Senior Account Manager

As a Senior Account Manager at Wayside Publishing, you will play a critical role in managing and nurturing relationships with key clients and driving strategic growth within your assigned territory. This position blends deep account management responsibilities with mentorship, collaboration, and thought leadership across the sales team. As a Senior Account Manager, you will act as a trusted advisor to both clients and internal teams, helping guide customers through the sales process while fostering long-term partnerships and advocating for their needs. You will spend a significant amount of time outside the office, meeting with clients, conducting sales presentations, and building strong relationships with customers face-to-face. Territory: State of New York - The ideal candidate would reside within the territory or in the surrounding area that is within a reasonable distance of New York State. Proximity to the New York City area is essential for this role. Who We Are Wayside Publishing is a progressive developer of world language programs, resources, and materials for middle and high schools across the United States. We partner with educators to craft transformative texts and digital tools that engage students and foster successful communication and understanding across cultures. Primary Responsibilities Develop and implement strategic account plans for key customers within your territory, identifying opportunities for expansion, retention, and long-term partnership. Understand client goals, district initiatives, budgetary constraints, and timelines to offer tailored solutions aligned with customer success. Maintain deep familiarity with district procurement processes, funding cycles, and state-specific adoption requirements. Collaborate with the adoptions team to monitor legislation, market trends, and best practices that impact client decisions and procurement cycles. Build and nurture strategic relationships with clients through regular communication, site visits, and stakeholder meetings. Serve as a trusted advisor, helping clients navigate challenges and ensuring their satisfaction with Wayside Publishing’s products and services. Act as a subject matter expert and mentor to junior Account Managers. Lead by example in customer engagement, opportunity management, and strategic account planning. Share insights, best practices, and lessons learned from the field to help shape team knowledge and approach. Work cross-functionally with Marketing, Product Development, Customer Support, and Adoptions teams to ensure alignment and success for assigned accounts. Facilitate feedback loops and advocate for client needs to influence product offerings and company strategy. Conduct face-to-face meetings with prospective and existing clients. Schedule appointments, perform cold calls, and present Wayside’s world language product offerings in person. Prepare and present detailed proposals that outline solutions, timelines, and pricing. Negotiate terms and handle objections to close sales with mutually beneficial outcomes. Maintain accurate records of client interactions, sales activity, and performance metrics using Salesforce. Generate reports and analyze trends to assess territory growth, client retention, and pipeline health. Represent the voice of the customer internally, ensuring feedback and evolving needs are communicated to product and leadership teams. Advocate for customer success throughout the lifecycle of the account. Identify new business opportunities within both existing and potential accounts to drive revenue growth and market share. Travel approximately 50% of the time, adhering to the company’s travel guidelines. Other Duties as Assigned Requirements Bachelor's degree in business, education, or a related field. Minimum 6 years of proven experience as an Account Manager or in a similar client-facing role, preferably in a B2B environment. Strong understanding of the K-12 education market, including adoption cycles, funding mechanisms, and procurement processes. Experience with state-specific adoption cycles, including the ability to collaborate with adoptions and product teams to ensure alignment with state standards. Demonstrated ability to meet or exceed sales goals and revenue targets. Strong leadership and mentoring abilities, with a collaborative, team-first attitude. Strong business acumen and sales process understanding with a results-oriented mindset. Excellent interpersonal, communication, and relationship-building skills, especially with senior-level stakeholders and district decision-makers. Demonstrated ability to manage multiple large accounts while mentoring junior team members. Strategic thinker with strong problem-solving and negotiating skills and the ability to manage complex accounts. Skilled at managing a dynamic schedule, prioritizing tasks, and navigating independently while traveling. Proficiency in CRM systems such as Salesforce and MS Office tools. Valid driver's license and willingness to travel extensively within the assigned territory. World Language teaching experience is a plus; proficiency in Spanish, French, German, or Italian is a strong plus but not required. Experience in the educational K-12 industry is preferred, but not required. Passion for education and a commitment to making a positive impact in the world language learning community. Passion for supporting educators and fostering world language learning. Professional, adaptable, and collaborative, with a passion for supporting educators and helping schools achieve their instructional goals. Commitment to lifelong learning and professional growth within a purpose-driven company. Eagerness to learn and adopt new technologies, products, and tools to support business growth. Proven ability to collaborate cross-functionally with marketing, customer service, product, and operations teams to align on shared goals. Positive, adaptable, and committed to contributing to a collaborative and mission-driven company culture. Ability to address challenges, manage multiple tasks, and deliver solutions efficiently. What We Offer Competitive compensation: base salary and commission, uncapped potential. Health insurance with options for dental, vision, life insurance, and more. Retirement savings plan with employer contribution. Employer-paid STD and LTD policies. Paid holidays. Work/life balance as a company value. We believe that traditional hiring policies can hurt the most marginalized people in society, including people of color, people from working-class backgrounds, women, and LGBTQ people. Because we believe that these communities must be centered in the work we do, we strongly encourage applications from people with these identities or who are members of other marginalized communities. Wayside Publishing is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin. When submitting your application, please include a concise cover letter that speaks to your experience and why this role is the next best step in your career. #J-18808-Ljbffr