Manager, Sales Talent EMEA

Are you ready to power the World's connections?

If you don't think you meet all of the criteria below but are still interested in the job, please apply. Nobody checks every box - we're looking for candidates that are particularly strong in a few areas, and have some interest and capabilities in others.

About the Role:

We are looking for a strategic, data-driven, and "hunter-minded" Recruitment Leader for EMEA & APAC to lead our international Sales hiring. You won't just be filling seats; you will be the strategic partner to our Regional VPs, building the revenue teams that will drive our next phase of hyper-growth.

As a Recruitment Manager for Sales, you will own the end-to-end hiring strategy for our revenue function across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia-Pacific.

This is a builder's role. You will move between high-level strategy (capacity planning, employment branding, regional talent mapping) and hands-on execution (closing top 1% enterprise sellers). You will navigate complex international markets, from London and Berlin to Singapore and Sydney.

Key Responsibilities
1. Strategic Partnering & Planning

• Partner directly with the VP of Sales EMEA, and VP of Sales APAC to forecast hiring needs and build quarter-by-quarter capacity plans.
• Act as a talent advisor, using data to influence decisions on compensation benchmarking, market availability, and regional hiring hubs.
• Develop a consistent yet culturally nuanced interview process that raises the "Bar" for talent across different geographies.

2. Execution & Headhunting

• Manage the full lifecycle recruitment for high-impact roles (Enterprise & Commercial AEs, SEs, CSMs, SDR's and Regional Sales Leadership).
• Utilise advanced sourcing strategies (LinkedIn Recruiter, GitHub, X-Ray search, and network referrals) to target passive top-performers. We don't rely on inbound applications for our top talent.
• Manage and mentor a team of Recruiters (or external agencies) to ensure pipeline health.

3. International Expansion (EMEA & APAC)

• Navigate the complexities of hiring in different time zones and legal jurisdictions.
• Localise the employer value proposition (EVP) to ensure Kong appeals to top talent in diverse markets like DACH, UKI, ASEAN, and ANZ.
• Standardise the candidate experience so a candidates get the same exception experience regardless of location

4. Data & Operations

• Track and report on key recruiting metrics: Time to Fill, Cost per Hire, Source of Hire, and, most importantly for sales, Quality of Hire (attainment vs. quota).
• Optimise the ATS (Ashby) to ensure data integrity and smooth reporting.

What We Are Looking For
Must-Haves:

• Experience: Management experience/exposure in a high growth company as well as full-cycle recruiting experience, with at least 2 years dedicated to SaaS/Tech Sales recruitment.
• Regional Expertise: Proven track record of hiring across EMEA and APAC. You understand the difference between hiring in Germany (notice periods) vs. Singapore (work passes) vs. the UK.
• Scale-Up DNA: You have worked in a high-growth environment (Series B to IPO stage). You are comfortable with ambiguity and building processes from scratch.
• Stakeholder Management: You can challenge stakeholders when necessary and hold hiring managers accountable to the process.
• The "Closer" Mentality: You understand how to close candidates in a competitive market, handling complex equity/commission negotiations.

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About Kong:

Kong Inc., a leading developer of cloud API technologies, is on a mission to enable companies around the world to become "API-first" and securely accelerate AI adoption. Kong helps organizations globally — from startups to Fortune 500 enterprises — unleash developer productivity, build securely, and accelerate time to market. For more information about Kong, please visit or follow us on X @thekonginc.

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