VP Sales – Large Scale Deals

The Role: Senior Executive, Global Distribution & Licensing Partnerships

Believe seeks a Senior Executive to lead the origination, structuration, negotiation, and execution of strategic distribution and licensing agreements with labels, rights holders, catalogue owners, and music IP stakeholders.

The role operates across global and local markets and is accountable for ensuring signed partnerships are supported by an effective operating model, enabling global digital monetization, consistent service delivery, and sustainable profitability.

This position will help manage a diversified portfolio of commercial models tailored to Believe’s operating model and partner requirements, requiring a high‑level music network.

Key Responsibilities

• Own and execute an acquisition strategy to build a pipeline across catalogue owners and other rights holders. Identify opportunities by region, country, segment and genre.
• Develop a global partnerships strategy aligned with Believe’s distribution capabilities and service offering, prioritising partnerships that strengthen market positioning and long‑term growth.
• Engage directly with private equity funds, investment firms owning or acquiring catalogues, and structure deal terms aligned with Believe governance and performance objectives.
• Lead strategic development efforts with a particular focus on key U.S.‑based stakeholders and priority growth markets.
• Manage confidential deal processes, build trusted relationships with senior decision‑makers, and represent Believe as a long‑term strategic partner.
• Balance competitive deal positioning with disciplined capital deployment.
• Continuously monitor competitive landscape (independent distributors, majors, fund‑backed platforms, DIY aggregators) and adapt acquisition strategy accordingly.
• Identify structural shifts in catalogue ownership trends, valuation benchmarks and investment flows.
• Position Believe competitively in complex multi‑bid deal environments.
• Lead and coordinate end‑to‑end negotiation, deal modelling, internal alignment, contract execution and closure across a range of deal structures.
• Own term sheets, business cases, internal approvals, and contract closure in close partnership with central business lines, local Believe leaders, Legal and Finance.
• Ensure each partnership is supported by a clear and executable service model, including onboarding, content delivery, metadata, rights management and reporting.
• Structure and negotiate advances, minimum guarantees, and investment mechanisms aligned with internal return thresholds and under varying market conditions (DSP rate changes, market changes, platform policy changes).
• Evaluate valuation assumptions against historical performance and forward‑looking market indicators.
• Define partner growth and monetisation strategies to maximise performance, aligned with partner objectives and Believe’s commercial priorities.
• Identify & implement initiatives to increase revenue, improve efficiency (catalogue activation programmes, brand expansion, operational optimisation).
• Establish performance scorecards and regular business reviews (MBRs/QBRs) with partners and internal stakeholders, using the appropriate KPIs, success measurement and corrective action plans.
• Identify opportunities for cross‑territory exploitation and global catalogue activation.

Use a Set of KPIs

• Partner performance: global revenue growth, territory & monetisation channel expansion.
• Partner satisfaction, value externalisation and retention/renewal performance.

Cross‑Functional Leadership

• Work with Operations to ensure deal implementation and deliver measurable outcomes.
• Translate partner requirements into tooling/process improvements (analytics, reporting, automation, rights workflows) and contribute to align our marketing suite to their needs.
• Closely work with region/country heads to identify rights targets and coordinate sales effort.
• Assist in defining governance model for major partnerships (review cadence, reporting standards, escalation framework).

Qualifications

• 15+ years in senior leadership roles in music distribution, licensing, label partnerships, rights management, digital music or related areas.
• Proven track record closing complex, multi‑territory distribution/licensing agreements with varied economic structures and operational requirements.
• Extensive senior network in the music ecosystem, specifically in the USA.
• Excellent commercial judgment and executive negotiation skills.
• International experience in managing partner relationships across multiple regions and businesses.
• Executive presence, high integrity, and strong cross‑functional leadership capability.

Required Skills

• Data‑ and KPI‑oriented mindset, ability to make decisions based on analytics.
• Strong leadership skills, including engaging with diverse teams & fostering collaboration.
• Expertise in identifying and capturing opportunities in new markets.
• Comfortable working in fast‑paced, dynamic environments, focus on results.
• Regular international travel to meet and support partner development, negotiations and governance, with a particular emphasis on the USA and priority growth markets.

We are committed to having a workforce that is representative of the community it serves at all levels of the organisation. We, therefore, welcome applications from all backgrounds and all sections of the community regardless of age, disability, gender, race, religion and sexual orientation.