Job Summary

As the Account & Sales Specialist, you will play a pivotal role in supporting existing clients and driving our growth by identifying, developing, and closing new business opportunities within the health professions education EdTech sector. You will work closely with Medical, PA, and Nurse Practitioner educators, administrators, and educational institutions to understand their needs, present our solutions, provide training and retention support, and build strong relationships. This role requires a passion for education, excellent communication skills, and a results-driven mindset.

This position plays a crucial role in driving our product retention, adoption, and revenue generation.  Working closely with potential as well as existing clients with upsell potential, understanding their unique business needs, and presenting tailored solutions that align with their objectives, you will support Aquifer’s mission by helping to achieve our revenue goals.  Your ability to build strong relationships, effectively communicate Aquifer’s value proposition, use data to drive decision-making, support relationships, and close deals will directly impact Aquifer’s current and future success!

Key Accountabilities

New Business Development

• Prospect and identify new business opportunities by researching and targeting potential education institutions in Aquifer’s market.
• Work closely with prospective clients to understand their needs.
• Articulate the benefits and value of our solutions clearly, tailoring presentations and pitches to resonate with each client’s specific requirements.
• Follow up on inbound leads and generate leads through various channels, including attending industry events, emails, cold calls, and networking.
• Conduct thorough needs assessments with educational decision-makers to understand prospective pain points, challenges, and objectives.

Sales Pipeline Management

• Manage the entire sales cycle from prospecting and lead generation to contract negotiation and closure.
• Develop and maintain a robust pipeline of qualified leads, tracking all interactions and updates in the CRM system.
• Manage, track, and prioritize your sales pipeline to meet and exceed ongoing sales targets and performance metrics.

Account Management

• Manage a book of existing customers for retention and upsell potential
• Build and maintain strong, long-term relationships with educational institutions, educators, key decision-makers and internal stakeholders/colleagues.
• Identify opportunities to expand existing accounts by upselling or cross-selling additional products or services.
• Regularly engage with customers to provide training, help maximize their use of Aquifer, understand their future needs
• Understand clients’ pain points and challenges to propose tailored solutions.

Market Research

• Stay up-to-date with industry trends, competitor offerings, and emerging technologies in the health professions EdTech space.
• Collaborate with networking opportunities with the consortium, existing customers, and others to expand your professional knowledge and network and generate leads.
• Use market insights to adapt sales strategies and positioning.
• Work closely and integrate with cross-functional teams, including product, adoption and use and marketing to ensure a seamless transition from prospecting to onboarding.

Characteristics and Attributes

• Persuasive: able to influence potential customers by highlighting the value and benefits of Aquifer’s products and services.  Able to address objections and negotiate effectively.
• Empathy and relationship building:  build rapport and establish strong relationships with customers and understand customer needs, concerns, and notifications, enabling them to tailor their approach and provide personalized solutions.
• Driven by making the sale: undaunted by rejection and intrinsically motivated to individually and collectively make and retain a sale.
• Self-motivation and drive: self-motivated, ambitious, and driven to achieve and exceed their sales goals.  Be able to handle rejection and persist in pursuing new opportunities.
• Product knowledge: solid understanding of products and services being sold
• Time management and organization: must be skilled at managing time efficiently, prioritizing tasks, staying organized, and handling multiple leads and opportunities simultaneously while ensuring follow-ups and timely responses
• Confidence and resilience:  confidence in oneself and the product or service being sold. Be skilled in projecting confidence and resilience even in the face of challenges, rejection, and difficult customers.
• Strategic thinking and problem-solving:  must be able to identify customer pain points, propose tailored solutions, and navigate obstacles to close deals successfully, drive and retain customer loyalty.
• Analytical mindset with the ability to interpret, translate, and use sales data and market trends to guide your plan to retain and grow revenue
• Tech-savvy with a keen interest in understanding SaaS products and solutions, as well as in using automation to enable an effective sales and customer experience
• Flexibility to adapt to changing market conditions and priorities
• Continuous Learning: have a growth mindset and are dedicated to continuous learning.  Seek opportunities to enhance their sales skills, stay updated on industry trends, and adapt to evolving customer needs.

Expected Experience, Skills/Qualifications

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to build and maintain relationships with customers and internal stakeholders
• Proven track record in revenue growth and customer retention in a B2B market.
• Familiarity with CRM software (Zoho), Microsoft PowerPoint, Word, and Excel, Zoom, and Google Suite
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Willingness to travel occasionally for industry events and organizational meetings
• Familiarity with relevant industry trends, market dynamics, and competitive landscape and ability to translate, influence, and pivot based on market dynamics and trends.
• Aligns with and demonstrates Aquifer’s Core Values

Success/Scorecard Metrics

• Achieving sales goals/targets
• Number of qualified leads
• Conversion rate
• Revenue Generated
• Sales cycle length
• Lead response time
• Customer retention rate
• Cross Selling/Upselling success
• Activity Metrics
• Account expansion
• Customer Referrals

Aquifer’s Core Values

1. Live the Aquifer non-profit mission — feel the need, create the future, evaluate the impact.
2. Collaborate wholeheartedly — be proactive and agile, seek first to understand, play well together.
3. Keep your promises — get stuff done and deliver on time, finish what you started, own the responsibility.
4. Do the right thing — remember the Golden Rule, put the customer first, embrace transparency.
5. Be bold and fierce — attack the opportunity, show your grit, manage your fear.
6. Strive for excellence — make your A-game your everyday game, know your stuff, stretch a lot.
7. Enjoy the journey — take the work seriously and yourself less so, go far together, be well
8. Embrace Learning and Growth–be curious, cultivate and contribute knowledge, experiment, fail and adapt!

Diversity Encouraged

Our organization strongly values diversity and the inclusion of people from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, recognizing that such diversity will enrich our culture and strengthen our ability to fulfill our organization’s mission.