Mark Harper Email & Phone Number

Burntwood

At the UK subsidiary of Europe’s leading manufacturer of document and media shredders, I restructured the sales team after 5 years of sales decline and produced 7% growth in the first full year, followed by 37% growth the year after. In 2018, I devised and implemented a new distribution & pricing strategy direct to dealers which produced a 27% increase in net GM percentage over 2 years. I personally managed the team’s largest customers contributing around 40% of total UK revenue.I introduced a full service leased data protection proposition that allowed dealers to target larger deals and more than double their average profit per deal, with an upgrade path in 5 years. In 2019 I was seconded to the turbulent US subsidiary, re-recruited the sales team, appointed a VP of Sales, visited key customers and produced a saving of $65k in programme costs.During the pandemic, I compensated for a 40% decline in the B2B document shredder market by strongly promoting high value, high margin cardboard packaging shredders, increasing their sales by over 500% and holding overall revenue decline to only 4%. Becoming a document data protection expert, I had many articles published online and in the trade press.

Wingerworth - Derbyshire

At CPL Renewables, part the Europe’s largest manufacturer and distributor of solid fuels, I grew commercial biomass heating system sales team with revenues growing from zero to £850k in first year and then to £2.6m. At the same time, I doubled wood pellet distribution sales volumes through a fleet of wood pellet delivery tankers. I negotiated supply and 20 year support of commercial heating installations, including the £1.3 installation of one of the largest pellet heating solutions in the UK in a large boarding school. To support the growth of the wood pellet business I secured the lease of two 5,000 tonne pellet stores in Wiltshire and Lincolnshire, negotiated and oversaw the first import of 5,000 tonnes of pellets from Portugal and brokered a co-operation agreement with major competitor to increase geographical coverage.

I transformed two competing laser engraving equipment dealers in Bristol & Newcastle into a successful single UK subsidiary of Trotec, the market-leading Austrian manufacturer of premium quality laser engraving and cutting equipment. I managed both laser equipment and consumables sales teams, marketing, service, manufacturing, admin, warehouse & finance.I increased the size of the sales team, recruited a UK marketing manager, implemented new marketing campaigns and doubled laser annual unit sales from 70 to 150. At the same time I restructured the service & admin teams resulting in moving the whole company to the Newcastle site. Overall growth was from £3.6m to £5.2m

Consultant and trainer in a small, sales-oriented L&D business, working with Blue chips and SMEs. I was involved in several notable projects – developing and delivering a major accounts sales methodology for large Records Management company; writing Sales Management assessment scenarios for a Pan-European sales organisation and delivering a Training Needs Analysis & Sales Management Training for £10m SME.

Delivering critical sales projects across the UK salesforce, I worked with UK & European Head Offices to deliver the rollout of 400 seats of Salesforce.com CRM system in the UK, including customisation, pilot, launch and post launch support. In addition, I delivered projects that developed a new direct sales strategy to re-launch document management sales in the UK, devised new methodology and process to define and sell Managed Print Services (MPS) into medium enterprises and implemented a process for winning larger, more profitable sales opportunities, across UK business channels.

After a problematic Pan-European Oracle rollout in 2006 I lead the transformation of a sales order, contract administration and business reporting department, with over 120 staff & 6 managers based in head office processing over £150m pa. I slashed 90+ day debt from £12.2m to £1.4m and 90+ day disputed invoices from 7,500 to 517, personally spearheading the work with the largest customers’ complaints. During this time I was the operations lead in the sales team that won MPS deals in AON & RBS.

Held 4 senior management positions, Including General Manger of Central & the West Region and Head of Sales & Service in London and The Midlands.• Lead operations of up to 250 sales, service and support staff, 6 offices and budgets of up to £34m.By transitioning sales to more consultancy business, I improved sales productivity, grew revenue and improved service profitability by controlling service headcount costs and use of trainers. In London I grew sales by 22% in 2005 & by 28% across 4 regions in 2007. I established London as the No1 Region in the UK delivering 109% of operating profit budget. I turned around the loss-making Midlands region by replacing underperformers and returning returned 3 sales teams to profit. I also developed & introduced centre-based recruitment process that reduced new sales attrition by 50%.

• As General Manager of a new division, I quickly challenged and changed the original strategy of selling HP printers into one selling IT networks , with dramatic sales revenue growth from £350,000 in 1999 to £6.5m in 2002. I grew the Group from 12 original members, assimilated the Document Management teams and ended up in the 2002 with 11 managers and 115 staff, achieving over £12m revenue. Also in 2002, the Document Management team was the top performing business unit in Canon UK in 2002 with £5.3m Rev @ 56% Margin. I held P&L responsibility for the business including strategy, contract development, supplier relationships, training, finance, reporting, administration, and marketing.

Starting as a ‘junior’ with no previous sales experience, I rapidly progressed to Territory Salesperson in 4 months and to Area Sales Manager in 3 years. As a salesperson, I was consistently over target, in 1992, I was No 2 nationally in a league of over 70 fax salespeople and personally won Price Waterhouse & BBC World Service accounts for Canon. I was a high performing sales manager in West London and the City managing teams of 6-8 salespeople with budgets up to £4m, winning national awards & trips in 1996 and 1997 and achieving 165% of team GM target in 1997. As a sales manager, I sold to larger accounts – merchant banks, corporate law firms, multinationals & London boroughs.Identified as a high potential manger, I completed 2 experience broadening secondments - 6 months in 1995 as Copycentre Marketing Manager at Head Office and 12 months in 1998 as UK Sales Training Manager.

In an exciting and responsible leadership role, I commanded a 36 strong Armoured Engineer Troop with 12 tanks and armoured vehicles in Germany & Canada responsible to the Brigade Commander for rapid bridging & mine clearance. My second tour was as a Recruit Training Officer in the UK.