Business Unit Manager
Business Development ~ Marketing ~ Sales ~ Commercial
South Africa
Business Unit Manager – Medical Devices
Our client in the medical devices and healthcare industry is seeking an experienced and commercially driven Business Unit Manager to lead and grow a specialised medical devices business within South Africa. This strategic leadership role is responsible for driving commercial performance, developing high-performing teams, strengthening customer partnerships, and ensuring operational excellence while delivering sustainable business growth across both the public and private healthcare sectors.
Key Responsibilities
- Develop and execute the business strategy to drive sustainable sales growth, profitability, and market expansion.
- Lead commercial operations, ensuring the achievement of sales targets, forecasting accuracy, pricing strategies, and pipeline management.
- Build and maintain strategic relationships with healthcare professionals, hospital groups, procurement organisations, government stakeholders, and Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs).
- Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing commercial team while driving accountability, succession planning, and employee engagement.
- Oversee operational performance, including inventory management, demand planning, product launches, CRM utilisation, and cross-functional collaboration.
- Manage the business unit’s financial performance, including budgets, forecasting, P&L responsibility, and resource allocation.
- Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, company policies, quality standards, and ethical business practices.
- Partner with regional and global teams to support strategic initiatives, portfolio growth, and continuous business improvement.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Marketing, Life Sciences, Medical Sciences, or a related field.
- Postgraduate qualification in Business Management or MBA advantageous.
- Minimum 8–10 years’ experience within the medical device industry.
- Minimum 5 years’ leadership experience managing commercial or sales teams.
- Proven experience leading a business unit, country operation, or large commercial organisation.
- Strong understanding of public and private healthcare sectors, including tenders and government procurement processes.
- Experience managing strategic customer relationships, commercial negotiations, and market development initiatives.
- Experience within cardiovascular, endovascular, interventional, or specialised medical device portfolios highly advantageous.
- Strong financial acumen with experience managing budgets, forecasting, and full P&L responsibility.
The ideal candidate is a strategic and inspirational leader with exceptional commercial acumen and the ability to build high-performing teams. Strong stakeholder engagement, business development, negotiation, financial management, and decision-making skills are essential, together with the ability to lead organisational growth within a complex healthcare environment. If you are passionate about leading high-performing teams and driving business growth within the medical devices industry, apply now using the link below.