Elevate your sales career in Zurich by driving the technologies that keep Switzerland safe. You will champion our broader Thales Group portfolio alongside our locally engineered, world-class innovations ranging from secure broadband communications to advanced power solutions. In this role, you will lead our expansion across both domestic and international markets.
We say HI* – welcome to the Thales team! *Human Intelligence
Say HI* – to your career as
Senior Sales Manager
Location: Zurich #LI-HYBRID
As a Senior Sales Manager, you will architect the future of our business in Switzerland and abroad. In this key role, you will shape complex programs, unlock new markets, and build high-value, long-term partnerships. By combining sharp market intelligence with our cross-functional expertise, you will transform ambitious commercial strategies into tangible results.
Your mission:
- Partner closely with Sales Leadership to transform deep customer insights into long-term strategic partnerships.
- Act as a driving force behind our national and international growth by orchestrating everything from collaborative pre-sales initiatives to contract negotiations and after-sales opportunities.
- Design and execute bespoke sales strategies across targeted market segments and regions, supported by our cross-functional experts.
- Grow alongside your clients by helping them solve their challenges while proactively upselling and cross-selling new solutions.
- Lead high-stakes commercial discussions to deliver exceptional value to both the client and the business.
- Advocate for our clients by ensuring the internal alignment of diverse teams to effectively address customer needs and feedback.
- Stay at the forefront of the industry by continuously analyzing market trends, anticipating risks, and uncovering new opportunities
- Master your opportunity pipeline by prioritizing activities and collaborating with internal and external stakeholders to drive every opportunity across the finish line.
Your Experience
- 10+ years of professional experience in the defense sector, with a deep understanding of global defense markets, military environments, or advanced technological solutions (preferably communication systems, cybersecurity, electronic warfare, radar, or air defense).
- Proven track record as a Sales, Key Account, or Bid Manager, with extensive experience designing and selling complex defence programs in B2B and B2G environments.
- Strong strategic and entrepreneurial mindset, combining high-level vision with a hands-on approach to identifying opportunities, executing sales strategies, and driving business growth.
- Exceptional communication, negotiation, and relationship-building skills, supported by an established network of industrial and governmental stakeholders
- Highly self-motivated and proactive, with the ability to thrive in fast-paced environments and successfully navigate complex corporate ecosystems.
- Robust analytical and problem-solving capabilities, including hands-on proficiency with CRM software, sales analytics, reporting, and performance management tools.
- Master’s degree in Business Administration or equivalent.
- Fluency in German and English; proficiency in French is an advantage.
- Willingness to travel frequently within Switzerland to customer sites and company locations, as well as internationally as required.
Say HI* – Your Way to Us
For our 83,000 employees in 68 countries, we open up forward-looking perspectives, enable individual career paths, and provide creative freedom. We achieve this through courage, diversity, and a strong commitment to making the challenges of our time safer and more inclusive. With our sustainable and values-driven leadership culture, we actively promote diversity.
When the signs point to change, our international teams are ready to meet today’s complexity with tomorrow’s industry-leading technologies. Are you in?
Camilla Christovam
Talent Acquisition Partner #LI-CC1
Skills Required
- 10+ years of professional experience in the defense sector
- Deep understanding of global defense markets, military environments, or advanced technological solutions
- Proven experience as a Sales, Key Account, or Bid Manager
- Experience designing and selling complex defense programs in B2B and B2G environments
- Strategic and entrepreneurial mindset with hands-on sales execution experience
- Strong communication, negotiation, and relationship-building skills
- Established network of industrial and governmental stakeholders
- Analytical and problem-solving capabilities
- Hands-on proficiency with CRM software, sales analytics, reporting, and performance management tools
- Master's degree in Business Administration or equivalent
- Fluency in German and English
- Proficiency in French
- Willingness to travel frequently within Switzerland and internationally
Thales Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Thales and has not been reviewed or approved by Thales.
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Retirement Support — Retirement plans with employer contributions and matches, profit sharing, and share purchase opportunities are emphasized across multiple regions. These elements are positioned as competitive components of total rewards.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Generous PTO that increases with tenure, paid holidays, and paid military, maternity, and paternity leave are described. This breadth supports work–life balance across locations.
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Flexible Benefits — Hybrid work options, flexible schedules, and parental supports such as childcare benefits and leave for sick children are available in several markets. Flexibility is presented as a core part of the employee experience.
Thales Insights
What We Do
Thales is a global high technology leader investing in digital and “deep tech” innovations – connectivity, big data, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and quantum technology – to build a future we can all trust, which is vital to the development of our societies. The company provides solutions, services and products that help its customers – businesses, organisations and states – in the defence, aeronautics, space, transportation and digital identity and security markets to fulfil their critical missions, by placing humans at the heart of the decision-making process.
