Sales recruitment that lifts the number, not just the headcount.
Mon-Fri 8am-8pmUK-wide
Sales · BD · Commercial

Hire the sales talent that lifts the number.

Smart Moves Recruitment places permanent sales, BD, account management and commercial leadership talent for UK employers. SaaS, enterprise, field, channel and pre-sales. Vetted on outcomes, not on patter.

  • Quota-aware vetting
  • Shortlist in 5-7 days
  • Replacement guarantee
  • One direct consultant
01

Discovery brief

30-45 min intake call. Role, comp, OTE, target market, must-haves, deal-breakers.

02

Sourcing & vetting

Active and passive candidates, vetted on actual quota attainment, references and motivation.

03

Shortlist

Three to six ranked candidates, with our notes on quota record, fit and OTE expectations.

04

Offer & ramp

Counter-offer, notice period, start date, plus day 7 / 30 / 90 follow-ups through ramp.

UK-wide
All four nations covered
12+
Sales & BD specialisms
5-7 days
Average shortlist turnaround
1:1
One consultant per client, end to end
Sales specialisms

The sales & commercial roles we place permanently.

From SDRs to CROs, field reps to enterprise account directors, we place sales talent across the UK who actually carry quota and hit it.

SaaS Sales (AE / BDR / SDR)

Account Executives, BDRs, SDRs for SaaS scale-ups, fintech, devtools, cybersec.

Enterprise Sales

Enterprise Account Executives, strategic account directors, named-account hunters with 6-7 figure deal experience.

Business Development

BDMs, business development directors, strategic-partnerships leads, new-market entry specialists.

Inside Sales / Telesales

Inside sales executives, high-volume telesales reps, lead qualification specialists, ISR leads.

Field Sales (UK)

Territory managers, regional sales reps, mobile sales executives, distributor reps for FMCG, building products, industrial.

Account Management

Account managers, senior account managers, customer-facing AMs running renewal and expansion books.

Key & Strategic Accounts

Key account managers, strategic account directors, NAMs and global account leads.

Channel & Partner Sales

Channel managers, partner-account managers, alliance directors, MSP and reseller-channel leads.

New Business / Hunters

New-logo hunters, net-new ARR specialists, prospect-pipeline owners with documented win rates.

Sales Leadership

Heads of Sales, VPs of Sales, Sales Directors, CROs and commercial directors building or scaling teams.

Customer Success & Renewals

CSMs, account directors with renewal targets, customer success leaders running gross-retention numbers.

Pre-Sales & Solutions Engineering

Solutions engineers, pre-sales consultants, technical sales architects, demo specialists.

Why sales leaders stay with us

Hiring sales is not the same as hiring everything else.

We brief properly, vet for actual quota performance, and stand behind the people we send.

Quota-aware vetting

For sales roles we screen for documented quota attainment, win rates, deal sizes, sales cycle length, and references that confirm the numbers.

5-7 day shortlist

Most live sales briefs receive their first qualified shortlist within a working week. Urgent backfills move to the top.

Replacement guarantee

Every permanent placement carries a free replacement period. If a hire doesn't ramp, we re-run the search at no charge.

UK sales networks

Active candidate and client networks across UK SaaS, fintech, B2B services, FMCG and industrial sales.

One named consultant

The consultant who takes your brief is the one who shortlists, briefs candidates, negotiates the offer, and follows up post-ramp.

Built for the ramp

We follow up at day 7, 30 and 90 to make sure the hire is ramping. Sales placements that don't ramp don't count.

How we work

From brief to ramp, taken seriously.

A clear three-step process. No drawn-out kick-offs, no dropped balls.

1

The brief, properly

A 30-45 minute briefing call. We capture the role, the comp plan, the OTE, the target market, the must-haves, the deal-breakers and the timeline.

2

Quota-vetted shortlist

We approach our network and active candidates, vet for documented quota attainment, interview and rank. You receive a tight shortlist with quota notes.

3

Offer support and ramp

We handle counter-offer pressure, notice-period coordination, start-date logistics, and check in on day 7, 30 and 90 to make sure the hire is ramping.

Locations served

Working with sales teams across the UK.

The cities we recruit into most often. Remote-first and hybrid sales briefs equally welcome.

London
Manchester
Birmingham
Leeds
Liverpool
Sheffield
Bristol
Glasgow
Edinburgh
Cardiff
Belfast
Reading
Cambridge
Milton Keynes
Brighton
UK Nationwide
Common questions

Questions sales leaders ask before working with us.

How quickly can you deliver a shortlist?
Most permanent sales briefs receive their first shortlist within 5-7 working days. Senior or specialist briefs may take a fortnight, but we will tell you upfront. We never sit on a brief.
Do you verify quota attainment?
Yes. For sales roles we capture documented quota attainment, win rates, deal sizes and sales cycle length on the briefing call, and verify against references where possible.
Are your fees percentage-based?
For permanent placements, yes, we work on a percentage of first-year base salary (not OTE). The exact rate depends on level and discipline, agreed in writing before any candidate is introduced.
What does the replacement guarantee cover?
If a placed hire leaves or is dismissed within the agreed period, we will source a free replacement. The window is usually 8-12 weeks for most roles, longer for senior or leadership hires.
Can you support team builds?
Yes. New-team builds and territory expansions get a dedicated account lead and structured weekly check-ins. Tell us up front so we can plan capacity.
What information do you need to start a search?
A job description (or rough notes), comp plan and OTE structure, target market, start-date target, and one decision-maker we can speak to.

Ready to fill that sales seat?

Tell us the role, the patch and the comp plan. We will be back within one working day with a clear plan and a fee quote.

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