Director Solution Area Specialists – Data & AI Full-time

The Director Solution Area Specialists – Data & AI is a Leader within our Retail and Consumer Goods Organizaiton. The role leads, develops and manages a team of Specialized Sales managers. J oin our Retail and Consumer Goods Organization where you discover and qualify new leads.

Drive consumption with new and existing customers and identify market and customer needs collaborating with internal teams to devise solutions to meet those needs.

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.

Responsibilities:

Sales Execution

• Brings impactful industry insights into customer engagements and closes deals with customers, and coaches and influences others internally on how to do this. Acts as a thought leader across solution areas to advise customers on digital transformation. Influences Microsoft’s strategic direction across various markets. Leads a virtual cross-organizational team on strategic projects and high impact solution sales deployments that enable digital transformation and deliver business value. May lead partner integration into account/territory planning and customer engagements
• Orchestrates with team members to generate new leads. Guides team members on conducting personal campaigns to discover new opportunities. Leads conversations with strategic/high-potential customers (e.g., high budget, global account, highly competitive) along with account teams or partners. Facilitates the account team unit (ATU) and/or Specialist Team Unit (STU) to build pipeline. Acts as a subject matter expert to guide others on social selling or speak about Microsoft solutions at events. Applies Microsoft’s sales process (MSP) to determine the quality of the opportunity and whether to proceed, and educate the customers on how to best address their needs.
• Drives consumption and grow business with existing strategic customers by initiating conversations, guiding others on demos or quotes, and the collaboration with partners or internal teams (e.g., Technical Sales Professionals, Global Black Belts). For licensing transactions and project engagements, ensures rapid and robust deployment plan at point of sale that is validated by services and partners. Drives advanced workloads and usage.
• Assesses and challenges the needs of strategic/high-potential customers. Articulates vision and long-term implications for customer to accelerate digital transformation. Collaborates with internal teams, partners, and services to lead the proposal or development of solutions that align with customer and Microsoft priorities. Anticipates market trends and leverages broad technical community knowledge to drive new solutions.
• Leverages and governs external stakeholder network to engage and influence with top leaders and decision makers. Acts as a thought leader and technical advisor to the executive-level business decision makers at the customer’s/partner’s business. Leads others to identify and engage new decision makers and stakeholders to expand the relationship with customers/partners.
• Develops strategies for driving and closing strategic, complex, and/or high value and/or prioritized opportunities. Collaborates with account teams to ensure alignment with the account strategy and plan. Leads complex/high-value deal planning with the deal teams across Microsoft and the Enterprise Operating Unit (EOU). Coaches others on the implementation of close plans (e.g., how to map timeline, engage the customer, get customer buy-in and commitment) to de-risk and drive predictable deal closure.

Scaling and Collaboration

• Leads the planning and execution on opportunities with resources and partners across territories to cross-sell and up-sell. Leads the validation of partner solution relevance for customers. Provides input and feedback to One Commercial Partner (OCP) on developing partner strategies and drives consistency on execution. Proactively connects the partner ecosystems to form new market opportunities.
• Leads the sales orchestration with internal stakeholders and partners (e.g., Enterprise Operating Unit). Develops a holistic approach to build network across Microsoft. Identifies strategies to position opportunities to promote collaboration and participation.

Technical Expertise

• Leads conversations and sets up events within Microsoft. Mentors others and develops strategies for best practice sharing across subsidiaries. Contributes ideas that can be instituted across Microsoft.
• Posts information or speaks at external events, drives conversations with prospective customers/partners as a thought leader across solution areas.*
• Leverages and shares competitor knowledge across solution areas as a subject matter expert to make decisions on pursuit or withdrawal. Collaborates with the ‘compete’ global black belts (GBB) to proactively provide analysis of the competitive landscape in supported solution area. Leads the communication to provide feedback to other teams (e.g., sales, marketing, engineering) on future product trends or sales blockers. Develops strategies to position Microsoft against competitors.

Sales Excellence

• Builds and transforms new markets by leveraging technical and industry expertise, partners, and resources. Leads a team to explore business and emerging opportunities to optimize the portfolio and facilitate customer innovation.
• Reviews feedback report and sets long-term strategies aimed at maintaining levels of client satisfaction. Coaches others on ensuring customer/partner satisfaction and decreasing dissatisfaction by establishing recovery action plans to improve clients’ overall experience. Manages and/or orchestrates sales and delivery success through the account team and pursuit team.
• Engages with internal and external stakeholders on business planning, Rhythm of Business (ROB) meetings to review and plan for strategic accounts across territories.
• Collaborates with extended sales team, partners, and marketing to lead business analysis (e.g., whitespace analysis, identify industry trends) to pursue high-potential customers and develop a target list of potential business. Acts as a thought leader and clears opinions and perspectives from business analysis.
• Manages the end-to-end business for strategic accounts across the organization. Leads forecasting for accounts and develops a portfolio and territory plan to drive intentional selling with on-strategy engagements in high propensity accounts. Mentors less experienced team members.
• Completes required training and obtains relevant product and role certifications aligned to the role and workload/industry. Proactively seeks training, including information that adds to the understanding of customers’ business, and shares it with team members.

Other

• Embody our culture and values

Qualifications:

Required/Minimum Qualifications

• 9+ years technology-related sales or account management experience
  • OR Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Business Administration, or related field AND 8+ years technology-related sales or account management experience .

Additional or Preferred Qualifications

• 12+ years technology-related sales or account management experience
  • OR Bachelor’s Degree in Information Technology, or related field AND 10+ years technology-related sales or account management experience
  • OR Master’s Degree in Business Administration (i.e., MBA), Information Technology, or related field AND 8+ years technology-related sales or account management experience .
  • 10+ years services sales or account management experience.

Solution Area Specialists M6 – The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $155,000 – $243,000 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $198,800 – $267,000 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here: US corporate pay information | Microsoft Careers

Microsoft will accept applications for the role until September 22nd, 2024

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations and ordinances. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or the recruiting process, please send a request via the Accommodation request form .

Benefits/perks listed below may vary depending on the nature of your employment with Microsoft and the country where you work.