Director, Sales & Customer Care Training

Reporting to the Director of Commercial Training, NPI & Partners, this role will lead scalable learning initiatives that strengthen onboarding, sales capability, customer care effectiveness, certification programs, sales methodology adoption, leadership effectiveness and ongoing commercial development. Working closely with Strategic Marketing, Product Management, Sales Leadership, Commercial Operations, Technical Services and Clinical teams, the Director will translate business, product and market strategy into effective commercial training and capability frameworks. The role is accountable for measurable readiness, adoption and commercial impact across Oxford Nanopore's diverse portfolio.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

• Set the global Sales and Customer Care training strategy and operating plan, aligned with commercial priorities.
• Lead governance for training readiness and product launches, coordinating resources and supporting the development of training content where required.
• Develop scalable learning architecture, including e-learning, onboarding, continuous upskilling and certification programs.
• Partner with business and project owners to define and implement competency frameworks for Sales and Customer Care teams.
• Use performance data and field insights to identify capability gaps and recommend targeted interventions.
• Embed consistent skills, behaviors and methodologies across Sales and Customer Care processes, CRM workflows and manager reinforcement.
• Establish meaningful KPIs and continuously evaluate and improve training impact and effectiveness.

Sales & Customer Care Capability and Enablement

• Equip Sales and Customer Care teams with the training, tools and resources required to perform effectively and deliver exceptional customer outcomes.
• Develop role-based learning programs that strengthen product and process knowledge, commercial skills, customer engagement and application understanding.
• Build programs that support commercial effectiveness throughout the employee lifecycle, from onboarding through ongoing capability development.
• Measure program effectiveness using performance data, stakeholder feedback, field insights and product developments, using those insights to continuously improve training.

New Product Launches

• Partner with Strategic Marketing and Product Management from the outset of new product launches to shape training strategy, content development and adoption plans.
• Translate scientific, product and market strategy into role-specific learning, certification programs and commercial training assets.
• Define training standards for Sales, Customer Care and partner organizations, coordinating technical dependencies with Technical Services Training.
• Ensure training content is scientifically accurate, commercially relevant and appropriately reviewed for regulated environments.
• Measure launch readiness and training adoption, identifying risks and providing clear recommendations for mitigation.

Training Operations and Process

• Establish and maintain SOPs and governance for the global Sales and Customer Care Training function, aligned with Technical Training and broader organizational processes.
• Oversee program intake, prioritization, development, approval, delivery, maintenance and training cadence.
• Define clear cross-functional processes, roles and hand-offs to enable efficient program delivery and launch readiness.
• Develop and continuously improve the systems, tools and processes required to support scalable commercial training globally.

Functional Leadership & Organizational Capability

• Establish priorities, performance expectations and goals for the Sales and Customer Care Training team.
• Lead, coach and develop training professionals, creating clear roles, responsibilities and career development pathways that support engagement, growth and retention.
• Manage competing priorities and resources across a global portfolio of training initiatives.
• Provide senior leaders with clear reporting and recommendations regarding priorities, readiness, training impact, performance and risk.

What We're Looking For

• Degree in life sciences or equivalent relevant scientific experience.
• Significant commercial experience within life sciences, diagnostics or biotechnology, with experience across sales, marketing, technical, field-based or training functions.
• Demonstrated experience leading global capability, transformation, commercial enablement or launch-readiness programs within a matrixed organization.
• Proven ability to translate complex scientific and technical information into clear, effective commercial training.
• Experience developing competency frameworks, certification programs and measurable learning initiatives.
• Experience leading and developing experienced training professionals while managing priorities, resources, budgets and external partners.
• Strong strategic and commercial judgement, with the ability to connect training investment to business outcomes.
• Experience operating within a highly matrixed, global organization and influencing across functions and seniority levels.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to balance multiple priorities in a fast-paced and evolving environment.
• Confidence communicating with and influencing senior stakeholders.
• Ability to operate effectively through ambiguity and change.

Desirable Experience

• Knowledge of sequencing, genomics or NGS applications across research, clinical or biopharma markets.
• Experience in product marketing, technical sales, field applications or another customer-facing scientific or commercial role.
• Experience supporting regulated environments.
• Experience enabling partners, distributors or other indirect commercial channels.
• Postgraduate scientific qualification such as an MSc or PhD.