Executive Account Director

Location: Columbus, Ohio (Hybrid)

About Northwoods

Northwoods develops software that helps Health and Human Services agencies improve outcomes for the individuals and families they serve. Its solutions are used by state and local government organizations across North America to give caseworkers faster access to information, streamline workflows, and improve decision-making.

For more than 25 years, Northwoods has partnered with agencies supporting child welfare, child support, economic assistance, behavioral health, and adult services programs. Today, the company serves more than 120 government clients and is backed by Banyan Software, providing the stability of an established business with the opportunity to help shape its future growth.

About the Role

Northwoods is hiring an Executive Account Director to lead and grow a highly strategic public sector customer relationship.

This role serves as the executive owner of a large and complex government account. The Executive Account Director will act as the primary point of contact for senior government stakeholders while coordinating efforts across Customer Success, Professional Services, Product, Support, and Executive Leadership.

The successful candidate will be responsible for strengthening executive relationships, driving account growth, supporting contract renewals, identifying modernization opportunities, and ensuring Northwoods continues to deliver value across the organization. This is a highly visible role that combines strategic account leadership, executive relationship management, business development, and cross-functional coordination.

The Role

Own Strategic Customer Relationships

• Serve as the primary executive relationship owner for assigned strategic customer accounts.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships with agency executives, program leaders, operational stakeholders, and procurement teams.
• Represent Northwoods in executive meetings, strategic planning sessions, customer reviews, and stakeholder discussions.
• Develop a deep understanding of customer priorities, challenges, funding initiatives, and long-term objectives.
• Act as the voice of the customer internally and ensure customer priorities remain visible across the organization.

Drive Growth and Strategic Account Development

• Develop and execute strategic account plans aligned with customer objectives and Northwoods' business strategy.
• Identify opportunities for expansion, cross-sell, upsell, and adoption of additional Northwoods solutions.
• Support contract renewals, commercial discussions, and long-term account planning initiatives.
• Monitor procurement activity, modernization programs, funding opportunities, and policy developments that may impact customer priorities.
• Partner with executive leadership to strengthen Northwoods' position within key public sector markets.

Lead Cross-Functional Coordination

• Partner closely with Customer Success, Professional Services, Product, Support, and Executive Leadership teams.
• Coordinate customer initiatives across multiple internal stakeholders and business functions.
• Ensure commitments, deliverables, and strategic priorities are communicated and executed effectively.
• Facilitate issue resolution, executive escalations, project alignment, and customer communications.
• Help ensure a consistent and positive customer experience across all interactions with Northwoods.

Maintain Account Health and Visibility

• Maintain account plans, growth strategies, forecasts, and CRM records.
• Monitor customer satisfaction, relationship strength, retention risks, and expansion opportunities.
• Deliver executive-level reporting and account updates to internal leadership.
• Establish regular business reviews and strategic planning discussions with customer stakeholders.
• Provide leadership with visibility into customer sentiment, market developments, and account risks.

Qualifications for Success

• 8+ years of experience in strategic account management, enterprise sales, business development, customer success, or related customer-facing roles.
• Proven experience managing large, complex customer relationships involving executive stakeholders and multiple decision makers.
• Strong executive presence with the ability to engage senior government officials, agency leaders, and procurement stakeholders.
• Demonstrated success driving account growth, customer retention, renewals, and long-term partnership development.
• Experience navigating government organizations, regulated environments, or complex enterprise accounts.
• Strong communication, presentation, negotiation, and relationship-building skills.
• Ability to coordinate multiple internal teams and drive alignment around customer objectives.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-moving environment.
• Willingness to travel regularly throughout Ohio and maintain an active in-person presence with customer stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with state or local government agencies.
• Experience within Health and Human Services, public sector technology, case management, workforce systems, eligibility systems, or related domains.
• Existing relationships within government agencies or public sector organizations.
• Experience managing large strategic accounts in a SaaS or technology environment.
• Familiarity with government procurement processes, budgeting cycles, and public-sector buying environments.
• Experience working within a SaaS or recurring revenue business model.

This position is for an existing vacancy.