Paze Senior Director Merchant Sales

At Early Warning, we’ve powered and protected the U.S. financial system for over thirty years with cutting-edge solutions like Zelle®, Paze℠, and so much more. As a trusted name in payments, we partner with thousands of institutions to increase access to financial services and protect transactions for hundreds of millions of consumers and small businesses.

Positions located in Scottsdale, San Francisco, Chicago, or New York follow a hybrid work model to allow for a more collaborative working environment.

Candidates responding to this posting must independently possess the eligibility to work in the United States, for any employer, at the date of hire. This position is ineligible for employment Visa sponsorship.

Overall Purpose

The Senior Director, Business Development – Merchant is responsible for defining and leading the merchant business development strategy for Paze. This role leads the acquisition of strategic enterprise merchants, establishes senior executive relationships across the merchant and payments ecosystem, and builds the sales capabilities, operating practices, and cross-functional alignment required to expand merchant acceptance and usage of Paze.

The Senior Director leads a team of merchant business development professionals and is accountable for developing the functional sales strategy, prioritizing target segments and accounts, managing complex sales opportunities, and delivering measurable commercial results. The role works closely with Product, Marketing, Channel Partnerships, Customer Integration, Relationship Management, Finance, Legal, Risk, and Technology to align merchant needs with Paze priorities and support successful merchant launches.

This role serves as a senior commercial leader and market representative for Paze, using merchant, competitive, and industry insight to influence go-to-market strategy, product direction, sales execution, and long-term growth.

Essential Functions

• Defines and leads the merchant business development strategy, operating model, priorities, and performance objectives for Paze.
• Develops and executes annual and multi-year sales plans focused on acquiring strategic enterprise merchants and expanding Paze acceptance and usage.
• Leads, develops, and holds accountable a team of merchant business development professionals responsible for pipeline generation, opportunity development, negotiation, and merchant acquisition.
• Establishes trusted, influential relationships with senior and executive decision-makers across merchant payments, finance, digital, product, technology, marketing, eCommerce, and related functions.
• Serves as executive sponsor and senior commercial lead for the most strategic, complex, or high-value merchant opportunities.
• Communicates the strategy, value proposition, and vision of Paze to merchant executives and other industry stakeholders, creating alignment and commitment across complex decision-making groups.
• Leads complex commercial discussions and negotiations involving strategic, financial, operational, product, technology, implementation, and contractual considerations.
• Develops merchant segmentation, account prioritization, coverage models, and resource allocation practices that focus the team on the highest-value opportunities.
• Establishes scalable sales processes, pipeline governance, forecasting practices, performance measures, and operating rhythms that improve execution, visibility, and accountability.
• Conducts regular pipeline, forecast, and performance reviews with executive leadership and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Partners with Channel Partnerships and reseller organizations to develop coordinated account strategies and expand merchant reach through direct and indirect sales channels.
• Collaborates with Product, Marketing, Customer Integration, Relationship Management, Technology, Finance, Legal, and Risk to resolve barriers, manage dependencies, and improve the merchant sales and implementation experience.
• Anticipates changes in merchant priorities, payment technology, competitive conditions, eCommerce practices, and market dynamics, and adapts the merchant go-to-market strategy accordingly.
• Provides actionable merchant, customer, and competitive insights that inform product strategy, marketing priorities, implementation practices, and the Paze roadmap.
• Develops business cases, sales strategies, executive presentations, and recommendations for new market opportunities, merchant segments, partnerships, or commercial models.
• Leads cross-functional initiatives to improve merchant acquisition, contracting, onboarding, launch readiness, and post-sale transition.
• Ensures merchant opportunities, stakeholder interactions, forecasts, agreements, and supporting records are accurately maintained in the designated customer relationship management platform.
• Builds a high-performing leadership and sales talent pipeline by recruiting, coaching, differentiating performance, providing actionable feedback, and developing future leaders.
• Creates a culture of accountability, collaboration, continuous improvement, customer focus, and ethical business conduct.
• Supports the company’s commitment to risk management and protects the integrity and confidentiality of systems and data.

Minimum Qualifications

• Education and experience typically obtained through completion of a bachelor’s degree in business, finance, marketing, technology, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• Typically, has 15 years or more of progressive experience or demonstrated portfolio consistent with experience required of the role in consultative sales, strategic business development, merchant services, eCommerce, payments, financial technology, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience leading enterprise merchant sales or business development within eCommerce, digital payments, merchant acquiring, financial technology, or a related payments environment.
• Demonstrated success developing and executing sales strategies that produced measurable pipeline, revenue, adoption, or market-growth results.
• Proven ability to secure and lead relationships with senior and executive decision-makers at large enterprise merchants and payments organizations.
• Experience leading complex, multi-stakeholder sales opportunities from initial engagement through negotiation, contracting, and transition to implementation.
• Demonstrated knowledge of merchant payments, eCommerce checkout, digital wallets, payment acceptance, merchant service providers, and related industry dynamics.
• Demonstrated leadership experience recruiting, developing, motivating, and managing a high-performing sales or business development team.
• Experience defining functional priorities, allocating resources, establishing performance measures, and holding teams accountable for results.
• Strong consultative, conceptual, strategic selling, influencing, and negotiation capabilities.
• Demonstrated ability to operate across organizational boundaries, resolve competing priorities, and lead cross-functional execution without relying solely on direct authority.
• Strong executive communication skills, including the ability to simplify complex topics, develop clear narratives, facilitate senior-level discussions, and present recommendations.
• Strong analytical and financial acumen, including experience evaluating market opportunities, sales performance, business cases, risks, and commercial tradeoffs.
• Demonstrated ability to make sound decisions and maintain execution in an ambiguous, rapidly changing, or high-growth environment.
• Ability to travel up to 50%.
• Ability to meet the background-screening requirements associated with the role.
• Background and drug screen.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience selling digital wallets, eCommerce payment solutions, merchant acquiring services, payment technology, fraud solutions, or related financial-technology products to large enterprise merchants.
• Established relationships across the enterprise merchant, eCommerce, payments, and financial-technology ecosystem.
• Experience building or scaling a merchant sales organization, coverage model, operating process, or go-to-market capability.
• Experience working with channel partners, payment service providers, merchant acquirers, payment facilitators, gateways, commerce platforms, or other payments ecosystem participants.
• Experience contributing merchant and market insight to product strategy, roadmap development, commercialization, or launch planning.
• Experience working in a matrixed, regulated, or risk-sensitive business environment.
• Proficiency with customer relationship management, pipeline management, forecasting, and sales-performance tools.
• Graduate-level education in business, finance, marketing, technology, or a related discipline.

Physical Requirements

Working conditions consist of a normal office environment. Work is primarily sedentary and requires extensive use of a computer and involves sitting for periods of approximately four hours. Work may require occasional standing, walking, kneeling, and reaching. Must be able to lift 10 pounds occasionally and/or negligible amount of force frequently. Requires visual acuity and dexterity to view, prepare, and manipulate documents and office equipment including personal computers. Requires the ability to communicate with internal and/or external customers. Employee must be able to perform essential functions and physical requirements of position with or without reasonable accommodation.

Candidates responding to this posting must independently possess the eligibility to work in the United States at the date of hire.

The above job description is not intended to be an all-inclusive list of duties and standards of the position. Incumbents will follow instructions and perform other related duties as assigned by their supervisor.

The base pay scale for this position in:

Phoenix, AZ / Chicago, IL / Washington, DC in USD per year is: $205,000 - $256.000.
New York, NY / San Francisco, CA in USD per year is: $215,000 - $267,000.

Additionally, candidates are eligible for a discretionary incentive plan and benefits.

This pay scale is subject to change and is not necessarily reflective of actual compensation that may be earned, nor a promise of any specific pay for any specific candidate, which is always dependent on legitimate factors considered at the time of job offer. Early Warning Services takes into consideration a variety of factors when determining a competitive salary offer, including, but not limited to, the job scope, market rates and geographic location of a position, candidate’s education, experience, training, and specialized skills or certification(s) in relation to the job requirements and compared with internal equity (peers). The business actively supports and reviews wage equity to ensure that pay decisions are not based on gender, race, national origin, or any other protected classes.

Some of the Ways We Prioritize Your Health and Happiness

• Healthcare Coverage – Competitive medical (PPO/HDHP), dental, and vision plans as well as company contributions to your Health Savings Account (HSA) or pre-tax savings through flexible spending accounts (FSA) for commuting, health & dependent care expenses.

• 401(k) Retirement Plan – Featuring a 100% Company Safe Harbor Match on your first 6% deferral immediately upon eligibility.

• Paid Time Off – Flexible Time Off for Exempt (salaried) employees, as well as generous PTO for Non-Exempt (hourly) employees, plus 11 paid company holidays and a paid volunteer day.

• 12 weeks of Paid Parental Leave

• Maven Family Planning – provides support through your Parenting journey including egg freezing, fertility, adoption, surrogacy, pregnancy, postpartum, early pediatrics, and returning to work.

And SO much more! We continue to enhance our program, so be sure to check our Benefits page here for the latest. Our team can share more during the interview process!

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Early Warning Services, LLC (“Early Warning”) considers for employment, hires, retains and promotes qualified candidates on the basis of ability, potential, and valid qualifications without regard to race, religious creed, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, genetic information, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, protected veteran or disability status or any factor prohibited by law, and as such affirms in policy and practice to support and promote equal employment opportunity and affirmative action, in accordance with all applicable federal, state, and municipal laws. The company also prohibits discrimination on other bases such as medical condition, marital status or any other factor that is irrelevant to the performance of our employees.