SMB Account Executive - Expansion

Job Description Join us at Zendesk, where we’re on a mission to power exceptional service for every person on the planet. Our AI-informed solutions transform every interaction into an opportunity for authentic human connection, empowering organizations to create outstanding customer experiences at scale. To advance this vision, we are seeking a dedicated, AI-savvy SMB Account Executive with a proven track record in B2B sales and a passion for driving SaaS growth. In this role, you will grow our SMB account base by hunting new opportunities, closing deals of all sizes, and building broad, trusted relationships. As a key member of our team, you’ll harness the latest in AI-driven insights and solutions to accelerate revenue growth, align with customer goals, and deepen Zendesk’s impact across the SMB landscape. What You’ll Be Doing Drive top‑line revenue growth by acquiring new SMB customers, leveraging innovative and AI‑powered strategies for pipeline development and account expansion. Manage and nurture customer relationships to ensure high satisfaction and retention by personalizing outreach and automating workflows through AI tools. Proactively lead complex sales cycles by integrating AI insights and customer data to craft tailored, outcome‑driven solutions for each customer. Co‑create with customers clear AI transformation roadmaps grounded in measurable KPIs, uncovering and addressing unique business challenges through deep AI‑driven insights. Develop and articulate compelling, data‑backed ROI and value cases that impact procurement decisions and demonstrate clear business impact. Track and communicate realized outcomes to foster loyalty and drive upsell opportunities. Hold consultative technical conversations regarding AI product architecture and integrations, collaborating closely with Solutions Engineers, AI Specialists, and cross‑functional teams to co‑design innovative solutions. Identify and pursue opportunities to cross‑sell and up‑sell new products and services, maximizing account revenue and profitability by understanding adoption history and customer needs. Consistently anticipate AI market trends and competitor moves, leveraging this intelligence to sharpen deal strategies and influence Zendesk’s go‑to‑market approach. Build and maintain a robust, accurately tracked pipeline of qualified opportunities in Salesforce, providing weekly, monthly, and quarterly forecasts while meeting or exceeding revenue targets and activity KPIs. Collaborate with Marketing, Business Development, and other internal teams to optimize sales campaigns and execution, ensuring seamless and tech‑enabled customer engagement. Champion the customer voice and act as a Zendesk AI thought leader; stay relentlessly curious about new trends and raise organizational standards for AI‑powered sales excellence. Demonstrate an understanding of local market dynamics and customer behaviors relevant to your assigned territory or region. Manage sales pipeline rigorously, employing qualification frameworks and consistent forecasting to maximize deal velocity and accuracy. Handle renewal processes and collaborate cross‑functionally to ensure seamless customer onboarding and account expansion. Collaborate effectively with internal teams including marketing, customer success, and product specialists to amplify sales impact. What You Bring to the Role At least 2 years of B2B sales or solution engineering experience in SaaS, with a proven record of exceeding targets. Experience engaging and expanding relationships across various customer levels, ideally within a technology‑driven environment. Strong technical aptitude and proven ability to have detailed conversations about AI product architecture and integrations. Demonstrated success in account research, prospecting, customer outreach, and closing deals using AI‑assisted and traditional methods. Excellent organizational skills with the ability to manage a high volume of opportunities, multiple priorities, and detailed forecasting through Salesforce or similar CRM tools. Entrepreneurial spirit, collaborative mindset, and relentless drive for learning and growth—especially regarding AI and automation trends. Outstanding communication, presentation, and negotiation abilities. Experience creating and executing territory/account plans and leveraging key sales tools such as Salesforce, Outreach, and Clari. BA/BS degree or equivalent experience. Willingness to travel as needed. Who You Are Customer‑Centric Innovator: Anticipates customer needs and drives innovation by blending human experience with AI capabilities to deliver meaningful business impact and value. Data‑Driven Decision Maker: Utilizes AI‑generated insights and analytics to inform, optimise, and personalise every stage of the sales process from discovery through closing. Collaborative Influencer: Fosters strong, trust‑based partnerships, both internally and externally, to elevate team performance and customer outcomes. Continuous Learner & Mentor: Proactively stays ahead of AI trends, shares knowledge, and develops peers to build collective AI fluency across the organization. Strategic Thinker with Execution Focus: Balances visionary thinking about the future of AI‑enabled sales with disciplined, results‑oriented execution for high impact outcomes. Compensation The US annualised OTE (On Target Earnings) range for this position is $111,000.00‑$167,000.00 with a pay mix of 60/40 (base/commission). This position may also be eligible for bonus, benefits, or related incentives. While this range reflects the minimum and maximum value for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations, the offer for the successful candidate for this position will be based on job‑related capabilities, applicable experience, and other factors such as work location. Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only (or OTE for commission‑based roles), and do not include bonus, benefits, or related incentives. Hybrid Working Arrangement In this role, our hybrid experience is designed at the team level to give you a rich onsite experience packed with connection, collaboration, learning, and celebration – while also giving you flexibility to work remotely for part of the week. This role must attend our local office for part of the week. The specific in‑office schedule is to be determined by the hiring manager. Equal Opportunity Employer Zendesk is an equal opportunity employer, and we’re proud of our ongoing efforts to foster global diversity, equity, & inclusion in the workplace. Individuals seeking employment and employees at Zendesk are considered without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, medical condition, ancestry, disability, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. We are an AA/EEO/Veterans/Disabled employer. If you are based in the United States and would like more information about your EEO rights under the law, please click here. Zendesk endeavors to make reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities and disabled veterans pursuant to applicable federal and state law. If you are an individual with a disability and require a reasonable accommodation to submit this application, complete any pre‑employment testing, or otherwise participate in the employee selection process, please send an e‑mail to View email address on click.appcast.io with your specific accommodation request. Safety Notice We’re aware of an increase in recruitment scams where individuals falsely claim to represent Zendesk. These scammers may ask for money or personal information by offering fake job opportunities through e‑mail, text message or social media. Please verify the source of any job‑related communications carefully. All official Zendesk communications are conducted through "@zendesk.com" email addresses. If you encounter suspicious messages, do not respond and report them to View email address on click.appcast.io. #J-18808-Ljbffr