TL;DR
- The title account executive covers two different jobs. In business-to-business sales, the account executive is the senior individual contributor who owns opportunities from qualification to signed contract, and often the renewal, against a quota. In advertising, PR and marketing agencies, the account executive is the junior client-service role that supports an account manager, which is how Prospects describes it. O*NET lists advertising account executive among the titles of advertising sales agents and gives the tasks of sales representatives of services, which describe the sales version.
- The sales account executive's work has seven parts: qualifying opportunities, discovery, proposals and demonstrations, negotiation and close, handover and after-sale support, account growth and renewal, and pipeline and records. The agency account executive attends briefings, links client and agency, briefs internal teams, manages timelines and budgets, writes contact reports and helps with new business. The sales AE differs from the sales development representative, who finds and qualifies leads, the account manager, who grows existing accounts, and the customer success manager, who keeps them.
- Write the job scope around the segment, the deal size, the sales cycle, the split between new and existing business, the quota and the territory for the sales version; and around the clients, the account team and the route to account manager for the agency version. Set objectives beyond quota: pipeline built, forecast accuracy, the quality of handovers and the customer's first renewal.
Two people with the title account executive can have almost nothing in common. One carries a quota, runs discovery calls and negotiates contracts for a software company. The other is a year out of university, writes contact reports and keeps an advertising campaign's timeline on track for an account manager. An account executive job description that does not say which job it is will attract the wrong candidates for either. This article sets out the account executive job scope for both, using the US O*NET occupational database and the Prospects graduate careers service, gives seven duties for the sales version and the responsibilities of the agency version, separates the role from its neighbours, lists the skills, and provides a template for each with objectives beyond quota.
Quota is the target, not the job description, and a sales team runs better when the objectives behind the quota are visible. See how New Dynamics Goals & OKRs keep an account executive's targets, pipeline objectives and reviews in one place.
Two jobs, one title
The sales account executive. In business-to-business sales, especially software and services, the account executive is the person who takes a qualified opportunity and turns it into a signed contract: discovery, demonstration, proposal, negotiation and close, often followed by the first renewal. The AE is usually the most senior individual contributor in the sales team and carries a quota. O*NET describes the occupation as selling services to businesses, with tasks including “contact prospective or existing customers to discuss how services can meet their needs”, “develop sales presentations or proposals to explain service specifications”, “negotiate prices or terms of sales or service agreements”, “quote prices, credit terms, contract terms, or fulfillment dates”, “consult with clients after sales or contract signings to resolve problems and provide ongoing support” and “maintain customer records using automated systems”.
The agency account executive. In advertising, PR, marketing and design agencies, the account executive is the junior client-service role. The Prospects advertising account executive profile lists the responsibilities: attend client briefings, contribute to campaigns that meet the brief and budget, support the account manager in presenting ideas and budgets, help brief media, creative and research teams, act as the link between client and agency, manage internal timelines, monitor campaign progress, support budgets and invoices, write contact reports and meeting notes, track campaign effectiveness and assist with new business proposals. O*NET's advertising sales agents occupation lists “Advertising Account Executive” among its reported titles, with tasks that include “maintain assigned account bases while developing new accounts” and preparing presentations, estimates and contracts; that is the media-owner version, selling advertising space rather than serving an agency's clients.
The test. If the advert has a quota and a commission plan, it is the sales job. If it reports to an account manager and lists contact reports, it is the agency job. Say which in the first line.
Sales account executive responsibilities: seven duties across the deal
Grouped from the O*NET tasks and the way B2B sales teams divide the work, the sales AE's job follows the deal.
- Qualify. Take opportunities from the sales development team or your own prospecting; confirm need, budget, authority and timing; decide what to pursue. O*NET's task is to identify prospective customers using directories, leads and events.
- Discover. Understand the customer's problem, process and decision; map the stakeholders; agree what a good outcome looks like.
- Propose and demonstrate. Present the service against the customer's needs; run demonstrations; write the proposal; answer questions on prices, availability and terms.
- Negotiate and close. Negotiate price and terms within the commercial policy; handle procurement, legal and security reviews; get the contract signed.
- Hand over and support. Brief the onboarding, delivery or customer success team; consult with the client after signing to resolve problems, as O*NET puts it; stay accountable until the customer is live.
- Grow and renew. Where the role includes it, expand the account and secure the renewal; where it does not, hand the account to an account manager cleanly.
- Pipeline and records. Keep the CRM accurate; forecast honestly; monitor the market and competitors; report on pipeline, conversion and lost deals with the reasons.
Account executive vs SDR vs account manager vs customer success
| Role | Owns | Measured on |
|---|---|---|
| Sales development representative | Finding and qualifying leads; booking meetings | Qualified opportunities created |
| Account executive | The opportunity from qualification to signature | New business closed; quota |
| Account manager | Existing accounts: growth, renewal, relationship | Retained and expanded revenue |
| Customer success manager | Adoption, outcomes and satisfaction after the sale | Retention, usage, satisfaction |
Smaller teams merge these; the AE prospects, closes and renews. Larger ones split them, and the handovers between them are where customers get lost. The advert should say which of the four the AE owns. Our sales representative job description covers the broader selling role, and the sales manager job description the person the AE reports to.
In an agency, the ladder runs the other way: account executive, then account manager, then account director. Prospects says most people spend at least three or four years as an account manager before further promotion, and that progression depends on relationship skills, the quality of work delivered for clients, success in finding new business and the success of the campaigns.
Skills employers look for
For the sales AE: listening and questioning in discovery; clear presentation and writing; commercial judgement in negotiation; resilience through long cycles and lost deals; discipline with the CRM and the forecast; and, in technical markets, enough product knowledge to be credible. O*NET's work activities for the occupation lead with communicating with people outside the organisation.
For the agency AE, Prospects lists a genuine interest in advertising, business and communications; excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to build client relationships; a proactive approach and confidence to use initiative; strong project management, organisation and time management; the ability to absorb large volumes of information while keeping attention to detail; teamwork across departments; persuasive presentation, influencing and negotiation; commercial awareness; resilience and adaptability; creative problem solving; and digital literacy including analytics tools.
Qualifications and routes in
Neither version requires a specific qualification. O*NET places sales representatives of services in Job Zone four, usually a bachelor's degree, and advertising sales agents in Job Zone three; in practice, sales AEs are hired on a record of closing in a comparable market, often after time as a sales development representative, and agency AEs are hired as graduates or from work experience, which Prospects describes as highly desirable and, for many employers, essential. Say what evidence you want: closed deals of a certain size, a sector, or a portfolio of campaign work.
Account executive job description templates
Sales account executive
Job title: Account Executive (state Mid-Market, Enterprise or the sector)
Reports to: Sales Manager or Head of Sales
Scope: State the segment and territory, the typical deal size and sales cycle, the split between new business and expansion, the quota and the commission plan, and whether the AE prospects or receives qualified opportunities.
Purpose: Win new customers for the business by taking qualified opportunities from discovery to signed contract, forecasting honestly and handing over cleanly.
Responsibilities:
- Qualify opportunities; run discovery with the customer's stakeholders; agree the outcome sought.
- Present and demonstrate the service; write proposals; answer questions on price, terms and delivery.
- Negotiate within commercial policy; manage procurement, legal and security reviews; close.
- Hand over to onboarding or customer success; resolve problems after signing until the customer is live.
- Grow and renew accounts where the role includes it.
- Keep the CRM accurate; forecast weekly; report on pipeline, conversion and lost deals with reasons.
- Monitor the market and competitors; feed what customers say back to product and marketing.
Skills and experience:
- A record of closing business of comparable size and cycle; sector knowledge where the market needs it.
- Discovery and presentation skills; clear written proposals; commercial judgement in negotiation.
- Discipline with the CRM and the forecast; resilience; a collaborative approach to handovers.
Working pattern and pay: State the hours, travel, remote or office arrangement, base salary and on-target earnings.
Progression: Senior or enterprise AE, team lead or sales manager; say what an AE needs to show.
Agency account executive
Job title: Account Executive (Advertising, PR or Marketing)
Reports to: Account Manager
Scope: State the clients or sectors, the size of the account team and the campaigns in a typical quarter.
Purpose: Keep the client's campaigns moving: the link between client and agency, the timelines, the budgets, the paperwork and the follow-ups, so the account manager can lead the relationship.
Responsibilities:
- Attend client briefings; help develop campaigns that meet the brief and budget.
- Brief creative, media and research teams; coordinate across the teams on each campaign.
- Manage internal timelines; monitor progress; keep projects on time and within budget.
- Track costs; prepare estimates and invoices; write contact reports and meeting notes.
- Help present creative work for review and approval; gather performance and evaluation data.
- Assist with new business proposals and presentations.
Skills and experience:
- Degree or relevant work experience in an agency; a genuine interest in the industry.
- Organisation, attention to detail and the ability to absorb information quickly.
- Confident communication with clients and colleagues; proactive; resilient with feedback.
Progression: Account manager, then account director; say what an AE needs to show and how long it usually takes.
Objectives beyond quota
For the sales AE, quota is the target; the objectives explain how it is reached and whether the customers stay:
- Pipeline. Qualified pipeline built each quarter at a multiple of quota, with stage definitions applied honestly.
- Forecast accuracy. Committed deals that close in the quarter forecast, and lost deals recorded with reasons.
- Handover quality. Customers live within the agreed time after signature; onboarding team's assessment of the handover.
- Retention. First renewals of the AE's customers, where the role includes them, or the account manager's assessment of the accounts handed over.
Frequently asked questions
What does an account executive do?
It depends on the industry. In business-to-business sales, the account executive owns opportunities from qualification to signed contract: discovery, presentations and proposals, negotiation, close and handover, against a quota. In advertising, PR and marketing agencies, the account executive is the junior client-service role that supports an account manager: briefings, timelines, budgets, contact reports and the link between client and agency.
What is the job scope of an account executive?
For the sales version: the segment and territory, the deal size and sales cycle, the split between new and existing business, the quota, and whether the AE prospects or receives qualified opportunities. For the agency version: the clients, the account team and the campaigns supported. The advert should state the scope before the responsibilities.
What is the difference between an account executive and an account manager?
In sales, the account executive wins new customers and the account manager grows and renews existing ones; in an agency, the account manager is the rung above the account executive and leads the client relationship. Prospects gives the agency route as account executive, account manager, account director.
What is the difference between an account executive and a sales development representative?
The sales development representative finds and qualifies leads and books meetings; the account executive takes the qualified opportunity through discovery, proposal, negotiation and close. Many account executives start as sales development representatives.
What qualifications does an account executive need?
No specific qualification. Sales account executives are hired on a record of closing comparable business; agency account executives are usually graduates with work experience in an agency, which Prospects describes as highly desirable. The US occupational database places sales representatives of services in Job Zone four, usually a bachelor's degree.
Your next step: say which job, then the scope
- Put the version in the first line: sales, with quota and commission, or agency, reporting to an account manager.
- State the scope: segment, deal size, cycle, new versus existing, quota and territory; or clients, team and campaigns.
- Define the handovers with the SDR, the account manager and customer success.
- Set objectives beyond quota and review them each quarter.
For a way to set targets that connect a team's numbers to the objectives behind them, read and download our OKR guide. The guide is free to read, and the PDF uses our short download form.
Want targets, pipeline objectives and quarterly reviews for a sales team in one place, without chasing spreadsheets? Book a New Dynamics demo and bring your current comp plan. You can also email contact@new-dynamics.com.
