Account Director

Candidate must reside inside of North Central Territory.

Applicable states include, IA, IL, IN, KS, MI, MN, MO, MT, ND, NE, OH, SD, WI, WY.

Position Summary

The Account Director (AD) is the guardian of the strategic customer relationship at the executive level with a goal of customer retention. The AD orchestrates the deployment of corporate-wide resources to provide comprehensive products, services, and solutions to key accounts. The AD is fully responsible for the profitability of assigned accounts focusing on retention, development, servicing, and expansion, through partnering activities at the highest level of the key customer's organization.

Essential Job Functions

Key Account Management:

• Consistently focus on business solutions aimed at maximizing the profitability of key accounts by providing 100% complete and total customer satisfaction.
• Track, develop, and maintain strong relationships within customer organizations at the decision-maker level with key accounts.
• Partner with Project Managers to establish a strategic plan for onboarding new customers and provide a reliable communication conduit to the customer c-suite.
• Interact with customers and internal departments including sales, marketing, development, support, training, product management, IT, and other functional areas, focusing proactively on gathering information and collaborating on solutions.
• Track account profitability, growth, and focus of existing customers to identify potential key accounts and conduct quarterly account planning meetings and annual executive briefings.
• Articulate key customers' challenges, issues, expectations, and goals and translate into actionable objectives for escalation team managers. Negotiate equitable business solutions when customer desires cannot be reasonably met (e.g., enhancements).
• Review industry best practices and customer requirements to recommend changes and additions to developed customer solution sets or new solutions.
• Update the company CRM daily.
• Operate independently and provide appropriate information and guidance to escalation team members in addressing customer concerns.
• Provide to Karmak Management input on key accounts sufficient to support internal policy decisions, influence solution development, and drive market actions at the highest level. Contacts will include sensitive and confidential information.

Sales:

• Develop and execute account plans for assigned key accounts to drive customer to higher satisfaction and ensure retention.
• Continuously identify and capture new sources of revenue within assigned key accounts.
• Develop and deliver detailed, accurate, and timely revenue forecasts to sales management.
• Develop and negotiate contract terms, rates, plans, schedules, resources, involvement, and roles/responsibilities.
• Identify the factors which influence business performance and recommend actions to improve profitability and/or enhance revenue for Karmak.
• Hit or exceed targets for customer retention, revenue expansion, relationship growth, and direct contact.

Professional Development:

• Develop and maintain skills, knowledge, and proficiencies required to respond to customer requirements.
• Continually build knowledge and skills to keep pace with market trends.
• Maintain current knowledge of customers' business goals and objectives.
• Continually develop skills, knowledge, and proficiencies in account management techniques.
• Maintain focus on team objectives and encourage others to do the same through well-developed working relationships.
• Learn C level sales communication methods.

Essential Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Business Acumen in key metrics that predict and measure business success.
• Strong account planning skills.
• Demonstrated track record of success in a customer-facing position preferably at the C-level.
• Excellent communication skills (including writing, speaking, and presentations) required.
• Excellent follow-through and detail orientation skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently with minimal supervision.
• Effective at free-form solution development and relationship management.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced team environment.
• Requires a high level of accuracy, clear communication, and professionalism.
• Strong organizational and management skills.
• Ability to lead team development and motivate others.
• Bachelor's degree and minimum 5+ years' experience in HD industry software support, sales, training, or consulting required, with specific sales or account management-related experience preferred.
• Demonstrated experience operating at the C-level regarding relationship management and collaborative solution development.
• Effective problem-solving skills, sound judgment, strong decision-making ability, confidence to make difficult decisions, and excellent communication skills.
• Must be organized, detail-oriented, and able to translate big-picture ideas into customer objectives.
• Travel averaging 25 - 50% will be required.

The above statements describe the general nature and level of work being performed in this job. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties. Additional responsibilities may be assigned by Karmak.