Founding Sales Lead

Job Description

Job Description

Founding Sales Lead, AI Research Software

Senior Director to VP level | Remote, United States

About the role

A venture-backed AI software company is opening its U.S. business and needs its first commercial hire here. Its platform runs customer and market research interviews with AI, then turns hundreds of conversations into findings a team can act on the same day instead of waiting weeks. Several hundred enterprise customers already use it outside the U.S.

This is a hands-on selling role: you will open doors, build pipeline from zero, and close the first U.S. accounts, working directly with the founder.

What you’ll be doing

•   Prospect and close new enterprise accounts across the U.S., from first outreach to signed contract.

•   Sell to VPs and Directors of Consumer Insights, Market Research, User Research, and Product.

•   Target technology companies, consumer brands, research firms, and consulting firms.

•   Run deals with multiple decision-makers, including pricing, procurement, and security review.

•   Give the founder direct input on U.S. positioning, pricing, and which segments to pursue first.

•   Bring customer and competitor feedback back to the product team.

•   Represent the company at customer meetings and industry events.

•   Set up the first sales process and CRM that future U.S. hires will use.

What you bring

•   5+ years selling to enterprise customers, with a record of winning new logos, not only managing existing accounts.

•   Background selling market research, consumer insights, or research technology. Strong enterprise AI or SaaS sellers who have sold to insights, research, or product leaders are also a fit.

•   Relationships with insights, research, technology, consumer, or retail organizations.

•   Numbers you can share: quota, attainment, average deal size, and share of revenue from new customers.

•   Ability to work on your own without a local team or an existing playbook.

•   Comfort working with an international team across time zones, including some early-morning or evening calls.

What sets our best people apart

•   You have built a book of business from zero.

•   You have helped launch or grow a product in a new market.

•   You have sold to consumer, retail, automotive, or technology brands.

Why this role

•   First U.S. commercial hire with a direct line to the founder.

•   A proven product with paying enterprise customers, not a pre-launch idea.

•   Scope grows with the U.S. business, with a path to leading the sales function.

•   Equity ownership.

Location and work model

Remote, anywhere in the United States. Being near a major tech hub is a plus. Occasional travel for customer meetings and industry events.