Strategic Account Manager

The Strategic Account Manager (SAM) will work with a targeted list of Vertex’s most strategic customers and is accountable for ensuring these customers realize maximum value from Vertex relationships and offerings. This individual will coordinate strategies and tactics to enable customers to both achieve the business outcomes they seek and help identify opportunities for further solution use across all their lines of business and environment. 

The SAM will collaborate, leverage, and coordinate activities across the entire internal ecosystem of Vertex resources as appropriate. The SAM will also seek to build broad relationships within the customer enterprise intended to increase Vertex engagement and relevance in the customer’s business. 

This position is responsible for being a subject-matter expert in understanding the market landscape, strategies, and competitive positions of the assigned accounts. The ideal SAM is a driver in building and coordinating joint business plans to valuable win/win outcomes for both the client and Vertex. 

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES: 

• In collaboration with the core and extended Vertex account team, increases lifetime customer value by coordinating key components of the customer lifecycle. 

• Becomes an expert in the assigned customer and knowledgeable in its industry. 

• Leads account strategic planning internally (across Vertex) and externally. (customers’ POV) to help develop and execute towards win/win goals, objectives, strategies, and actions. 

• Reaches into the Vertex organization to find new innovation / co-development opportunities with customers. 

• Works with the customer to agree and execute Vertex solution adoption plans. 

• Coordinates post-sales activity across teams to ensure high KORE/NPS, footprint expansion, and retention. 

• Provides an end-to-end view of accounts’ health and potential. 

• Is the voice of the industry/customer. 

• Establishes customer and market priorities to execute a strategic course of action.

• Builds credibility and trust between Vertex and the customer. 

• Uncovers business initiatives and pain points to map back our solutions across multiple lines of business and works with Sales to identify opportunities. 

• Seeks a deep understanding of the way customers operate, and the priorities that drive decisions. 

• Position Vertex as a trusted business advisor, engaging customers in discussions focused on delivering business outcomes by addressing their indirect tax needs. 

• Measures success across metrics like value (profitability, current + potential), engagement (engagement index), innovation (# of projects underway), and loyalty (NPS/KORE, NRR, churn%). 

• Participate in other projects or duties. 

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:  N/A 

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES: 

• Extensive experience in customer communication and engagement. 

• Knowledge of complex business systems, tax engine software, or other tax compliance software a strong plus. 

• Excellent leadership, organizational, decision-making, presentation, oral, and written communications skills . 

• Demonstrated relationship-building skills; proven problem-solving skills; understanding solutions, vision, and direction of Vertex initiatives and presenting the value associated with such. 

• Strategic, self-driven thinker who can develop/coordinate/implement an account plan across all stages of the customer lifecycle and is skilled at driving continued process improvements. 

• Ability to problem-solve and strategize with cross-functional team members. 

• Must be results-oriented, customer-focused, and exhibit good interpersonal skills. 

EDUCATION AND TRAINING: 

• BA or BS degree  and/or sufficient prior experience. 

• Proficiency in Salesforce and Microsoft Office packages. 

• Seven (7) plus years of experience in a client-facing role or equivalent combination of education and/or experience. 

Other Qualifications - Alignment with Vertex Key Core Values: 

The Winning Way behaviors that all Vertex employees need in order to meet the expectations of each other, our customers, and our partners. 

• Communicate with Clarity - Be clear, concise and actionable. Be relentlessly constructive. Seek and provide meaningful feedback. 

• Act with Urgency - Adopt an agile mentality - frequent iterations, improved speed, resilience. 80/20 rule – better is the enemy of done. Don’t spend hours when minutes are enough. 

• Work with Purpose - Exhibit a “We Can” mindset. Results outweigh effort. Everyone understands how their role contributes. Set aside personal objectives for team results. 

• Drive to Decision - Cut the swirl with defined deadlines and decision points. Be clear on individual accountability and decision authority. Guided by a commitment to and accountability for customer outcomes. 

• Own the Outcome - Defined milestones, commitments and intended results. Assess your work in context, if you’re unsure, ask. Demonstrate unwavering support for decisions.