Sales Director

Job description

Grow Progress is looking for a Sales Director to join our Political, Advocacy, and Nonprofit (PAN) sales team. This is an exciting opportunity to take a SaaS product that’s made persuasion radically more effective for political campaigns, research firms, and nonprofits, and unlock its enormous value for other mission-driven organizations. Already trusted by leading organizations including Feeding America, Center for Popular Democracy, and the Environmental Defense Fund, we are now looking for the right person to help us scale our impact further across the nonprofit ecosystem.

We are a quickly growing team of more than 60 people who are passionate about giving mission-driven organizations the tools to persuade more people. We power breakthroughs in persuasion by helping strategists to more deeply understand the people they’re aiming to move — not just how they look, but how they think. We then give strategists the ability to scientifically test their messages at a radically accessible cost, so they have the freedom to take bigger swings with their creative strategies.

If you want to make a big social impact and grow your skill set by working with a dedicated team who are building new products backed by cutting-edge theories and technology in behavioral psychology, we hope you’ll apply.

The Role

As an individual contributor, the Sales Director will partner with our revenue team leadership to help scale our nonprofit sales strategy. You will serve as the face of our company for senior leaders at major organizations — understanding their needs, explaining how our tools can best solve their problems, and co-developing impactful research partnerships together.

In this role, you will help our team evolve its playbook for selling into the nonprofit market, further establishing a replicable process for testing our products with new types of clients, tailoring our pitch, and exceeding revenue goals. Successful candidates will have the opportunity to work on everything including leading pitch meetings, prospecting new leads, negotiating contracts, and helping build the team's internal processes.

While we have strong existing revenue from nonprofits, we are looking for someone to help us reach the next level. This role requires an entrepreneurial mindset with a clear understanding for how our research tools can benefit mission-driven organizations. To succeed in this role, you will need to be comfortable learning and iterating rather than relying on systems or processes always being fully defined.

What You’ll Do:

• Build and manage a comprehensive book of business to increase revenue through direct sales and partnerships with nonprofit and advocacy organizations, with the opportunity to grow in your role as the team grows
• Set and reach agreed-upon sales targets on schedule
• Become an expert in our company’s offerings, and contribute to the development and expansion of our revenue strategy
• Improve our understanding of clients’ pain points, motivations, blockers, and buying process
• Track key metrics to evaluate this strategy and iterate on it
• Share insights with our product team about client problems and new feature ideas
• Own the full sales lifecycle from lead identification to cold prospecting to pitching/demoing to contracting to handing off the business to our client success team
• Research and develop new business opportunities remotely as well as through in-person events (Travel Percentage: 15 - 20%)
• Use our CRM to track the progression of sales leads
• Present to prospective clients, including participating in and leading meetings where you might bring in other internal resources such as research strategists
• Draft client proposals, and provide input into required sales materials such as case studies that would support your territory
• Understand client needs and work cross-functionally with other Grow Progress teams to scope pricing quotes and requirements
• Prepare and review client agreements
• Partner closely with our marketing team to create a feedback loop of insights learned and resources developed in order to drive demand

Job requirements

What You’ll Bring:

• You’re likely to have about 3-8 years of experience in a sales role, ideally at a software company, consulting firm, or marketing agency serving nonprofits and advocacy organizations
• Deep understanding of the needs and structure of nonprofit and advocacy organizations
• Proven ability to self-manage towards defined sales goals and other quantitative objectives
• Experience owning the full sales lifecycle from lead identification to cold prospecting to pitching/demoing to contracting to working cross-functionally with other Grow Progress teams to ensure a smooth onboarding process.
• Ability to understand technical concepts and communicate them clearly to non-technical audiences
• Comfort navigating ambiguity and solving undefined challenges in an early-stage environment
• Buy-in to an evidence-driven approach to evaluating strategies and making recommendations
• Familiarity with the survey research field and the political landscape is a plus but not required
• Ability to successfully build buy-in from clients and teammates
• Ability to match client needs to Grow Progress products and services
• Ability and desire to help grow a new business line
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
• Experience using Hubspot or a similar CRM
• Progressive values
• Current U.S. work authorization

Hiring Process

• Phone Screen: (~30 minutes) This is a short interview with our Director of People to answer some behavioral and logistical questions, and a chance for you to ask questions about the position and the company.
• Experience Interview: This will be an opportunity to share more about your professional background and the experience you have to step into this role (45 minute interview)
• Behavioral Interview: (50 minutes) This step is a panel interview with members of the team and cross-functional peers in which all candidates will be asked the same ~10 questions.
• Skills Exercise: ( 50 minutes) This is a chance for you to demonstrate your skills. You will be asked to follow a prompt and present to a panel of staff.

More About Grow Progress

Our culture is fun, fast-paced, and focused on evidence. We aim to cultivate an environment where data drives our decision making rather than just anecdotes, and where everyone feels comfortable contributing ideas — even if it’s on a topic outside of their expertise. We work hard to get smarter together by giving each other feedback that’s direct, actionable, and respectful. We’re deeply motivated by the work we do and committed to using this technology ethically, so we’re looking for teammates who feel the same way.

We believe that inclusion and equity are the keys to a better future. We center these issues by creating accessible and affordable products, partnering with progressive organizations, and building transparency across our company.

We strive to foster belonging and empowerment at work and we continuously examine our efforts through our Growing Progress DEI&B working group. We are committed to building a team with a variety of backgrounds, skills, and experiences. Our goal is to create a workplace where every person feels supported and encouraged to thrive.

We’re an equal opportunity employer committed to building a diverse company. Qualified people of any race, ethnicity, culture, age, sex, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, social class, marital status, religion, veteran status, or disability status are strongly encouraged to apply.

Grow Progress is committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities. Accordingly, if reasonable accommodation is required to fully participate in the job application or interview process, to perform the essential functions of the position, and/or to receive all other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact people@growprogress.ai.

Compensation: $180,000 - $230,000 yearly on-target earnings, depending on experience (we expect that excellent candidates will make more than this by exceeding their goals), plus equity in a fast-growing startup. Benefits include a 100% paid company health plan with medical, dental, and vision insurance, a flexible PTO plan, and a 401(k) with employer matching. Staff are also offered stipends for professional development, $1,300 annual work from home resources, and wellness, and access to Carrot insurance among other benefits.

Location: DC, NYC, or Remote

To Apply: Applications will be evaluated on a rolling basis.

Please note that if you email your resume to our team directly or apply through a different site rather than applying on our job site, you may not be considered for the position. No recruiters, please.