Commercial Account Executive, Aiven
Salary not provided
+ Equity Plan
Kafka
Salesforce
Mid and Senior level
Austin
More information about location
AI-ready open source data platform
Be an early applicant
AI-ready open source data platform
201-500 employees
B2BData storageSaaSData IntegrationCloud Computing
Be an early applicant
Salary not provided
+ Equity Plan
Kafka
Salesforce
Mid and Senior level
Austin
More information about location
201-500 employees
B2BData storageSaaSData IntegrationCloud Computing
Company mission
To help customers create outcomes and accelerate building applications.
Role
Who you are
- 3-5 years of success in commercial or mid-market B2B SaaS sales, selling complex technical solutions to scaling technology companies
- Proven track record of 100% self-sourced pipeline generation with consistent quota attainment of 90-100%+ against multimillion-dollar targets (e.g., President's Club or top 20% performer)
- Demonstrated ability to generate $5M-$8M in annual qualified pipeline through outbound prospecting across multiple channels without SDR support
- Experience closing 6-12 new logos annually with $100K-$300K ACV deal sizes and 60-160 day sales cycles
- Strong prospecting skills with ability to maintain 50+ weekly touches and convert outreach to meetings at 10-15% rates
- Skilled in outcome-based selling—you focus on customers' business objectives and pains, and tailor solutions to deliver measurable value
- Comfortable challenging customers' thinking (in a professional, insightful manner) to guide them toward better solutions, in line with the Challenger Sales methodology
- Hands-on experience with MEDDIC/MEDDPICC or similar sales frameworks, adept at using structured qualification in your sales process
- Able to maintain Command of the Message, communicating value and differentiation clearly at every stage of the sales cycle
- Track record of 85%+ forecast accuracy based on evidence-based qualification
- Familiarity with open-source technologies, data infrastructure, cloud services, and developer platforms (e.g., Apache Kafka, databases, analytics, streaming platforms)
- You can credibly discuss technical concepts and align them with business outcomes, bridging conversations between engineering teams and business leaders
- Experience selling into scaling technology companies ($50M-$500M revenue) across East Coast ecosystems, particularly Fintech (NY, MA, GA), B2B SaaS (NY, MA, VA), Digital Commerce (FL, NJ, NC), AdTech/MarTech (NY, NJ, CT), and Industrial Tech (NJ, PA, MD)
- Understanding of venture capital funding dynamics and how funding events create buying windows
- Excellent communication, presentation, and negotiation skills
- Able to engage in consultative discussions with Director and VP-level executives and simplify complex ideas into compelling narratives
- Strong written communication for crafting compelling, personalized outreach that generates meetings
- A self-driven, entrepreneurial approach with discipline to thrive in a high-performance, high-growth culture
- You take complete ownership of your results and collaborate well within a global team. Experience in a fast-paced startup or scale-up environment is a plus
- Comfortable with ambiguity and autonomy inherent in self-sourced pipeline roles
- Willingness to travel 25-35% for customer meetings and events
- Comfortable with hybrid work model and self-disciplined in remote environment
What the job involves
- Our Sales team plays a crucial role in our growth and profitability
- We want to be the trusted data source data platform for everyone – which, let’s face it, is an ambitious target
- But thanks to our dedicated GTM teams we are growing fast
- Right now, we are looking for a Commercial Account Executive
- As a Commercial Account Executive for the East Coast, you will drive predictable, repeatable revenue growth by acquiring new customers and expanding usage within high-growth technology companies generating $50M-$500M in annual revenue
- This segment represents the critical scaling phase where companies are professionalizing their data infrastructure, moving from tactical solutions to strategic platforms
- This is a high-velocity, quota-carrying role focused on new logo acquisition and baseline usage expansion across one of North America's most concentrated technology markets
- You'll manage a territory spanning key commercial hubs including New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Georgia, and Florida—regions experiencing intense venture capital activity and home to thousands of scaling technology companies across Fintech, B2B SaaS, Digital Commerce, and Industrial Tech sectors
- There are clear success metrics: 6 closed new logos annually with an average deal size of $150K ARR, while generating $6.6M in qualified pipeline per fiscal year
- This is a hunter role requiring 100% self-sourced pipeline generation—there is no SDR support
- You will engage Director and VP-level stakeholders across technical and business functions (VP Engineering, Director of Platform, Head of DevOps, Director of Data Engineering), positioning Aiven as the strategic open-source data platform that enables their next phase of growth
- You'll leverage proven sales methodologies—MEDDPICC qualification, Challenger Sales, and Command of the Message—to manage efficient sales cycles from discovery to close, typically 30-120 days
- Generate 100% of your pipeline through strategic outbound prospecting, account-based approaches, and relationship development
- Qualify 4 opportunities per month (3 medium-sized $100K-$200K ARR, 1 large-sized $200K-$400K ARR) using rigorous MEDDPICC framework
- Generate $6.6M in qualified pipeline annually through disciplined territory management and multi-channel prospecting
- Close 6 new enterprise customers annually at $150K average ARR in your East Coast territory, focusing on high-growth technology companies across Fintech, B2B SaaS, Digital Commerce, AdTech, and Industrial Tech sectors
- Lead the full sales cycle from initial prospecting and discovery through technical validation, negotiation, and closing
- Develop and maintain target account lists of 100-150 ideal customer profile companies
- Conduct deep account research using LinkedIn Sales Navigator, ZoomInfo, Crunchbase, and 6sense to identify trigger events and buying signals
- Execute 80-100+ weekly prospecting touches across calls, emails, LinkedIn, and video messaging to secure first meetings with target personas
- Build trusted relationships with Directors and VPs in Engineering, Platform, DevOps, and Data organizations
- Challenge the status quo of customers' current data infrastructure (DIY Kafka, cloud vendor lock-in, operational overhead) and inspire a vision for how Aiven's platform drives better business outcomes
- Become an expert in Aiven's platform and the open-source technologies we offer (Kafka, PostgreSQL, OpenSearch, ClickHouse and more)
- Articulate business value in terms of reduced operational overhead (40-60%), faster time-to-production (3-5x), and infrastructure cost optimization (30-50%)
- Maintain strong Command of the Message when conveying Aiven's value proposition and differentiation
- Rigorously qualify all opportunities using the MEDDPICC framework to ensure high-quality pipeline
- Maintain complete MEDDPICC documentation in Salesforce for every qualified opportunity
- Accurately forecast with 85%+ commit accuracy and execute on quarterly sales plans
- Manage 30-90 day sales cycles with disciplined, metrics-driven approach to qualification and closing deals
- Partner closely with Solution Architects on technical validation and proof-of-concept management for qualified opportunities
- Work with Customer Success to ensure seamless onboarding and adoption
- Collaborate with Product and Engineering to incorporate customer feedback and align on roadmap priorities for strategic opportunities
- Develop and maintain 90-day rolling territory plans with clear account prioritization and pipeline generation goals
- Monitor technographic signals, funding events, and technology adoption patterns to identify high-intent accounts
- Represent Aiven at regional industry events and conferences to build network and generate pipeline
- Consistently meet and exceed your sales quotas and KPIs
- Take full ownership of your territory and accounts, maintaining minimum 4:1 pipeline coverage ratio and balanced quarterly performance to deliver results
Application process
- Once applying you should hear from our Talent Experience team within 5 days regarding the status of your application. If you are selected to move forward you can generally expect 4 stages with us
- 30-45 minute call with one of our Talent Partners
- 45 minute Depth of Expertise Interview with the hiring manager
- Skills interview and or presentation for 1 hour with the wider team
- Company values interview for 1 hour
Our take
The cloud infrastructure is booming as more businesses rely on open-source technologies to run their operations at scale. In this fast-growing space, Finnish company Aiven has carved out a strong reputation since founding in 2016. The company provides fully managed cloud services, helping organizations use open-source tools without the hassle of managing the technical details themselves.
The company works with a wide range of clients around the world, offering services that cover everything from databases to messaging systems and analytics tools. So, Aiven is helping businesses streamline their cloud operations and focus on growth instead of infrastructure headaches. Making complex technology accessible, reliable, and scalable for teams of all sizes.
Recently, Aiven his a major milestone of surpassing $100M in annual recurring revenue, a signal of its growing impact in the cloud space. To support this next phase of growth, it's opening a new hub in Cork, Ireland, creating a bunch of new jobs over three years.This expansions puts AIven in a prime position to scale internationally and bring its managed open-source solutions to more companies.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Top investors
6% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 6 rounds)
May 2022
$210m
SERIES D
Oct 2021
$60m
SERIES C
Total funding: $420m
Company benefits
- Stocks: Stock options for permanent employees
- Learning & growth: Get ahead with an individual learning budget, access to a web learning platform, coaching, and the ever-growing Aiven library.
- Work/life balance: Flexible, regular working hours, and hybrid work friendly.
- Health care: Private health and dental care.
- Work equipment: The tools you need to do your job.
- Cool, collaborative work spaces: with free drinks, treats and fruit.
Company HQ
Kamppi, Helsinki
Leadership
Oskari Saarenmaa
(Co-Founder CEO)Senior Software Engineer and Software Architect for F-Secure Corporation from 2002 to 2011.CEO and Software Architect of Ohmu Ltd. from 2010 to 2016.
Heikki Nousiainen
(Co-Founder & Field-CTO)Experience as Information Security Specialist for TietoEnator. Lead Software Architect for F-Secure Corporation from 2008 to 2015.
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