Account Executive – Higher Education Sales

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in United States.

📋 Description

• Develop and implement a territory strategy aimed at achieving or surpassing annual new business revenue objectives.

• Take charge of the entire sales cycle, from prospecting and discovery to solution development, proposal, negotiation, procurement, and closing.

• Establish and sustain a qualified pipeline that consistently aligns with revenue targets.

• Actively identify, prospect, and cultivate opportunities within assigned higher education accounts and regions.

• Create urgency and sustain momentum throughout complex institutional sales cycles.

• Conduct strategic discovery sessions to comprehend institutional priorities, challenges regarding student success, desired outcomes, budgets, and decision-making processes.

• Foster trusted relationships with senior leaders and decision-makers at colleges and universities.

• Navigate multiple stakeholders and cultivate internal champions while building consensus among institutional teams.

• Develop persuasive business cases that articulate student impact and institutional value.

• Gain expertise in Mentor Collective's SaaS platform, services, implementation models, research, and their impact on students.

• Deliver tailored presentations, demonstrations, and executive-level discussions aligned with institutional priorities.

• Connect solutions to priorities such as student success, persistence, belonging, transfer success, career readiness, and alumni engagement.

• Remain informed about trends in higher education, funding challenges, student success priorities, competitive offerings, and advancements in education technology.

• Clearly articulate Mentor Collective's unique value proposition in comparison to alternatives and competing solutions.

• Collaborate with Marketing and business development resources to identify target accounts and generate qualified opportunities.

• Enhance the marketing-generated pipeline through account development, networking, referrals, events, and proactive prospecting.

• Maintain disciplined opportunity management, forecasting, and CRM practices.

• Formulate account strategies, stakeholder maps, next steps, and plans for closing.

• Monitor and report on sales performance, pipeline coverage, forecasts, and progression towards revenue targets.

• Provide insights on market trends, prospects, and competition to Marketing, Product, Customer Success, and leadership teams.

• Collaborate with internal teams to craft solutions and proposals that address institutional needs and business objectives.

• Contribute to the refinement of sales processes, messaging, positioning, and go-to-market strategies.

• Maintain approximately three times the qualified pipeline coverage relative to quota.

• Progress opportunities with clear next steps, stakeholder engagement, and demonstrated customer value.

• Cultivate relationships with senior leaders in higher education, becoming trusted advisors throughout the buying journey.

⛳️ Requirements

• Over 5 years of quota-carrying B2B sales experience, specifically in selling SaaS, technology-enabled services, or strategic solutions directly to colleges and universities.

• Proven track record of successfully acquiring new business within the U.S. higher education market.

• Strong knowledge of how colleges and universities assess, acquire, implement, and fund technology and services.

• Demonstrated history of meeting or exceeding revenue quotas in a sales role focused on new business.

• Experience managing intricate, multi-stakeholder sales cycles that involve senior and executive-level decision-makers.

• Capability to sell both the strategic benefits of a solution and the functionalities of the underlying technology.

• Strong skills in discovery, presentation, negotiation, relationship-building, and closing.

• Experience in developing and managing a territory and generating pipeline, rather than solely handling inbound opportunities.

• Strong CRM discipline and experience in managing forecasts effectively.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

• Authorization to work in the U.S. is required.

• Willingness to travel approximately 20-30% for conferences, client meetings, and company events.

• Experience in selling a mix of SaaS and professional, programmatic, or managed services in the higher education sector.

• Knowledge of higher education priorities related to student success, retention, persistence, enrollment, transfer, career readiness, or student engagement.

• Experience selling to senior leaders in Student Affairs, Academic Affairs, Enrollment Management, Student Success, Career Services, Institutional Strategy, or similar functions.

• Familiarity with working in a growth-stage or startup environment where sales processes and go-to-market strategies are continually evolving.

• Previous full-time remote work experience is preferred.

🏝️ Benefits

• Fully remote company.

• Five medical plan options, all of which are PPO plans.

• One medical plan option is fully covered by the employer for the employee-only tier.

• A selection of five dental and vision plans.

• Options for HSA, FSA, and Dependent FSA.

• Talkspace mental health therapy is covered at no cost to the employee.

• Annual travel benefits to access out-of-state care from specialists for reproductive and gender-affirming services.

• One Medical membership is provided at no cost to the employee.

• Flexible PTO with a minimum requirement for employees.

• Twelve company holidays.

• A company-wide 'winter break' between Christmas and New Year each year.

• 401k benefits with company matching.

• Stipend available for WFH office setup.

• Flexible work schedule allowing remote work while traveling.

• Uncapped variable compensation based on performance.