Senior SMB Account Executive - DACH

Job Description

Join us at Zendesk, where we’re on a mission to power exceptional service for every person on the planet. Our AI-informed solutions transform every interaction into an opportunity for authentic human connection, empowering organizations to create outstanding customer experiences at scale.

To advance this vision, we are seeking a dedicated, AI-savvy Senior SMB Account Executive with a proven track record in B2B sales and a passion for driving SaaS growth. In this role, you will grow our SMB account base by hunting new opportunities, closing deals of all sizes, and building broad, trusted relationships. As a key member of our team, you’ll harness the latest in AI-driven insights and solutions to accelerate revenue growth, align with customer goals, and deepen Zendesk’s impact across the SMB landscape.

What You'll Be Doing:

• Drive top-line revenue growth by acquiring new SMB customers, leveraging innovative and AI-powered strategies for pipeline development and account expansion.
• Manage and nurture customer relationships to ensure high satisfaction and retention by personalizing outreach and automating workflows through AI tools.
• Proactively lead complex sales cycles by integrating AI insights and customer data to craft tailored, outcome-driven solutions for each customer.
• Co-create with customers clear AI transformation roadmaps grounded in measurable KPIs, uncovering and addressing unique business challenges through deep AI-driven insights.
• Develop and articulate compelling, data-backed ROI and value cases that impact procurement decisions and demonstrate clear business impact. Tracking and communicating realized outcomes to foster loyalty and drive upsell opportunities.
• Hold consultative technical conversations regarding AI product architecture and integrations, collaborating closely with Solutions Engineers, AI Specialists, and cross-functional teams to co-design innovative solutions.
• Identify and pursue opportunities to cross-sell and up-sell new products and services, maximizing account revenue and profitability by understanding adoption history and customer needs.
• Consistently anticipate AI market trends and competitor moves, leveraging this intelligence to sharpen deal strategies and influence Zendesk’s go-to-market approach.
• Build and maintain a robust, accurately tracked pipeline of qualified opportunities in Salesforce, providing weekly, monthly, and quarterly forecasts while meeting or exceeding revenue targets and activity KPIs.
• Collaborate with Marketing, Business Development, and other internal teams to optimize sales campaigns and execution, ensuring seamless and tech-enabled customer engagement.
• Champion the customer voice and act as a Zendesk AI thought leader. Staying relentlessly curious about new trends and raising organizational standards for AI-powered sales excellence.
• Demonstrate an understanding of local market dynamics and customer behaviors relevant to your assigned territory or region.
• Manage sales pipeline rigorously, employing qualification frameworks and consistent forecasting to maximize deal velocity and accuracy.
• Handle renewal processes and collaborate cross-functionally to ensure seamless customer onboarding and account expansion.
• Collaborate effectively with internal teams including marketing, customer success, and product specialists to amplify sales impact.

What You Bring to the Role:

• At least 2 years B2B sales or solution engineering experience in SaaS, with a proven record of exceeding targets.
• Experience engaging and expanding relationships across various customer levels, ideally within a technology-driven environment.
• Strong technical aptitude and proven ability to have detailed conversations about AI product architecture and integrations.
• Demonstrated success in account research, prospecting, customer outreach, and closing deals using AI-assisted and traditional methods.
• Excellent organizational skills with the ability to manage a high volume of opportunities, multiple priorities, and detailed forecasting through Salesforce or similar CRM tools.
• Entrepreneurial spirit, collaborative mindset, and relentless drive for learning and growth. Especially, regarding AI and automation trends.
• Outstanding communication, presentation, and negotiation abilities.
• Experience creating and executing territory/account plans and leveraging key sales tools such as Salesforce, Outreach, and Clari.
• BA/BS degree or equivalent experience.
• Willingness to travel as needed.
• German Speaker (Native level)

Who you are:

• Customer-Centric Innovator: Anticipates customer needs and drives innovation by blending human experience with AI capabilities to deliver meaningful business impact and value.
• Data-Driven Decision Maker: Utilizes AI-generated insights and analytics to inform, optimize, and personalize every stage of the sales process from discovery through closing.
• Collaborative Influencer: Fosters strong, trust based partnerships, both internally and externally, to elevate team performance and customer outcomes.
• Continuous Learner & Mentor: Proactively stays ahead of AI trends, shares knowledge, and develops peers to build collective AI fluency across the organization.
• Strategic Thinker with Execution Focus: Balances visionary thinking about the future of AI-enabled sales with disciplined, results-oriented execution for high impact outcomes.