Job titles matter less than the sales environment.

Journey recruits IT salespeople across new business, account management, channel, alliance, customer success and sales leadership roles.

Through TRACE, we define what the role really needs. Through SEEK, we understand what the candidate has actually done.

Journey recruits IT salespeople across new business, account management, channel, alliance, customer success and sales leadership roles.

Job titles matter less than the sales environment. The same title can look right on paper, sound impressive in interview and still feel wrong once the person is in the role.

That is why the first step is not to find candidates. It is to understand the role properly.

Through TRACE, clients see the role clearly, hear the evidence properly and get a feel for whether the match is real. Through SEEK, we understand how the candidate actually sells, manages, leads or grows revenue.

When the role is properly understood, the right candidate becomes much easier to recognise.

Journey recruits across the main sales environments found in complex IT and technology markets.

We place new business salespeople. The term is absolute: selling to companies who are not existing clients.

Before you hire a new business salesperson, understand how they create opportunity. Some salespeople are given leads. Some create their own. The difference is vast.

You can see it in the numbers, hear it in how they describe their sales process and feel it in the level of ownership they take.

One is not automatically better than the other, but it has a huge bearing on the type of candidate a client should hire.

Through TRACE, we help clients define the new business role properly. Through SEEK, we understand the candidate’s actual route to market, sales process and evidence of performance.

We place Account Executives, Account Managers and Account Directors. These titles are often used loosely.

An Account Executive in one company may be a pure new business hunter. In another, they may manage existing accounts, expand revenue, renew contracts, develop white space or lead complex enterprise relationships.

Look beyond the title and the picture changes.

Journey looks at ICP, account penetration, white space, blue space, cross-sell, upsell, renewal responsibility, stakeholder depth and the type of buyer inside the customer.

Most companies hiring account-based roles do not simply need a tired new business seller who thinks account management will be easier. They need someone with the right account development skill, commercial judgement and customer-facing discipline for the role.

The best account people can hear opportunity before it is obvious, feel their way around a customer relationship and see where value can be created.

TRACE helps clients define that requirement. SEEK helps us understand whether the candidate has really done it.

We place Sales Managers, Sales Directors, Chief Revenue Officers and go-to-market leaders.

Sales leadership roles can look similar on paper and sound similar in conversation. They are not.

Some sales leaders are there to grow revenue. Some are there to retain revenue. Some are there to coach. Some are there to build. Some are there to manage. Some are there to fix. Some are there to create the route to market from scratch.

Before the search gathers pace, the leadership requirement needs to come into focus.

  • Is this a revenue growth role or a revenue retention role?
  • Is the leader expected to manage, coach, build, sell or transform?
  • How close will they be to the end-user sale?
  • Are they inheriting a team, building one or fixing one?
  • Does the business need sales management or strategic go-to-market direction?
  • Does the role require hands-on deal involvement, board-level influence or both?

A good sales leader in one environment can be completely wrong in another. TRACE helps clients get clear before the market hears the brief. That clarity changes the search.

We place Channel Managers and Partner Managers across software, business applications, services and consulting markets.

Channel sales can be highly efficient, but it is hard to build and easy to misunderstand.

A channel role can sound attractive because the model looks scalable. In practice, the role can feel very different depending on how mature the channel is, how much partner trust already exists and whether the market creates end-user pull or relies on channel push.

A candidate who can manage an established partner network may not be the right person to build one from scratch. That distinction matters.

When we recruit channel roles, we look at:

  • How mature the channel already is
  • The number and quality of partners
  • Revenue per partner
  • End-user pull versus channel push
  • Distribution layers
  • Partner enablement
  • Co-sell motion
  • Whether the role is strategic, commercial or relationship-led

When the channel is understood properly, the right candidate profile becomes much clearer. TRACE helps clients see whether they need a builder, manager, developer, operator or commercial partner leader.

Journey places Alliance Managers. Alliance roles are often misunderstood because the title can cover very different responsibilities.

Some alliance roles are strategic ecosystem roles. Some are co-sell roles. Some are partner development roles. Some are senior relationship roles with limited direct revenue responsibility.

The word “alliance” can sound impressive, but the real question is what the alliance is expected to do. Alliance managers are hired to increase revenue, not just wander around a golf course.

Using TRACE, we look at where the alliance sits on the maturity curve. The clearer the alliance becomes, the easier it is to hear whether a candidate has the right experience and feel whether they can move the relationship forward.

The right candidate depends on the maturity, expectation and commercial reality of the role.

Journey places Customer Success Managers. Customer success is not account management with a different title.

The role has grown as SaaS, subscription and renewable contract models have become more important. Strong CSMs help customers adopt the product, use it properly, realise value and stay engaged.

That supports:

  • Retention
  • Expansion
  • Renewal
  • Referenceability
  • A stronger base for future growth

A good CSM can often see risk early, hear dissatisfaction before it becomes churn and feel whether the customer is genuinely getting value.

The best CSM profile depends on the product, customer type, renewal model and level of commercial responsibility. Some CSM roles are adoption-led. Some are commercially led. Some are closer to account management. Some are closer to service, implementation or product usage.

The title is not enough. Through SEEK, we look for the traits, evidence and customer understanding behind the title. Through TRACE, clients get clearer on what kind of customer success role they are actually hiring for.

For a small number of select Journey clients, we sometimes work outside target-carrying sales roles. That may include senior marketing, presales or other commercially important hires.

This is not a general service. Special assignments are reserved for existing Journey clients where we already understand the business, market, hiring standard and commercial context.

When that understanding is already in place, we can sometimes help clients see the wider talent picture and identify people outside our usual sales remit. But this is selective.

Journey is an IT sales recruitment specialist first. customer understanding behind the title. Through TRACE, clients get clearer on what kind of customer success role they are actually hiring for.