Strategic Account Executive

Kong Inc.; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Kong Inc., the AI Connectivity Company, is seeking a Strategic Account Executive to sell Kong Enterprise Platform to global enterprise accounts. You will be the primary face to prospects and drive pipeline across regions, with travel required (30–50%).

The ideal candidate has 10+ years in enterprise software sales; open source, APIs, and infrastructure software experience is a plus. You will own the end-to-end sales process, negotiate and close to meet quotas.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in selling enterprise software.
• Experience with open source, APIs, and/or infrastructure software is a plus.
• Proven sales track record with enterprise customers.
• Strong communication and negotiation abilities.
• Willingness to travel 30–50%.

Responsibilities

• Sell Kong Enterprise Platform to enterprise customers.
• Meet individual quota and objectives.
• Take ownership of your book of business and manage buying criteria, process, pipeline and closure.
• Provide account leadership in pre- and post-sales and analyze wins/losses.
• Travel to customer sites as required (30–50%).
• Handle additional tasks requested by manager.

Skills

Enterprise software sales

Open source

APIs

Infrastructure software

Relationship building

Sales techniques

Communication skills

Negotiation

Presentation skills

Closing skills

Results oriented

Job description

Are you ready to unlock intelligence?

Nobody checks every box - we’re looking for candidates that are particularly strong in a few areas, and have some interest and capabilities in others.

About The Role:

We are looking for an experienced sales professional, ideally with open source experience who will be selling into global enterprise accounts. The ideal candidate has been a part of the sales efforts for other early-stage enterprise products in an entrepreneurial setting. The Strategic Account Executive will be integral to our growth plan and in acquiring new customers. Kong’s Account Executive will be the primary point of contact and the face of Kong for our prospects.

What You'll Do:

• Sell Kong Enterprise Platform to enterprise customers.
• Meet individual quota and objectives.
• Take ownership of your book of business, which includes understanding and documenting the buying criteria and process, determining the appropriate motion and patterns, ensuring pipeline accuracy based on evidence, and working the leads to closure.
• Provide account leadership and direction in the pre- and post-sales process and contribute to analysis on wins/losses.
• Ability to travel to customer sites as required (30% - 50%).
• And any additional tasks required by manager.

What You'll Bring:

• A true desire to see customers benefit from the investment they make with Kong.
• 10+ years of experience in selling enterprise software; experience with open source, APIs, and/or infrastructure software a big plus.
• Ability to leverage established relationships and proven sales techniques for success.
• Effective communicator and strong interpersonal skills.
• Excellent negotiation, presentation and closing skills.
• Motivated, driven and results oriented.

Bonus Points

• Experience with fast growing startups is a plus.

#LI-JM3

About Kong:

Kong Inc., the AI Connectivity Company, is building the connectivity layer of AI. Trusted by the Fortune 500 and AI-native startups alike, Kong’s unified API and AI platform enables organizations to secure, manage, accelerate, govern, and monetize the flow of intelligence across APIs and AI traffic - on any model, any cloud. For more information, visit www.konghq.com.