Director of Account Management

Element451

16d

About The Position

Element451 is an AI-powered SaaS platform serving higher education. We help institutions modernize engagement, enrollment, and student success with intelligent automation and a product customers genuinely love. Our Account Management team owns the post-sale customer relationship across our growing base of colleges and universities — driving retention, expansion, and deep product adoption. We’re hiring a Director of Account Management to lead our AM team and own net revenue retention. You’ll manage a team of 6 Account Managers, drive the expansion and renewal motion, and build the playbooks and processes that turn strong customer relationships into predictable revenue growth. You’ll report directly to the CRO and partner closely with Customer Success, Product, and Solutions teams. This role is a great fit for someone who’s led an AM or CSM team in a B2B SaaS environment, has a track record of hitting retention and expansion targets, and knows how to build repeatable processes without losing the relationship-driven approach that makes account management work. Higher education experience is a strong plus but not required — what matters is that you understand complex, multi-stakeholder sales cycles and long-term customer partnerships.

Requirements

5–10 years of account management, customer success, or post-sale revenue experience in B2B SaaS
2+ years leading or managing an AM/CSM team — you’ve hired, coached, and held people accountable
Track record of hitting NRR and retention targets in a recurring revenue business
Experience building AM playbooks, account plans, and renewal/expansion processes — not just inheriting them
Strong commercial instinct: you understand pipeline, forecasting, and how to turn relationships into revenue
Comfortable in a high-growth environment where you’re building systems while running the team
You think in segments: you know how to treat a $500K enterprise account differently than a $30K SMB account
Experience with CRM management and pipeline hygiene — you care about clean data
Confident partnering with executives and comfortable presenting to the CRO and CEO on book-of-business health

Nice To Haves

Higher education or EdTech experience is a strong plus but not required

Responsibilities

Own net revenue retention (NRR) targets across the AM book of business, including renewals, upsells, and cross-sells
Build and manage the renewal pipeline with accurate forecasting, risk flagging, and proactive engagement - no surprises at contract end
Identify and drive expansion opportunities by connecting customer needs to product capabilities, new modules, and higher-tier plans
Partner cross-functionally to scope expansion deals and ensure smooth handoffs
Develop pricing and packaging recommendations for renewals and expansions in partnership with the CRO
Manage, coach, and develop a team of 6 Account Manager with clear expectations, regular 1:1s, and structured feedback
Set individual and team targets for retention, expansion, customer health, and activity metrics
Build a performance culture: run pipeline reviews, deal coaching, and quarterly business reviews with the team
Identify skill gaps and create development plans - especially around strategic account planning, multi-threading, and executive engagement
Hire and onboard new AMs as the team scales, maintaining a high bar for customer empathy and commercial instinct
Design and implement the AM playbook: account planning cadence, health scoring, QBR frameworks, renewal timelines, and escalation paths
Create segmentation and tiering for the book of business - ensure high-value accounts get strategic attention and long-tail accounts are managed efficiently
Build repeatable expansion plays tied to customer lifecycle milestones (go-live, first year, contract anniversary)
Establish clear handoff protocols between AM, Customer Success/Platform Enablement, and Support so customers experience continuity, not silos
Implement and maintain accurate data in CRM - clean pipeline, account health tracking, and reliable reporting for the CRO and board
Serve as the escalation point for at-risk accounts and own the save/recovery process
Bring structured customer feedback to Product and Engineering — not just anecdotes, but patterns that influence roadmap prioritization
Partner with Marketing on customer advocacy: case studies, references, and community engagement
Represent the AM perspective in cross-functional planning (product launches, pricing changes, go-to-market motions)