated experience managing and growing distributor or reseller relationships in a multi-channel environment. Proven ability to develop joint business plans, grow revenue and margin, and improve partner performance. Strong commercial, negotiation, presentation and relationship-management skills. Ability to analyse sales performance, market trends and pipeline data and translate insights into action. Experience using Salesforce or a similar CRM system and strong capability in Microsoft Office, particularly Excel and PowerPoint. Current unrestricted Australian driver’s licence. Willingness and ability to travel nationally. Desirable Experience in workplace safety, industrial products, manufacturing, mining, construction, transport, utilities or related markets. Experience working with national and regional industrial distributors. Business, Sales, Marketing or Technical qualifications. Experience supporting new product launches and channel-led market development. Objectives Achievement of annual channel sales revenue and gross margin targets. Growth in sales through strategic distributor partners. Improved distributor engagement, capability and market coverage. New distributor recruitment and activation where required. Joint business plan execution and strategic account growth. Pipeline generation, conversion and forecast accuracy. Growth in new product and portfolio sales through the channel. CRM compliance and quality of account and opportunity data. Effective collaboration between channel partners and the Justrite field sales team. Compensation The successful candidate will receive a competitive base salary together with participation in the Justrite Sales Incentive Plan, providing a market-competitive opportunity to earn performance-based incentive payments. Benefits Justrite Australia offers a competitive remuneration and benefits package, flexible working arrangements where appropriate, ongoing professional development and the opportunity to build a long-term career with a global leader in workplace safety solutions.