The Hunter Shortage: Why the Australian Events Industry is Failing to Hire Top Sales Talent

By John Gorton, Co-Founder of TES Recruitment

The Australian events landscape is currently navigating a period of profound transition. After the frantic "rebound" years following the pandemic, where the primary challenge was simply managing the overwhelming influx of deferred demand, we have entered a more disciplined, competitive, and normalised market.

In this new era, "order-taking" style of account management is no longer a viable business strategy. Whether you are managing a major venue, a commercial conference organiser, a B2B or B2C exhibition business  or an industry supplier, the mandate from the boardroom is clear: We need growth.

This demand has triggered a desperate search for "hunter" sales professionals. At TES Recruitment we have seen a 40% uptick in requests specifically for proven hunters in exhibition and sponsorship sales, and within venue and supplier sales teams. Yet, despite the high demand, the "true hunter" remains one of the rarest profiles in the Australian job market.

The problem? Most hiring managers cannot tell the difference between a high-performing hunter and a high-energy charmer. In a sector where "personality" is often over-indexed, the cost of a bad sales hire is not just the recruitment fee, it’s the six months of lost pipeline and the erosion of market share.

Defining the Anatomy of an Event Sales "Hunter"

In recruitment, we often categorise sales talent into two camps: hunters and farmers.

• Farmers excel at nurturing existing relationships, increasing account spend, and providing high-touch service. They are vital for retention.

• Hunters are wired differently. They are structured, metrics-driven, and possess an unusual tenacity and resilience to the often long sales cycles inherent in venue and supplier tenders and exhibition and sponsorship sales.

  
  

A true hunter doesn’t wait for the phone to ring. They are strategic mappers. They identify key decision-makers in targeted companies, navigate complex procurement and decision-making layers, and understand that a "no" today is simply a "not yet".

"In the high-stakes world of exhibition and sponsorship sales, charm and confidence might get you in the door, but it’s the disciplined, tenacious, metrics-driven ‘hunter’ who closes the deal and sustains the pipeline. If you hire a salesperson for personality and hope for performance, you simply won’t achieve your revenue goals."— John Gorton

The "Confidence Trap": Why Surface-Level Interviews Fail

The event industry is naturally populated by gregarious, confident, and well-spoken individuals. This is a strength of our sector, but it is the primary "false positive" in sales recruitment.

Hiring managers often mistake confidence for capability.

I have seen countless interviews where a candidate "wowed" the room with their stories of past events and their rapport-building skills. However, when you dig into the mechanics of their success, the foundation is often shaky. A hunter isn't just someone who is "good with people." A hunter is someone who is good with process.

To find a true hunter, your recruitment process must move beyond surface-level rapport.

You need to look for:

1. Consistent Pipeline Performance: Can they explain the mathematical ratio between their cold outreach, their discovery calls, and their closed-won deals?

2. Strategic Account Development: How do they break into a "locked" account? What is their multi-channel approach to getting past the gatekeeper of a major new prospect?

3. Disciplined Follow-up Behaviours: In exhibition sales, a deal can take several months to close. Does the candidate have a system for maintaining momentum over that period, or do they rely on their memory?

   
   

The Commercial Impact of the Right Hire

In the business events sector, the difference between an average sales hire and a top-level ‘hunter’ is often measured in hundreds of thousands of dollars in annual recurring revenue (ARR).

A hunter doesn't just fill your floorplan; they maximise your yield. They understand how to win new ‘logos’ into your event, how to sell the high-margin stands and partnership packages and how to identify "dark" opportunities that your competitors haven't yet even seen.

In a sector facing ongoing talent shortages, your culture must be one that rewards the sales hunter’s mindset. Hunters are driven by autonomy and clear, attractive incentives. If your commission structures are capped or your internal processes are bogged down in manual administration, you will struggle to retain the very people you worked so hard to find.

Cultural Alignment: Keeping the Hunters You Hire

Finding the hunter is only half the battle. The other half is creating an environment where they can thrive. Many event businesses are structured around operations and delivery. While excellence in delivery is paramount, a "hunter" will quickly become frustrated by ‘internal friction’.

If you want to keep a top-tier sales professional in the event organiser supplier or venue space, you must:

1. Automate the Administrative Burden: Every hour a hunter spends on manual administration is an hour they aren't on the phone. Use AI and CRM automation to free them up.

2. Provide Leadership Clarity: Ensure that sales targets are not just "aspirational" but are backed by a marketing strategy that provides them with at least some "warm" air cover.

3. Celebrate the Win: High-performing hunters are motivated by recognition and results. Make sure their commercial impact is visible to the entire organisation.

   
   

Conclusion

The ‘hunter’ sales professional is the most undervalued asset in the Australian events industry today. As we move into an increasingly data-driven and competitive landscape, the ability to proactively secure new business, rather than simply managing existing accounts, will be the defining factor between the events businesses that thrive and grow and those that merely survive.

At TES Recruitment, our mission is to move the industry beyond ‘surface-level’ hiring. We believe that sales recruitment is a clinical exercise in risk management. By using deep profiling, understanding the nuances of the exhibition and event sectors, and looking for the metrics behind the charisma, we help Australian event businesses build the growth engines they deserve.

Stop hiring for confidence. Start hiring for the hunt. 

If you want to discuss how you can source and secure hunter sales people for your business, I’d love to talk to you.  Please get in touch.