Julius Otieno Okumu
Nairobi
Summary
A diligent, knowledgeable, and goal-oriented individual with extensive corporate experience. Highly skilled in customer service, revenue generation, market penetration, and building and maintaining a loyal client base through strong relationship-building skills. Excels at devising strategies for increased sales and possesses strong organizational and time management abilities. Proficient in planning, scheduling, and meeting deadlines. Ready to apply excellent negotiation techniques to increase revenue and market share. Valuable addition to a forward-thinking company with strong progression opportunities.
Overview
16
16
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Cluster Sales Account Manager
Holiday Inn Nairobi/ Fairview Hotel Limited
10.2025 - Current
- Sales & Market Development – IHG Brand (Fairview Hotel Nairobi – Vignette Collection, Holiday Inn Nairobi Two Rivers Mall, Best Western Nairobi Upper Hill)
- Spearheaded sales strategies to drive market penetration and strengthen brand presence across three properties.
- Expanded and safeguarded market share within the Corporate Segment, targeting Embassies, Foreign Missions, Government institutions, and NGOs.
- Negotiated and managed contracting for both Corporate and Leisure segments, ensuring optimal terms across all properties.
- Identified and secured business opportunities across diverse international and local market segments.
- Partnered with cross-functional teams to deliver exceptional guest experiences and integrated sales initiatives.
- Conducted competitive intelligence on market activity and product changes, providing timely insights and recommendations to management.
- Delivered accurate, actionable reports to senior leadership to support strategic decision-making.
- Represented the brand at major travel shows and sales events, enhancing visibility and cultivating key partnerships.
Sales Account Manager
Glee Hotel Limited
05.2025 - 10.2025
- I developed sales strategies and expanded the leisure market for both tour operators and travel agents.
- To grow and safeguard the market share of the leisure accounts to BSL.
- Coming up with packages and offers to cover the low season and improve the business levels.
- Sourcing for Group bookings from Tour Operators and Travel agents.
- I negotiated contracts with tour operators and travel agents.
- I devised strategies to ensure that BSL meets and exceeds quarterly revenue targets.
- I provided timely reports and feedback to the CEO on market dynamics, trends, and competition.
- I ensured that guest complaints were addressed promptly and effectively.
- Attending major travel shows while maintaining a high profile with wholesalers from overseas markets.
- Achievements: Established and developed the leisure market segment for BSL, growing the market share by 60% and establishing strong working relationships with major Tour Operators and Travel Agents in the country.
Sales Representative
Balloon Safaris Limited (BSL)
04.2023 - 04.2025
- I developed sales strategies and expanded the leisure market for both tour operators and travel agents.
- To grow and safeguard the market share of the leisure accounts to BSL.
- Coming up with packages and offers to cover the low season and improve the business levels.
- Sourcing for Group bookings from Tour Operators and Travel agents.
- I negotiated contracts with tour operators and travel agents.
- I devised strategies to ensure that BSL meets and exceeds quarterly revenue targets.
- I provided timely reports and feedback to the CEO on market dynamics, trends, and competition.
- I ensured that guest complaints were addressed promptly and effectively.
- Attending major travel shows while maintaining a high profile with wholesalers from overseas markets.
- Achievements: Established and developed the leisure market segment for BSL, growing the market share by 60% and establishing strong working relationships with major Tour Operators and Travel Agents in the country.
Assistant Sales Manager- Corporate & Government
Fairmont Hotel & Resorts Kenya
03.2022 - 12.2022
- Exceed personal sales goals, monthly, quarterly, and annually, through account development and maintenance, regular sales calls, entertainment, and sales trips/tradeshows within Public Sector, NGOs, Foreign Missions & Corporates.
- Develop and grow revenues for every segment for all the properties within Kenya.
- Establishing and maintaining strong business relations with key stakeholders and business accounts for maximum business support.
- Support goals, objectives, and philosophies of Fairmont Hotels and Resorts and Accor brand.
- Develop lead sources through prospecting, solicitation, referrals, trace files, and cold calls.
- Conducts site inspections with prospective and existing clients.
- Develop and implement new sales strategies, tactics, and action plans for the account base.
- Coordinate and financially manage sales trips, including reports or activities about the specific market.
- Maintain active membership in industry-related organizations and associations about the specific market.
- Assist other sales and catering managers and refer event and catering leads and other sources of business for the hotel through active solicitation of account base.
- Maintain and update current account information in Opera and hard files.
- Involvement in industry functions, and/or trade shows, FAM visits, and Industry events.
Sales Account Manager- Corporate Government
Airtel Kenya Limited
07.2020 - 02.2022
- Develop and execute sales plans, drive market penetration, achieve targets (KPIS, revenue) and align strategy with market demographics and customer segments.
- Establish strong customer/partner relationships, understand market dynamics, handle escalation, and ensure customer satisfaction and retention.
- Develop lead sources through prospecting, solicitation, referrals, trace files, and cold calls.
- Selling Postpaid solutions and data solutions to Corporations and the Government segment.
- Escalate any trade or network issues to the Line Manager and follow up for closure.
Business Sales Consultant
Tourism Promotion Services Kenya LLC (Serena Hotels)
05.2019 - 06.2020
- After resigning from my previous position with the same organization, I continued to offer my service as a consultant developing and growing revenues for the company which was quite rewarding as it offered greater flexibility.
- Achievements: I generated over US$1,000,000 in business revenue between May 2019 and February 2020 and maintained the organization's market share before the country went into lockdown.
Sales Account Manager
Tourism Promotion Services Kenya LLC (Serena Hotels)
08.2011 - 04.2019
- Developed strategies that Safeguarded Serena hotels market share.
- Responsible for developing, managing and maintaining business relations with Corporates/Government accounts, Foreign Missions and Travel Trade or Leisure market for the organization within East Africa Operations.
- Planning and preparing sales action plan that covers all the 25 Properties within East Africa operations with an aim of ensuring that each property achieve and surpass the set yearly budgets.
- Sourcing and developing new business markets for the organization (Asia, UAE, UK & Europe).
- Close liaison with the reservation and banqueting department on room requirements & allocations for group bookings.
- Actively involved in coming up with proposals for promotional offers/ special packages for targeted market segments within the region.
- Preparing and issuance of corporate rates, conference package offers, and group proposals for East Africa operations (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda & Mozambique).
- Contracting for both Corporates, Tour Operators/ Travel Agents, Government & Foreign Missions within allocated segments.
- Sourcing for Groups, MICE & FIT business for all the 25 units within the East Africa region.
- Organizing client's workshop and farm trips to both corporates and the leisure market as per sales action plan.
- Formulating strategies that ensures that the team meets and surpasses quarterly set revenue targets.
- Providing timely reports and feedback to the Regional Sales & Marketing Director on the changing dynamics, including trends and competition within the region.
- Ensuring that guest's complaints are solved promptly and appropriately.
- Attending major travel shows while maintaining a high profile with wholesalers from overseas markets like Europe, Asia, United Kingdom. Middle East among others.
- Developing offers to fill up the occupancy gaps within the various seasons in a year.
- Achievement: I excelled in my role with the organization and maintained a constant performance surpassing revenue-set targets by 50% each quarter from the year, 2013 till 2019. It was on this basis that the organization engaged me as a consultant when I resigned from my position in April 2019 as I wanted to focus on other career objectives.
Sales Executive (SME)
Airtel Kenya
10.2009 - 06.2011
- Responsible for developing appropriate Customer Value Propositions within the assigned Small & Medium enterprises sector especially the establishment and maintenance of key accounts in the Manufacturing, Service & Transport sectors.
- Was ranked 2nd as the highest revenue generator, having surpassed the individual target mark by 8% in 2010 and the first quarter of 2011.
- Developing postpaid activation strategies and leading a team aimed at pushing sales to achieve Incremental revenue and realization of set sales targets within Airtel's Platinum department.
- Developing profiles of targeted accounts within Kenya, segmenting the market within demographics such as monthly usage, frequency, and nature of calls, debt, and disconnections profiles e.t.c
- Coordinating sales and marketing campaigns with a focus on Area activations and direct marketing projects.
- Generation, follow-up, qualification of sector-based leads, and prioritizing market opportunities.
- Managing an expected high-quality level of service to both existing and new clients.
- Consistently preparing reports on the performance of the accounts managed as required, as well as reports on challenges and improvement points.
- Conducted telesales within the call centre, promoting and selling the company’s products and services.
Education
Bachelor of Commerce - Business Information Systems
University of Nairobi
Nairobi, Kenya01.2017
Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education - undefined
Eastleigh High School
01.2007
Skills
- Core competencies:
- Good at analyzing data and carrying out detailed research about a subject
- Sound strategic and implementation skills
- Able to quickly develop general marketing knowledge
- Excellent communication/convincing and interpersonal skills
- Highly independent with a good team player
- Aggressiveness and good analytical skills
- Client relationship building
- Sales strategy development
- Lead prospecting
- Customer-oriented
- Strategic account development
Certification
- July 2016 Amadeus Basic Training on Ticketing (Amadeus)
- July 2013 Value based Selling Training at Serena Mountain Lodge (TIPS Management Services Limited)
- October 2009 Enhanced Selling Skills (Zain Kenya Training)
- Modules studied include:
- - Managing Resources
- - Customer Relationships
- - Sales Strategy in Practice
- - Professional Sales Planning
Timeline
Cluster Sales Account Manager
Holiday Inn Nairobi/ Fairview Hotel Limited
10.2025 - Current
Sales Account Manager
Glee Hotel Limited
05.2025 - 10.2025
Sales Representative
Balloon Safaris Limited (BSL)
04.2023 - 04.2025
Assistant Sales Manager- Corporate & Government
Fairmont Hotel & Resorts Kenya
03.2022 - 12.2022
Sales Account Manager- Corporate Government
Airtel Kenya Limited
07.2020 - 02.2022
Business Sales Consultant
Tourism Promotion Services Kenya LLC (Serena Hotels)
05.2019 - 06.2020
Sales Account Manager
Tourism Promotion Services Kenya LLC (Serena Hotels)
08.2011 - 04.2019
Sales Executive (SME)
Airtel Kenya
10.2009 - 06.2011
Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education - undefined
Eastleigh High School
Bachelor of Commerce - Business Information Systems
University of Nairobi