Sales & Commercial Excellence Leader
Soul Equity Solutions, Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60290
Private Equity Sales & Commercial Excellence Leader
A Chicago based PE firm is seeking a Sales & Commercial Excellence leader to join its portfolio operations team. This role will drive sales professionalization and revenue growth across the firm's lower middle market healthcare portfolio companies, many of which are founder-owned or lightly institutionalized businesses transitioning to institutional best practices.
This is a hands-on, dual-focused role combining sales operations excellence (building the commercial infrastructure) with sales team management (coaching teams and driving performance). The ideal candidate thrives on strategy and execution, enjoys working across multiple businesses simultaneously, and is energized by the opportunity to create measurable impact in fast-moving, entrepreneurial environments.
Quickly assess company Go-To-Market health including segmentation, value-proposition, funnel math, pricing discipline, pipeline quality, sales productivity, etc.
Implement and optimize sales processes, pipeline management, CRM tools, and data hygiene across portfolio companies based on repeatable frameworks
Design analytic and KPIs dashboards to track conversion rates, product/service-level profitability, customer lifetime value, sales cycle length, and pipeline health
Recommend organizational design and optimization decisions (geographic vs. product-line coverage, hunter vs. farmer roles, inside vs. field sales structures)
Develop compensation plans and commission structures aligned with company value creation plan, strategy and portfolio goals
Create forecasting models and capacity planning frameworks to support growth targets and coordinate effective SIOP processes with operations
Sales Team Leadership & Coaching
Assess sales leadership and team capabilities to provide coaching where possible and support top-grading activity where necessary
Lead or participate in weekly sales team meetings, reviewing pipeline health, activity metrics, and opportunity progression
Coach sales executives, managers and reps on pipeline management, qualification frameworks (e.g., MEDDIC/BANT), call structures, demo excellence, and CRM discipline
Introduce sales management cadence & KPIs to drive accountability and performance improvement: weekly pipeline reviews, monthly forecast reviews, quarterly planning
Other Commercial/Marketing Support
Advise company leadership on Value Proposition, Marketing and Communications initiatives
Interface and manage third party resources to support various related commercial activities including SEO/SEM, Marketing, Branding, Product Mgmt, Pricing, etc.)
Provide financially driven Commercial decision tools and frameworks create transparency & encourage discipline
Serve as a trusted advisor to portfolio company CEOs, CROs, and sales leaders
Spend days/weeks/months deeply embedded in individual portfolio companies in interim roles as needed
Support diligence efforts and post-acquisition integration with a focus on commercial transformation and revenue synergies
Manage and coordinate third-party advisors and consultants as needed
Ideal Candidate Profile
Background: Management consulting experience in commercial excellence, revenue operations, or sales transformation—ideally serving private equity clients or PE-backed portfolio companies
Expertise: Proven experience building/implementing CRM systems, sales processes, compensation plans, pipeline frameworks, and go-to-market strategies
Industry: Conversational understanding of healthcare helpful but not required; ability to adapt sales models across different business types (SaaS vs. consulting/services vs. provider practices)
Execution focus: Balances strategic design with hands‑on implementation; knows when to provide immediate answers vs. lengthy analyses
Ambiguity tolerance: Comfortable operating in messy, low‑infrastructure environments with founder‑led businesses
Communication: Can hold court in CEO one-on-ones as advisor, not note-taker; influences executives and operators alike
Background & Qualifications
Bachelor's degree required; strong academic credentials preferred
Mid-career professionals
Demonstrated track record of driving measurable sales/revenue improvement outcomes
Based in or willing to relocate to Chicago; travel to portfolio companies as needed
Compensation
Base/total compensation $275,000 - $325,000 (flexible based on experience)
Potential eligibility for carry in future funds
Why This Role
Direct partnership with portfolio company leadership and Sheridan deal teams
Opportunity to build reproducible commercial excellence playbooks across a scaling platform
Portfolio-wide influence vs. project-by-project consulting work
Clear growth path as Sheridan scales AUM and deploys new funds
This firm is an equal opportunity employer. All aspects of employment including the decision to hire, promote, discipline, or discharge, will be based on merit, competence, performance, and business needs. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, pregnancy, genetic information, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other status protected under federal, state, or local law.
About Soul Equity Solutions Soul Equity Solutions is a NYC based boutique executive search firm, exclusively recruiting for Private Equity Middle Market firms. We conduct searches at all seniority levels throughout the US for both investor roles and non-investing roles (including Business Development, Investor Relations). We are well known for our highly boutique, specialized service. Our clients and candidates rely on our personal approach, strong connections, and supportive process to meet their objectives.
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This is a hands-on, dual-focused role combining sales operations excellence (building the commercial infrastructure) with sales team management (coaching teams and driving performance). The ideal candidate thrives on strategy and execution, enjoys working across multiple businesses simultaneously, and is energized by the opportunity to create measurable impact in fast-moving, entrepreneurial environments.
Quickly assess company Go-To-Market health including segmentation, value-proposition, funnel math, pricing discipline, pipeline quality, sales productivity, etc.
Implement and optimize sales processes, pipeline management, CRM tools, and data hygiene across portfolio companies based on repeatable frameworks
Design analytic and KPIs dashboards to track conversion rates, product/service-level profitability, customer lifetime value, sales cycle length, and pipeline health
Recommend organizational design and optimization decisions (geographic vs. product-line coverage, hunter vs. farmer roles, inside vs. field sales structures)
Develop compensation plans and commission structures aligned with company value creation plan, strategy and portfolio goals
Create forecasting models and capacity planning frameworks to support growth targets and coordinate effective SIOP processes with operations
Sales Team Leadership & Coaching
Assess sales leadership and team capabilities to provide coaching where possible and support top-grading activity where necessary
Lead or participate in weekly sales team meetings, reviewing pipeline health, activity metrics, and opportunity progression
Coach sales executives, managers and reps on pipeline management, qualification frameworks (e.g., MEDDIC/BANT), call structures, demo excellence, and CRM discipline
Introduce sales management cadence & KPIs to drive accountability and performance improvement: weekly pipeline reviews, monthly forecast reviews, quarterly planning
Other Commercial/Marketing Support
Advise company leadership on Value Proposition, Marketing and Communications initiatives
Interface and manage third party resources to support various related commercial activities including SEO/SEM, Marketing, Branding, Product Mgmt, Pricing, etc.)
Provide financially driven Commercial decision tools and frameworks create transparency & encourage discipline
Serve as a trusted advisor to portfolio company CEOs, CROs, and sales leaders
Spend days/weeks/months deeply embedded in individual portfolio companies in interim roles as needed
Support diligence efforts and post-acquisition integration with a focus on commercial transformation and revenue synergies
Manage and coordinate third-party advisors and consultants as needed
Ideal Candidate Profile
Background: Management consulting experience in commercial excellence, revenue operations, or sales transformation—ideally serving private equity clients or PE-backed portfolio companies
Expertise: Proven experience building/implementing CRM systems, sales processes, compensation plans, pipeline frameworks, and go-to-market strategies
Industry: Conversational understanding of healthcare helpful but not required; ability to adapt sales models across different business types (SaaS vs. consulting/services vs. provider practices)
Execution focus: Balances strategic design with hands‑on implementation; knows when to provide immediate answers vs. lengthy analyses
Ambiguity tolerance: Comfortable operating in messy, low‑infrastructure environments with founder‑led businesses
Communication: Can hold court in CEO one-on-ones as advisor, not note-taker; influences executives and operators alike
Background & Qualifications
Bachelor's degree required; strong academic credentials preferred
Mid-career professionals
Demonstrated track record of driving measurable sales/revenue improvement outcomes
Based in or willing to relocate to Chicago; travel to portfolio companies as needed
Compensation
Base/total compensation $275,000 - $325,000 (flexible based on experience)
Potential eligibility for carry in future funds
Why This Role
Direct partnership with portfolio company leadership and Sheridan deal teams
Opportunity to build reproducible commercial excellence playbooks across a scaling platform
Portfolio-wide influence vs. project-by-project consulting work
Clear growth path as Sheridan scales AUM and deploys new funds
This firm is an equal opportunity employer. All aspects of employment including the decision to hire, promote, discipline, or discharge, will be based on merit, competence, performance, and business needs. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, pregnancy, genetic information, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other status protected under federal, state, or local law.
About Soul Equity Solutions Soul Equity Solutions is a NYC based boutique executive search firm, exclusively recruiting for Private Equity Middle Market firms. We conduct searches at all seniority levels throughout the US for both investor roles and non-investing roles (including Business Development, Investor Relations). We are well known for our highly boutique, specialized service. Our clients and candidates rely on our personal approach, strong connections, and supportive process to meet their objectives.
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