Strategic Account Executive, UKI

Kong · Hybrid · England, UK

Base: Not disclosed
OTE: Not disclosed
Posted: 2mo ago

Still open · checked 12 min agoon Kong's careers page

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The Braun Read

Ask hard questions

Too much is left unsaid. Make them answer before you invest.

Pay: No pay listed at all.
Transparency: Shares 1 of 5: quota, attainment, deal size, territory, sales cycle.
Pipeline: Doesn't say where pipeline comes from. Ask.
Time on market: Open 68 days. Ask why it's been hard to fill.
Company hiring: Ramping up: posted 6 sales roles in the last 30 days.

Based only on what the posting says. Flags 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 percent of reps hit quota last year?
Not in the posting
2.
Who sits with reps and reviews calls each week?
Explains the attainment number
3.
What are the base and the OTE for this role?
No pay listed
4.
What's the annual quota, and how was it set?
Not in the posting
5.
Where does pipeline come from: inbound, SDRs, or me?
Not in the posting
6.
Why is this role open? Did someone leave, or is it new?
Always ask

The role

Sell the Kong Enterprise Platform (API and AI connectivity) to global enterprise accounts in UK and Ireland, owning the full cycle from buying process to close. Travel 30-50% to customer sites.

Strategic · New Logo

Selling motion

New Logo

Who you are selling to

Enterprise

Pipeline expectations

Not stated in the posting.

Compensation

The posting doesn't list pay.

What is not disclosed

This posting doesn't tell you:

Base salary
OTE
Quota size
Quota attainment
Average deal size
Sales cycle length

The questions above cover the big ones.

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. About The Role: We are looking for an experienced sales professional, ideally with open source experience who will be selling into global enterprise accounts. The ideal candidate has been a part of the sales efforts for other early-stage enterprise products in an entrepreneurial setting. The Strategic Account Executive will be integral to our growth plan and in acquiring new customers. Kong’s Account Executive will be the primary point of contact and the face of Kong for our prospects. What You'll Do: - Sell Kong Enterprise Platform to enterprise customers. - Meet individual quota and objectives. - Take ownership of your book of business, which includes understanding and documenting the buying criteria and process, determining the appropriate motion and patterns, ensuring pipeline accuracy based on evidence, and working the leads to closure. - Provide account leadership and direction in the pre- and post-sales process and contribute to analysis on wins/losses. - Ability to travel to customer sites as required (30% - 50%). - And any additional tasks required by manager. What You'll Bring: - A true desire to see customers benefit from the investment they make with Kong. - 10+ years of experience in selling enterprise software; experience with open source, APIs, and/or infrastructure software a big plus. - Ability to leverage established relationships and proven sales techniques for success. - Effective communicator and strong interpersonal skills. - Excellent negotiation, presentation and closing skills. - Motivated, driven and results oriented. Bonus Points - Experience with fast growing startups is a plus. #LI-JM3 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.

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