Strategic Account Director, Retail New Business

Job Description

Strategic Account Director, Retail | Zendesk

The Tone:
This is a full-time role at Zendesk, operating in a hybrid model, likely based out of a major hub like San Francisco. Zendesk builds products rooted in AI, automation, and intelligent customer experiences to power exceptional service for every person. This role is crucial for creating and closing durable net-new business in large retail and consumer brands, guiding complex opportunities from initial conversation through close, and expanding Zendesk’s enterprise customer base.

The TL;DR
• Role: Full Time
• Type: Full-time
• Location: Hybrid – San Francisco, CA

• Mission: Create and close durable net-new business in large retail and consumer brands.

What You’ll Actually Do
• Pipeline Management: Build and manage qualified pipeline through targeted prospecting, inbound opportunities, partner relationships, and territory planning.
• Sales Leadership: Lead complex sales from discovery and qualification through business case, proposal, negotiation, and close.
• Solution Alignment: Connect customer goals and service challenges to a credible Zendesk platform and AI solution, with measurable outcomes.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Build relationships across executive, business, technical, finance, security, and procurement teams.
• Deal Ownership: Own pursuit strategy, deal progression, and commercial decisions within approved guidelines.

The Must-Haves
• Background: Director-level experience in complex retail software sales. Equivalent practical experience is welcome; no specific degree is required.
• Experience: Typically 12+ years of related experience, with demonstrated success in complex retail software sales. A record of owning new-business opportunities and delivering measurable commercial outcomes, such as quota attainment or new ARR. Experience with prospecting, value-based discovery, executive engagement, and complex deal ownership.
• Skills: A strong new-business mindset, consultative discovery, ability to earn trust and guide decisions across buying groups, commercial judgment, strong operating habits, and clear communication of platform and AI value.
• Bonus: Repeated success closing large, complex net-new enterprise deals. Experience creating demand and shaping account or market strategy for high-value prospects. Strength in ROI storytelling, competitive positioning, and guiding multi-stakeholder buying decisions. Experience partnering with channel or ecosystem partners and cross-functional sales teams. Familiarity with service operations, customer experience, or AI-enabled business transformation. AI literacy, including comfort discussing AI opportunities in terms of customer outcomes, adoption, security, governance, and implementation readiness.