Head of Sales

Location

In person, NYC

Type

Full-Time

About Arva

Arva is building the world's leading agentic AI solution for financial crime compliance operations. Research sits at the core of everything we do, and we work with some of the largest financial institutions in the world.

Backed by Google and Y Combinator, we are revolutionizing how banks and fintechs conduct compliance. Our robust AI Agents automate manual human review tasks across Screening, AML, KYC, and fraud, driving operational efficiency and helping financial institutions cut costs by up to 85%.

Arva was founded in 2024 by Rhim Shah (CEO) and Oli Wales (CTO). Rhim previously led the financial crime product team at Revolut Business, where he watched skilled analysts spend tens of thousands of hours on repetitive manual reviews — and realised AI could do this work faster, more consistently, and with a full audit trail. Together with Oli, formerly lead product engineer at Opvia (YC S20), he built Arva to give compliance teams superpowers. Our wider team brings deep expertise from major banks, regulatory bodies, and technology firms, and we are growing rapidly with offices in New York City and London.

We are now ready to build the sales organization that will take Arva to market at scale.

That's where you come in.

About the Role

As Head of Sales, you will own Arva's revenue engine. This is a player-coach role: you will carry a personal book of our most strategic enterprise accounts while simultaneously building, hiring, and developing a world-class sales team.

You will set the go-to-market strategy, define the sales playbook, and be the executive face of Arva in front of the largest banks and financial institutions in the world.

This is a founding-team-level role with direct impact on the trajectory of the company.

Location: This role is based in New York City.

What You'll Do

• Revenue ownership: Set and deliver against the company's annual revenue targets, owning the full sales pipeline from top-of-funnel through close.
• Team building: Hire, onboard, and coach a team of senior enterprise Account Executives. Instil a culture of rigour, urgency, and customer obsession from day one.
• Sales playbook development: Build and codify Arva's enterprise sales methodology — qualification frameworks, discovery process, PoV structure, and multi-stakeholder engagement strategy — tailored to the unique complexity of bank procurement.
• Strategic deal leadership: Lead or co-sell on Arva's largest, most complex opportunities, personally navigating C-suite relationships at tier 1 and tier 2 banks.
• GTM strategy: Partner with the CEO and marketing to define ICP, pipeline targets, channel strategy, and territory design as we scale.
• Cross-functional leadership: Represent the voice of the customer internally, aligning Product, Engineering, and Customer Success to close deals and drive expansion.
• Forecasting and operating cadence: Own weekly pipeline reviews, board-level revenue reporting, and headcount planning with precision and accountability.

Your First 90 Days

• Days 1–30: Immerse yourself in the product, the regulatory landscape, and our customers. Take ownership of our active enterprise opportunities and pilots, and build relationships across Product, Engineering, and Customer Success.
• Days 31–60: Codify our enterprise sales playbook — qualification framework, discovery process, and PoV structure — based on what you learn from live deals. Open your own pipeline of strategic accounts and begin hiring your first Account Executives.
• Days 61–90: Have your first AE hires onboarded and ramping against the playbook, a board-ready forecast and operating cadence in place, and a clear GTM plan agreed with the CEO for the next two quarters.

About You

• Sales leadership track record: 5+ years in enterprise B2B SaaS sales, with at least 3 years in a sales leadership role managing AEs in a high-growth environment.
• Financial services domain: Deep experience selling into banks, fintechs, or financial institutions. You understand the procurement gauntlet — Infosec, MRM, Compliance, Legal — and know how to navigate it.
• Enterprise deal pedigree: Personal track record of closing $300k+ ACV deals and coaching others to do the same.
• Builder mentality: You have stood up a sales function before, or have played a key role in scaling one from early-stage to a structured, repeatable GTM motion.
• Domain authority: Fluent in the regulatory language of financial crime — BSA/AML, OFAC, KYC, sanctions, PEP screening. You can hold your own with a Chief Compliance Officer or a bank examiner.
• MEDDICC disciplined: You run a rigorous sales process and coach your team to do the same.

Ideal, But Not Required

• Experience at a RegTech or FinTech company at Series A or beyond.
• Existing executive relationships within compliance, risk, or technology departments at major financial institutions.
• Prior experience at a tier 1 consultancy or major bank in a compliance or technology capacity.

Our Offer

• Premium Compensation: $350,000 OTE with a top-of-market base and meaningful early-stage equity.
• Seat at the table: Direct line to the CEO and co-founders, with genuine influence over company strategy, product roadmap, and GTM direction.
• Build something lasting: The opportunity to define Arva's sales culture and organizational DNA — not inherit someone else's.
• Top-Tier Environment: Work in a high-intensity, collaborative NYC office alongside experts from Google, YC, and global finance.
• Impact: Play a defining role in securing the global financial system against crime while scaling a generational AI company.

Our Operating Principles

• Relentless Urgency — We move fast and decisively, focusing on delivering real outcomes instead of waiting for perfect conditions.
• Excellence in Everything — We hold a high bar in every detail that matters, from product quality to how we communicate and support customers, even when no one is watching.
• Proactive Ownership — We take initiative without waiting to be asked, communicate early and clearly, are always curious, and continuously improve what we build and how we work.
• Zoom Out, Then In — We start from the bigger picture, pick the highest-leverage move, then execute with focus.

Our Commitment to Diversity

We\'re eager to meet talented, driven candidates regardless of whether they check every box. We value what you\'ll add to our culture, not just whether you fit into it. We strongly encourage individuals from groups traditionally underrepresented in tech and financial services to apply.

We are an equal opportunity employer and committed to non-discrimination based on race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.