Founding Account Executive

About the Role

This is a founding sales hire at an early-stage AI startup operating in the talent and recruiting technology space. You'll own the full sales cycle for mid-market and enterprise deals, build the closing playbook from scratch, and work directly with the founding team to shape go-to-market strategy and pricing. This role is central to the company's growth trajectory and positions you to eventually build and lead the sales org.

What You'll Do

• Own the complete sales cycle — discovery, demo, negotiation, and close — for mid-market and enterprise customers.

• Self-source pipeline through both warm and cold outbound, alongside inbound qualification.

• Build and refine the closing playbook, including pricing strategy, objection handling, and deal stage definitions.

• Partner directly with founders to shape go-to-market strategy and positioning.

• Drive expansion revenue and upsell opportunities within existing accounts.

• Hire and mentor BDRs as the sales organization scales.

What We're Looking For

• 2–6 years of experience as an Account Executive at a high-velocity startup or in finance, with a consistent track record of beating quota.

• Demonstrated full-cycle sales ownership — you've sourced, run, and closed your own deals rather than relying solely on handed-off pipeline.

• Proven success with cold outbound prospecting, including at least one significant deal sourced through cold outreach.

• Experience closing mid-market and enterprise deals with complex, multi-stakeholder sales cycles.

• Experience building or documenting sales processes, playbooks, or methodologies.

• Experience managing expansion revenue or upsell opportunities within existing accounts.

• Experience hiring, training, or managing SDRs or junior sales staff is a strong plus.

• Experience working directly with founders or C-suite on GTM strategy and pricing decisions is a plus.

• Background in recruiting, talent, or HR technology verticals is a plus.

• A track record of exceptional individual achievement — founding a company, winning a competition, or similar — is a differentiator.

Compensation & Benefits

Base salary range: $130,000 – $180,000 USD annually. Visa sponsorship is not available.

Location

On-site in San Francisco, CA, United States.