About the Field

“Account Management” refers to sales-based roles in an organization. Selling for most crime analysis vendors doesn’t just mean talking a big game. Sales engagements can last months or years and drain extensive resources. The ability to distinguish a customer who can realistically make a purchase and whose needs are met by your product is pivotal, as is the willingness to walk away and invest time and resources elsewhere if they’re not. You may have a robust Marketing Team that is keeping your calendar full with customer meetings or you may have to go out into the world and find your own potential customers. You’ll have to respond to a myriad of requests for information (RFI), requests for proposal (RFP) and Requests for Quotes (RFQ) and navigate very formal procurement processes. There’s nothing more important to bring into these roles than a high degree of integrity and an ability to relate to potential customers. As a current Crime Analyst, you’ll walk in the door with instant credibility those who have only worked the private-sector will struggle to obtain.

Job Titles to Know

Account Manager: This is typically a salesperson. Your pay may be a very attractive mix of salary, equity and commissions. In some roles, where products require annual purchases, your commissions will pay out annually as well. Over time, this means that the residual commissions you get from year-to-year for sales you’ve made in the past can be greater than your salary. At this point, you may pivot from finding new business to maintaining existing relationships.

Customer Success Manager: This role typically falls under Sales but is a bit different. Its the Customer Success Manager’s role to maintain existing customer relationships. You’ll ensure their success by making sure their system meets their needs, that all end-users are properly trained and after successful deployment you’ll have follow up meetings to see how the product can be extended to meet further needs.

Get Qualified

Some Account Managers start their careers off as Solution Consultants, Trainers, or in other roles throughout the organization. At the end of the day though, there really is only one way to learn Sales- you have to do the job. Entry level sales opportunities are typically not difficult to come by.

Job Search Keywords

Account Manager, Revenue Manager, Customer Success, Inside Sales,

Example employers

ESRI, Harris Computers, Motorola, Microsoft, RMS Vendors, OSINT Software vendors