Head of Sales (India & APAC) – Aerospace & Strategic Electronics

Key Responsibilities:

Revenue Growth & Sales Strategy

• Own annual and multi-year revenue, order-booking, and margin targets for India and APAC, and build the strategy to achieve faster-than-market growth in the defence electronics sector

• Define the go-to-market strategy across product verticals, customer segments, and geographies, with INS/IMU as the anchor business and complementary verticals as cross-sell and solution-sell growth engines

• Build and manage a qualified, well-forecasted sales pipeline from early-stage opportunities through order closure, with clear stage gates and conversion targets

• Identify new programs, platforms, and applications where the company’s products can be designed in early, and convert developmental engagements into production orders

• Recommend market entry, partnership, and investment decisions, including teaming arrangements, joint ventures, and strategic alliances that accelerate growth

Customer & Key Account Management (India):-

• Build and sustain senior-level relationships across the Indian defence ecosystem, including:

  • End-users: Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Air Force, Coast Guard, and other armed and paramilitary forces

  • DPSUs and shipyards: HAL, BEL, BDL, BEML, and other defence public sector undertakings

  • Research and development organizations: DRDO laboratories (such as RCI, DRDL, ADE, ASL, LRDE, and others) and other government R&D establishments

  • Private defence OEMs and integrators: Tata Advanced Systems, L&T, Mahindra, and other medium and large defence companies, including UAV, missile, avionics, and vehicle system integrators

• Develop account plans for priority customers, mapping programs, decision-makers, budgets, and timelines, and drive account penetration across multiple product verticals

• Position the company as a trusted indigenous supplier and long-term technology partner, aligned with Atmanirbhar Bharat and indigenization priorities

• Coordinate customer demonstrations, technical presentations, field evaluations, and user trials with engineering and quality teams

Defence Procurement, Tenders & Contracting

• Track and shape opportunities through the defence procurement lifecycle, including RFIs, RFPs, tenders, trials, technical and commercial evaluation, and contract negotiation

• Apply working knowledge of the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) and its procurement categories, indigenous content requirements, and initiatives such as Make-I, Make-II, iDEX, and the positive indigenization lists

• Lead preparation of technical and commercial proposals, compliance statements, and bid responses, and manage pricing strategy in competitive and L1-driven environments

• Manage commercial negotiations, contract terms, payment milestones, bank guarantees, and delivery schedules in coordination with finance, legal, and program teams

• Ensure proper vendor registration, empanelment, and qualification with customers and quality assurance agencies

Portfolio & Solution Selling

• Drive sales of the core INS, IMU, and AHRS portfolio for aircraft, UAVs, missiles and munitions, land vehicles, naval platforms, and stabilized payloads

• Grow complementary verticals and cross-sell them into the same customers and programs:

  • Situational awareness solutions

  • GNSS systems, including receivers and resilient/anti-jam navigation solutions

  • Guidance, navigation and control (GNC) solutions

  • Other avionic sensor systems (attitude, heading, air data, and related flight sensors)

• Create bundled system-level offerings that combine multiple products to increase deal size, customer stickiness, and differentiation

• Work closely with engineering and product teams to convert customer requirements into product variants, and feed market intelligence back into the product roadmap

APAC Market Development

• Develop and execute a market entry and growth plan for priority APAC markets, identifying target countries, programs, and customer segments

• Identify, appoint, and manage distributors, channel partners, and local integrators, and establish governance for their performance

• Build relationships with regional defence ministries, armed forces, primes, and integrators through direct engagement, exhibitions, and government-to-government channels where applicable

• Ensure compliance with Indian and destination-country export regulations, including export licensing, end-user certification, and controls applicable to inertial and navigation technologies

Sales Operations, Forecasting & Commercial Discipline

• Establish CRM, pipeline reviews, and forecasting processes to ensure visibility, accuracy, and accountability across the sales team

• Own pricing frameworks, discounting authority, and margin discipline, in coordination with finance and business leadership

• Monitor order-to-cash performance, including collections, payment milestones, and receivables

• Provide periodic sales and market reports to senior leadership covering revenue, pipeline, win/loss analysis, competitive landscape, and risks

Marketing, Brand & Ecosystem Presence

• Build the company’s brand and visibility in the defence ecosystem through Aero India, DefExpo, DRDO and armed forces events, industry forums, and APAC defence exhibitions

• Work with marketing teams on collateral, capability presentations, case studies, and customer references

• Engage with industry bodies, policy forums, and innovation programs to stay ahead of policy and procurement developments

Team Building & Leadership

• Build, lead, and mentor a high-performing sales, business development, and bid management team across India and APAC

• Define territory, account, and vertical responsibilities, set clear targets, and align incentives with revenue and margin outcomes

• Foster close collaboration among sales, engineering, program management, quality, and finance to ensure customer commitments are met

Governance, Ethics & Compliance

• Ensure strict compliance with anti-corruption laws, defence procurement rules, integrity pact requirements, and company code of conduct in all sales activities

• Ensure compliance with export control, offset, and regulatory requirements applicable to defence sales

• Manage third-party, channel partner, and representative engagements in line with legal and ethical guidelines

Experience and Qualifications

Education

Bachelor’s degree in:

• Electronics Engineering / Electrical Engineering

• Aerospace Engineering

• Instrumentation / Mechanical Engineering

• Related engineering or science discipline

MBA / PGDM in Marketing, Strategy, or International Business is preferred.

Experience

• Typically 15–20+ years of experience in sales and business development in defence, aerospace, or strategic electronics, including at least 7–8 years in senior sales leadership with revenue responsibility

• Proven track record of winning and growing business with the Indian armed forces, DPSUs, DRDO laboratories, and private defence OEMs

• Demonstrated experience in complex, long-cycle, technology-driven subsystem or systems sales

• Demonstrated ability to build and lead high-performing sales teams and deliver sustained revenue growth

Preferred Experience

• Experience selling inertial, navigation, avionics, sensor, or defence electronics products

• Experience with tender-based procurement, trials, and developmental-to-production order conversion

• Experience opening or growing defence business in APAC markets, including working with distributors and partners

• Existing relationships with senior stakeholders at HAL, BEL, DRDO labs, armed forces, and major private defence OEMs

• Exposure to export control, offset, and international defence contracting requirements

• Prior service in the armed forces or a DPSU, or close working exposure to their procurement and user environment

Certifications (Preferred)

• MBA / PGDM from a reputed institution

• Formal training in strategic selling, negotiation, or contract management

• Experience working under AS9100D quality systems

Required Skills

Sales & Business Development Skills

• Proven ability to win and grow large, long-cycle B2B and government/defence accounts

• Strategic account management and multi-stakeholder selling across users, technical evaluators, procurement, and finance

• Pipeline building, forecasting, and conversion management

• Bid management, proposal development, and competitive positioning

• Pricing strategy, negotiation, and contract management

Defence Ecosystem & Procurement Knowledge

• Strong understanding of the Indian defence ecosystem, including armed forces, DPSUs, DRDO, private OEMs, and quality/certification agencies

• Working knowledge of the Defence Acquisition Procedure, tender processes, trials and evaluation, Make-I / Make-II / iDEX routes, and indigenization policies

• Awareness of export control regimes, offsets, and defence trade regulations relevant to India and APAC

• Established network and credibility with decision-makers and influencers in defence customers and OEMs

Technical & Domain Understanding

• Sound understanding of inertial navigation systems, IMUs, and AHRS, including performance grades and typical applications

• Working knowledge of complementary technologies: GNSS, guidance, navigation and control (GNC), situational awareness systems, and avionic sensors

• Familiarity with defence and aerospace qualification and standards such as MIL-STD-810, MIL-STD-461, and DO-160

• Ability to engage credibly with engineers, program managers, and senior technical evaluators, and translate customer needs into product positioning

Commercial & Analytical Skills

• Financial acumen: margins, cost-plus and L1 pricing, working capital, and order-to-cash management

• Market analysis, competitive intelligence, and opportunity sizing

• Experience with CRM and sales analytics tools. Examples:

  • OdooCRM / HubSpot / Zoho CRM

  • MS Excel / Power BI

  • GeM and e-procurement portals

Leadership & Communication

• Leadership of sales teams and cross-functional collaboration with engineering, program, and finance teams

• Executive presence and communication with senior military, government, and industry stakeholders

• Decision-making under uncertainty and long sales cycles

• Resilience, integrity, and structured problem-solving