Strategic Sales Executive

Pearson; Canada; On-site; CAD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

An educational technology company in Canada seeks a Strategic Sales Executive for International Higher Education. The ideal candidate will lead partnerships with governments, universities, and enterprises, driving complex, high-value deals. Requirements include over 5 years of sales experience, engagement with C-level stakeholders, and proficiency in CRM tools. The role provides a salary range of $100,000 - $140,000 annually, alongside benefits and a sales incentive plan. Applications are open until December 31, 2025.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience with enterprise sales, particularly in EdTech or SaaS.
• Comfortable engaging with C-level and senior government stakeholders.
• Experience in managing complex, high-value deals.

Responsibilities

• Lead institutional and government sales engagements from start to finish.
• Engage high-level stakeholders to develop trusted advisory relationships.
• Design and execute growth strategies for high-value accounts.

Skills

Enterprise closing experience

Project management skills

Communication skills

Public sector procurement processes

Fluency in English

Tools

Salesforce

Tableau

MS Office

G-Suite

Job description

At Pearson, our mission is to help people realize the life they imagine through learning. As a Strategic Sales Executive for International Higher Education, you will pursue and secure transformative, multi‑year partnerships with governments, universities, and enterprise clients across priority markets.

Reporting to the Head of Sales and embedded in the Canadian team, you will focus on Pearson Canada’s most strategic and complex commercial agreements, you bring together the right people, processes, and market intelligence, mobilizing internal stakeholders and resources at the right moments, to shape, pursue, and win must‑win programs. You’ll influence senior leadership and government stakeholders, navigate public‑sector procurement, and manage multi‑million‑dollar solution‑focused programs, applying authority and credibility at the highest decision‑making levels to deliver measurable revenue growth, reference‑worthy deployments, and strategic positioning for Pearson. Every deal you land helps shape our product roadmap and sector narrative.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and orchestrate institutional and government sales engagements, owning the full lifecycle from opportunity identification through contract finalization and implementation.
• Engage senior stakeholders, including but not limited to Presidents, Provosts, Ministries, procurement bodies, developing trusted advisory relationships that position Pearson as a strategic partner.
• Design and execute growth strategies for high‑value accounts, agreeing and delivering ambitious revenue and partnership objectives.
• Create and deliver annual account plans for strategic government and institutional clients. Work with clients to define ambitious revenue targets and partnership objectives and execute against these plans to expand Pearson’s footprint and influence.
• Run world‑class discovery to uncover institutional pain points and policy drivers; translate findings into crisp problem/solution narratives and bespoke proposals.
• Create and progress pipeline through multiple channels, converting warm leads from events, conferences and marketing programs, and proactively generate net‑new opportunities through insight‑driven outbound (email, phone, social). You won’t wait for leads, you’ll own pipeline creation and qualification.
• Build and leverage an internal network across Pearson, knowing when to pull in the right expertise (Product, Delivery, Legal, Finance, Marketing) at the right time to accelerate deal strategy and execution.
• Drive RFP responses and complex bids, collaborating with cross‑functional teams to deliver tailored, outcome‑focused solutions.
• Close large, strategic deals while building reference‑worthy deployments.
• Represent Pearson with authority at policy forums, sector events, and senior stakeholder meetings; act as a visible leader in higher education.
• Analyse bid and sales performance, implement continuous improvements, and champion enhancements to sales tools and templates.
• Leverage AI as a force multiplier for account research, prospecting, prioritization, call prep, and follow‑through; share what works to uplevel the team.

What You Bring

• 5+ years’ enterprise closing experience (EdTech, SaaS, or professional services) with a proven track record of 6‑figure wins and participation in 7‑figure, multi‑year deals.
• Proven track record in securing and managing complex, high-value deals in institutional or government markets.
• Comfort engaging at C-level and with senior government stakeholders to influence decision‑making.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to lead dispersed, cross‑functional teams in a matrixed organization.
• Executive presence and communication skills. Be a compelling storyteller, have strong discovery discipline, and the ability to convert insights into business cases.
• Familiarity with Challenger/MEDDICC methodology; rigorous qualification and consensus building.
• Experience with public sector procurement processes (RFPs, RFIs, framework agreements) is highly desirable.
• Proficiency in CRM and collaboration tools (e.g., Salesforce, Tableau, Jira, MS Office, G‑Suite).
• Fluency in English required; additional languages are an asset.

What success looks like

• Ramp quickly: Master Ideal Customer Profiles, policy priorities, and talk track; run qualified discovery in months 2-3.
• Pipeline to quota: Build a healthy self sourced + partnered pipeline and consistently hit annual targets, whilst maintaining high forecast accuracy through disciplined deal qualification and predictable execution.
• Flagship wins: Close multiple 6 figure new logos
• Product impact: Deliver prioritized feedback that shapes roadmap; contribute repeatable templates and AI workflows.
• References: Land 2–3 deployments that become public case studies or sector benchmarks.

The full‑time salary range is between $100,000 - $140,000

This position is eligible to participate in a sales incentive plan, and information on benefits offered is here.

Applications will be accepted through December 31, 2025.