Strategic Account Director

Overview

The Strategic Account Director leads the development and application of a mature/dynamic customer plan detailing critical insights and new business opportunities aligned to customer priorities. Leads efforts to share Microsoft and partner strategies across other segments of the customer's account and ensure customer success in the acquisition, implementation, and consumption of Microsoft's and partner's services and solutions. Connects appropriate internal executives and partners to build strategic relationships, leveraging deep knowledge of customer business and ecosystem (e.g., customers, competitors, partners). Provides thought leadership and strategic co-innovation ideas. Proactively defines and executes governance model to ensure mapping across seniority levels. Builds trust and loyalty with the customer by providing up-to-date insights, challenging the customer when necessary, and introducing innovative ideas relevant to the customer's business strategy. Anticipates market changes to drive new industry-relevant cloud solutions to customers. Proactively explores and uncovers technologies and confirms customer interest.

Responsibilities

Account Management

• Proactively solicits feedback on additional needs, products, and features to develop targeted strategies for customers.
• Demonstrates a strong understanding of the customer's business model to articulate growth opportunities, leveraging industry expertise to shape ecosystem.
• Influences relevant (internal and external) stakeholders and resources to drive change on behalf of the customer and to enhance team capabilities, improve Microsoft offerings, and adapt Microsoft's messaging to the assigned account.
• Leads the development and application of a mature/dynamic customer plan detailing critical insights and new business opportunities aligned to customer priorities.
• Leads and coordinates a diverse and high-performing team and key stakeholders (e.g., industry experts) on plan execution (e.g., prioritization, delegation) and drives accountability to deliver on account plans and grow the account.
• Anticipates future needs and provides long-term strategic insight to customers as a trusted partner.
• Orchestrates the execution of strategies for the assigned account to ensure engagements yield high-volume sales, drive plans to increase revenue potential, and open new opportunities for both Microsoft and the partners, aligned to goals, budgets, and forecasts.
• Leads, challenges, and inspires team to focus on top priorities and challenges to drive business case.
• Leverages deep industry expertise to anticipate industry direction, ecosystem, and transformation.
• Proactively expands strategic network of key internal and external partners and decision makers, including vertical industry partners, to ensure execution of core tasks and account transactions and to provide a comprehensive account management experience.
• Leads regular meetings for strategic accounts with relevant partners.
• Influences transformation for partners to build innovative solutions.
• Leads efforts with key internal and external partners including vertical industry partners with business and technical decision makers in developing, sharing, and promoting mutually beneficial, long-term, customizable account plans to grow sales and partner impact, leveraging deep relationships, broad influence, and in-depth industry expertise.
• Leads efforts to share Microsoft and partner strategies across other segments of the customer's account and ensure customer success in the acquisition, implementation, and consumption of Microsoft's and partner's services and solutions.
• Collaborates across organization and partners in discussions to impact the broader ecosystem (e.g., passing legislation).

Competitive Knowledge

• Partners with internal industry experts to strengthen knowledge of the industry (e.g., emerging trends, forecasting long-term developments, influencers), competitors (e.g., AWS, Salesforce) customer business priorities (e.g., challenges, competitive landscape) and leverages in-depth knowledge of Microsoft's offerings (e.g., product landscape, solutions, strategy to address customers' needs) to provide thought leadership and mentor the account management team on ways to gain deeper industry knowledge that ultimately addresses customer needs.
• Proactively explores and uncovers technologies and confirms customer interest.

Customer Engagement

• Proactively owns and elevates a transformative customer stakeholder engagement strategy to foster customer trust and brand growth and loyalty.
• Sets organizational tone for building and maintaining long-term strategic customer relationships and for driving larger impact for the customer. Proactively defines and executes governance model to ensure mapping across seniority levels.
• Proactively develops a strong, comprehensive understanding of customer's business needs, priorities, and strategies and industry insights, competition, market competitive trends, and the customers' customers.
• Guides internal colleagues on ways to develop deeper customer knowledge.
• Anticipates customers' needs to deliver new insights on customers' business strategies.
• Articulates need to address customer's business needs (both internally and to the customer).
• Identifies and pursues opportunities to optimize offerings and delivers solutions into overall long-term business strategy.
• Anticipates new potential market opportunities for the customer, leveraging deep industry expertise.

Sales Excellence

• Leverages understanding of customer business and engages Microsoft decision makers to drive customer's strategy, goals, and optimization.
• Engages and influences decision makers of the account (e.g., C-level, high-impact customers) on Microsoft's vision, strategy, and value, and positions Microsoft to increase customer's budget allocated to Microsoft, tailor solutions that satisfy customers' Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
• Translates features into business outcomes that accelerate