Account Director, Government Scale

About the Role We are looking for an Account Director to help build and run our scaled sales motion for federal, state, and local government customers. You will serve as the first point of contact for government organizations exploring OpenAI, own a portfolio of smaller and mid‑sized agencies, and help customers navigate the path from initial interest through a successful commercial engagement. This is a full‑cycle sales role that requires qualifying inbound demand, creating new opportunities, performing targeted outbound outreach, coordinating with resellers and strategic partners, and independently closing a defined class of opportunities. You will also recognize when an opportunity should graduate to a senior Account Director and make that transition seamless for the customer. Location: Washington DC or San Francisco. We use a hybrid work model of three days in the office per week and offer relocation assistance to new employees. Responsibilities Own inbound response, discovery, qualification, follow‑up, and disposition for an assigned set of federal, state, and local government customers. Manage a portfolio of smaller and mid‑sized agencies and lead appropriate opportunities through the full sales cycle. Create pipeline through targeted outbound outreach and multithreading within priority government accounts and cohorts. Build trusted relationships with government stakeholders, understand their missions and constraints, and connect them to relevant OpenAI capabilities. Work closely with approved resellers, AWS, and other strategic partners to advance customer opportunities and navigate purchasing paths. Partner with Solutions Engineering, Technical Success, Legal, Policy, Security, and other internal teams on technical, procurement, compliance, and deployment questions. Identify larger or more complex strategic opportunities and transition them effectively to the appropriate senior Account Director. Maintain accurate pipeline, forecasting, customer follow‑up, and account records. Develop repeatable playbooks for government inbound, qualification, routing, reseller execution, and common customer questions. Surface recurring customer, product, procurement, and partner insights to improve OpenAI’s government go‑to‑market motion. Qualifications Approximately 4‑7 years of relevant B2B SaaS, cloud, or technical sales experience, including demonstrated full‑cycle closing ownership. Run strong discovery, built credible deal strategies, navigated multiple stakeholders, and independently closed smaller or mid‑market opportunities. Can manage a high‑volume portfolio without sacrificing customer experience, judgment, or follow‑through. Communicate complex technical and commercial concepts clearly to working‑level and executive audiences. Curious about AI and can quickly learn how OpenAI’s products create value, where they may not be a fit, and how to discuss trade‑offs responsibly. Operate with high ownership, strong prioritization, and comfort in a fast‑changing environment. Enjoy building processes, documenting playbooks, and improving how a team works. Helpful Experience Experience selling to federal, state, local, education, or other regulated public‑sector customers. Experience working with government resellers, contract vehicles, cloud marketplaces, systems integrators, or strategic technology partners. Experience navigating public‑sector procurement, compliance, security, data‑residency, or accessibility requirements. Experience building a new inside‑sales, scaled‑account, territory, or cohort‑based sales motion. Success Measures Success will be measured through closed customer outcomes, qualified pipeline, response and conversion quality, forecast discipline, effective opportunity handoffs, and the repeatable operating leverage you create for the broader OpenAI for Government sales team. EEO Statement We are an equal opportunity employer, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or other applicable legally protected characteristic. OpenAI’s affirmative action and equal employment opportunity policy statement. #J-18808-Ljbffr