Strategic Account Manager - Great Lakes Region

Ascend Learning, LLC

2d•Remote

About The Position

Ascend Learning, a leading healthcare and learning technology company, is seeking a Strategic Account Manager for the Great Lakes Region. This role is responsible for maintaining and expanding relationships with strategically important large customers, focusing on the highest-value clients. The Strategic Account Manager will build a deep understanding of client business processes, goals, and strategies to align Ascend's offerings and drive mutual growth. The company emphasizes a people-first culture and a mission to help change lives through purpose-driven work. Ascend Learning's Nursing Category, which includes brands like ATI, APEA, and NursingCE, supports the learning journey of future nurses with evidence-based solutions and data analytics.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required
6+ years of relevant sales work experience
Prior track record of influencing stakeholders up to the executive level, with proven negotiation skills for securing advantageous agreements
Skilled in delivering tailored solutions to clients and managing multiple projects with precision
Proficient in written communication for creating sales documents (proposals, contracts)
Ability to build trust and proactively engage in upselling and cross selling
Strong analytical abilities for sales data interpretation and strategy formulation
Proven track record of delivering results in a quota-based sales environment with multi-year multimillion-dollar contracts
Proficient in CRM software (e.g., Salesforce, Zoho CRM, HubSpot) and MS Office, especially Excel

Nice To Haves

Nursing education industry knowledge
Background in healthcare or higher education experience preferred

Responsibilities

Serve as the lead point of contact for strategic account matters, build and maintain strong, long-lasting client relationships.
Develop trusted advisor relationships with key accounts, customer stakeholders, and executive sponsors.
Identify and understand the roles of the clients’ stakeholders, identify champions, users, the technical team, and the economic buyers.
Manage relationships with existing clients to ensure their retention, and customer loyalty – including annual account reviews and reporting.
Manage and nurture the sales pipeline, ensure timely follow-ups, and progress tracking.
Uncover clients' objectives and pain points, build strategic roadmaps to drive positive outcomes and solutions to meet client needs while providing exceptional customer collaboration and guidance.
Develop account growth strategies, collaborate with category leadership, leverage market knowledge and client insights, including territory management, pipeline opportunities, and cross-sell opportunity referral activity where applicable.
Prepare compelling sales strategies, messaging, and presentations.
Negotiate and close deals, collect implementation details for client execution.
Ensure timely and successful delivery of Ascends solutions according to customer needs and objectives, exceeding client expectations.
Prepare and present regular reports on account opportunities, sales forecasts, tailwinds, and headwinds to management.
Maintain CRM to include prospective client headcount or other category suitability.
Stay up to date with, and share, industry trends, competitors, and market conditions to identify new business opportunities.