Manager, Trial Success About the Role- Samsara's Trial Success team makes sure enterprise trials are executed with excellence, so prospects see the full value of our solutions and are ready for implementation.
- As the Manager, Trial Success, you will lead and develop a team of 6+ Trial Success Managers (TSMs) who run customized trial plans for Enterprise prospects.
- You own team results: trial conversion, trial quality, and TSM growth and retention.
- You partner with Sales, Sales Engineering, Business Value Strategy, Product, and Customer Success leaders to drive deal progress and a consistent trial experience.
- You will also shadow a small number of high-stakes trials yourself, and be able to train new hires & step in as an escalation point for strategic deals.
- Remote position, open to candidates residing in the US except the San Francisco Bay Metro Area, NYC Metro Area, and Washington, D.C. Metro Area.
Travel Requirements- Up to 25% travel to Samsara and customer sites in the US and Canada.
- Expect 3-5 onsite trips per quarter of 1-2 nights each, including team offsites and 1:1s with TSMs.
Key ResponsibilitiesPeople Leadership- Hire and onboard: Build the hiring plan, run structured interviews, make strong hiring decisions, and ramp new TSMs to full productivity with a clear 30/60/90 plan.
- Coach continuously: Hold weekly 1:1s, review live trial work and customer calls, and give timely, specific feedback that builds skills in value-based selling, change management, and executive communication.
- Manage performance: Set clear goals and expectations, run goal-setting and performance review cycles, and address underperformance early with documented improvement plans when needed.
- Develop careers: Create individual development plans, identify stretch assignments, and build a succession pipeline for the next level of TSM and leadership roles.
- Calibrate and reward: Participate in calibration, promotion, and compensation cycles with fair, data-backed recommendations.
- Build culture and engagement: Foster an inclusive, high-trust team, monitor engagement and burnout, recognize wins, and retain top talent.
- Handle people operations: Manage time off, workload balance, coverage plans, and sensitive employee matters in partnership with People/HR.
Team Execution and Operations- Set the team's goals, KPIs, and operating rhythm (pipeline reviews, trial health reviews, weekly close).
- Assign TSM coverage by account priority, segment, and capacity, and rebalance as deals shift.
- Review trial plans, success criteria, and mutual action plans in Accord to ensure quality and standardization.
- Inspect trial health, flag risks early, and lead account team strategy sessions to unblock deals.
- Report trial conversion, cycle time, and team health metrics to senior leadership.
Strategy and Cross-Functional Leadership- Own and evolve the trial methodology, including job aids, communication templates, and playbooks.
- Partner with Sales, SE, BVS, Product, and Support leaders to bring the right resources to the right trial at the right time.
- Drive adoption of tools and AI-enabled workflows that increase TSM capacity and trial quality.
- Capture customer and field feedback from trials and share it with Product and Enablement.
- Represent the team in executive trial reviews and customer-facing escalations.
- Champion and model Samsara's cultural principles (Focus on Customer Success, Build for the Long Term, Adopt a Growth Mindset, Be Inclusive, Win as a Team).
What You'll Need to SucceedMinimum Qualifications- 10+ years of experience in a client-facing role working with Enterprise clients (strategic consulting, account management, project management, or sales); SaaS or technology experience preferred.
- 3+ years of experience directly managing people.
- Bachelor's degree required.
Required Skills- Proven ability to hire, coach, develop, and retain high-performing client-facing teams.
- Strong project management and change management experience (PMP certification is a plus).
- Expertise in communication strategy, risk management, and executive stakeholder management.
- Ability to set goals, measure performance with data, and manage by metrics (conversion, cycle time, pipeline).
- Experience influencing cross-functional leaders without direct authority.
- Exceptional written and verbal communication; able to convey complex ideas concisely.
- Strong quantitative and presentation skills.
- Technical aptitude with CRM and project management tools.
- Comfort in an unstructured, fast-paced, change-heavy environment.
An Ideal Candidate Also Has- Experience managing or scaling a trial, proof-of-concept, or proof-of-value function in software or hardware.
- Sales experience closing business with large Enterprise organizations.
- Experience supporting large-scale business solutions at Fortune 500 companies.
- Experience building team processes, playbooks, and standards from scratch.
- A strong bias for action, the ability to think big, and insistence on high standards.
The compensation range shown spans approved pay zones for this role. Your primary work location determines the range applicable to you, which may be narrower than the full range displayed.
The range of annual base salary for full-time employees for this position is below. Please note that base pay offered may vary depending on factors including your city of residence, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Learn more about our total rewards and benefits below.
Annual Base Salary
$115,727-$175,050 USD
Total RewardsAt Samsara, we build for the people who keep the global economy moving. We want owners, not passengers, which is why our rewards are designed to fuel high-impact builders. Our compensation program delivers above-market total compensation through a combination of base salary, performance-based bonus/variable pay, and equity (for eligible roles) in a high-growth public company. We meaningfully differentiate pay for our top performers, who have the opportunity to earn above-market compensation that can outpace the broader market over time.
Beyond compensation, we provide the foundations that enable long-term success: a flexible, employee-led remote model, a professional development stipend, comprehensive health and parental leave plans, and more. If you're ready to build for the long term and own the outcome, your journey starts here.
Flexible Working At Samsara, we embrace a flexible working model that caters to the diverse needs of our teams. Our offices are open for those who prefer to work in-person and we also support remote work where it aligns with our operational requirements. For certain positions, being close to one of our offices or within a specific geographic area is important to facilitate collaboration, access to resources, or alignment with our service regions. In these cases, the job description will clearly indicate any working location requirements. Our goal is to ensure that all members of our team can contribute effectively, whether they are working on-site, in a hybrid model, or fully remotely. All offers of employment are contingent upon an individual's ability to secure and maintain the legal right to work at the company and in the specified work location, if applicable.
