Enterprise Growth Account Executive - East
Kong · Remote · US
Open 5 days
New Business: you win brand-new customers.
- Pay (base or OTE?)
- $260K–$320K
- OTE
- Not disclosed
- Quota attainment
- Not disclosed
- Posted
- 6d ago
Why it matters: OTE tells you what you could earn. Attainment tells you how realistic it is.
Ask: “What percentage of fully ramped reps hit quota last year?”
Still open · checked 6h agoon Kong's careers page
The job
- What you'd do
- Find and win new customers among the world's biggest companies, running each deal from first call to signed contract in the East region. You'll sell software that links a company's older systems to AI tools.
- What you'd sell
Helps companies connect and secure their apps and AI tools
When a big company links its apps to AI tools, it usually wires each connection up by hand. The problem is, every hand-wired link has to be checked and locked down, and one weak link lets strangers in. Kong routes all that traffic through one checkpoint, so the company can secure it without fixing each link alone.
In plain English, from their own job posts. Something wrong? Tell me · More Developer & IT tools companies →
- Who you'd sell to
- Heads of technology and lead system designers at big companiesIn their words: “selling transformational technology to visionary CTOs and Chief Architects”
- Where deals come from
- Not stated in the posting.
The Braun Read
Ask hard questionsToo much is left unsaid. Make them answer before you invest.
- Pay
- Base is listed but not OTE. Ask what the variable is and how many people hit it.
- Transparency
- Shares 1 of 5. Mentions territory. Ask about quota, attainment, deal size and sales cycle.
- Time on market
- Open 5 days.
- Company hiring
- Ramping up: posted 19 sales roles in the last 30 days. That many open roles can also mean churn. Ask how many reps are still there from last year.
Red lights
None spotted.
Yellow lights
- Base or OTE? Ask. They posted a number but didn't say if it's base salary or total pay with commission. It's high for a base, so ask which it is.
Green lights
None spotted.
Based only on what the posting says. Lights are a starting point for your first call, not a final judgment.
Questions to ask on the first call
Built from what this posting leaves out. How they answer tells you as much as what they say.
- 1.
What percentage of fully ramped reps hit quota last year?
OTE is what you could earn. This is how likely you are to earn it.
- 2.
What percentage of reps on the team have been here more than 18 months?
Tenure shows whether people stay long enough to get paid.
- 3.
Has the comp plan changed in the last 12 to 18 months? What changed?
A plan that changes every year means the goalposts keep moving.
- 4.
Who sits with reps and reviews calls each week?
Coaching is often what's behind a good or bad attainment number.
- 5.
Before You Apply
Find out where you fit, and where you don't, before you hit submit.
Why I built it this way ↓
Most résumé tools try to make you look like a match. I'd rather help you find out if you are one.
Nothing made up.
Nothing goes on your résumé that you didn't do. If a line would need a number you didn't give me, I ask. I don't guess. On Braun Board it's checked in code, not just promised.
Curiosity before conclusions.
If the job wants something your résumé doesn't show, I ask before I assume. Plenty of sellers have done the thing and just never wrote it down.
Sorting, not selling.
Some jobs won't line up with what you've done. Finding that out before you apply isn't a loss. It's an hour back, spent on a job that fits.
No score.
A match score tells you how well you copied their words. It doesn't tell you whether you'd be good at the job, or happy there.
It's the same way I teach selling. We don't control who says yes. We do control where we spend our time, and whether everything we say is true.
Josh
More on this1 Is the job worth it?
Ask hard questions. Too much is left unsaid. Make them answer before you invest.
No red lights. 2 things the posting doesn't say, worth asking on the first call.
See the full Braun Read2 Where you fit
Upload once, see where you fit on any job.
Sign in and add your résumé. I'll show you where you line up, ask before I assume, and never add anything you didn't do.
Sign in →What people say about working at Kong ↓
Got an offer from Kong? Not sure about it?Ask me. I read every message myself. · JoshAsk Josh
Rather talk it through? Call or text me: 954-695-0844 (text)
Full posting
Are you ready to unlock intelligence?
If you don’t think you meet all of the criteria below but are still interested in the job, please apply. Nobody checks every box - we’re looking for candidates that are particularly strong in a few areas, and have some interest and capabilities in others.
The Mission
We are living through the most significant technological shift since the dawn of the internet. At Kong, we aren't just watching the AI revolution, we are building the infrastructure that makes it possible. We are the intelligent nervous system for modern architecture, seamlessly connecting APIs, microservices, and LLMs for the world’s most ambitious brands.
As enterprises race to integrate AI, they face a wall of complexity. We are the bridge. We help the global 2000 modernize their legacy systems and securely unlock the power of AI across their entire organization. This isn't just sales; it’s architecting the future of global commerce.
The Role: Impact & Ownership
We are looking for a strategic, high-achieving, and disciplined Enterprise Account Executive to join our world-class team. At Kong, we don't leave success to chance. We are a "master the craft" company. We rely on proven frameworks, deep technical curiosity, and collaborative execution.
If you thrive when navigating complex, high-stakes deals and love the challenge of selling transformational technology to visionary CTOs and Chief Architects, you’ve found your next home.
What You Will Achieve
- Pioneer New Markets: Lead the full sales cycle to welcome new six- and seven-figure enterprise partners into the Kong ecosystem.
- Master the Framework: Use the MEDDIC methodology not just as an acronym, but as a strategic tool to uncover value, mitigate risk, and drive predictable success.
- Navigate the C-Suite: Orchestrate complex, multi-threaded sales cycles, building deep trust with everyone from lead engineers to C-level executives.
- Collaborative Excellence: Partner with our expert Solutions Engineering team to prove the massive ROI and technical superiority of the Kong platform.
- Define Your Legacy: Maintain a pristine pipeline and deliver accurate forecasts that help shape the strategic direction of our sales organization.
What You Bring to the Journey
- A Track Record of Excellence: 5+ years of experience selling complex enterprise software platforms, with a history of consistently exceeding goals and reaching the top tier of your organization.
- Technical Curiosity: You have a passion for infrastructure, DevOps, or AI-enabling technologies. You don't just sell the product; you understand the "why" behind it.
- Strategic Discipline: You value a structured approach. You know that sustainable, scalable success comes from mastering the playbook and executing with precision.
- Executive Presence: You are a compelling storyteller, capable of articulating the strategic business value of AI and APIs to the world’s most sophisticated technical leaders.
- Resilient Drive: You bring the persistence, grit, and proactive mindset required to win in a high-velocity, competitive landscape.
Why You’ll Thrive at Kong
- Category-Defining Technology: Sell a product that engineers genuinely love and that the world’s largest companies need to survive an AI-first world.
- Uncapped Opportunity: A competitive base salary paired with an aggressive, uncapped commission structure that rewards those who go above and beyond.
- Exponential Growth: We are scaling fast and we invest in our people. If you want to grow your career, we provide the path, the training, and the mentorship to get you there.
- Inclusive Excellence: We offer comprehensive health coverage, equity, flexible PTO, and a culture where diverse perspectives are the fuel for our innovation.
Our Commitment to You: At Kong, we believe that talent is diverse by nature. If you are excited about this role but your background doesn't perfectly match every single bullet point, we encourage you to apply anyway. We value potential, passion, and the unique perspective you bring to the table.
About Kong:
Kong Inc., the AI Connectivity Company, is building the connectivity layer of AI. Trusted by the Fortune 500® and AI-native startups alike, Kong’s unified API and AI platform enables organizations to secure, manage, accelerate, govern, and monetize the flow of intelligence across APIs and AI traffic — on any model, any cloud. For more information, visit www.konghq.com http://www.konghq.com.