Pearson

Sr. Lead, Sales (Head of Executive Sales)

Pearson$190K — $240K *
US-Anywhere
+ 2 other locationsRemote
Education, Government & Non-Profit
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 5-10+ years of sales leadership experience in higher education, enterprise, or complex B2B environments.
  • Proven track record leading multi-region or multi-segment sales teams to measurable results.
  • Strong skills in strategy-setting, account planning, and consultative selling.
  • Fluency in data analysis, competitive analysis, and business reporting for informed decision-making.
  • Experience in change management and building leadership capabilities.
  • Excellent communication and executive presence for effective influence across functions.
  • Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience in a relevant field.

Responsibilities

  • Lead the national ESS organization and set strategy and priorities across regions and specialties.
  • Guide ESS Team Managers to ensure strong performance across teams.
  • Develop comprehensive national ESS strategy aimed at exceeding sales targets and increasing revenue growth.
  • Collaborate with various departments to identify and execute growth opportunities.
  • Enhance pipeline discipline, forecasting accuracy, and overall account coverage through data analytics and CRM processes.
  • Coach and develop ESS Team Managers to become effective leaders, focusing on workforce and succession planning.
  • Foster a high-performance culture driven by accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.

Benefits

  • Opportunity to influence the future performance of Pearson's Higher Education ESS organization.
  • Focus on professional growth and development of sales leadership capabilities.
  • Potential for cross-functional collaboration that enhances customer engagement.
  • Role involves significant autonomy in shaping strategy and execution in a national context.
Full Job Description
Head of Executive Sales

Description : Lead Pearson's national Higher Education Executive Sales (EES) Specialist organization, scaling strategic account management, coaching, and regional execution to accelerate growth across disciplines, institutions, and markets. This role would suit a regional vice president looking to move into a national position.

Business unit : Higher Education | Reports to: VP, Head of Outside Sales | Role location: United States, remote | Travel required

The Role

Reporting to the VP, Head of Outside Sales, the Head of Executive Sales will lead Pearson's national Higher Education Executive Sales Specialist organization across regional and specialty teams. This role will set the vision, operating model, and performance strategy for the ESS organization, acting as the bridge between national strategy and field execution. Partnering across sales, product, marketing, and customer success, you will accelerate adoption, expand share, strengthen institutional partnerships, and build the next generation of sales leaders.

What You'll Own
  • Lead the national ESS organization, setting strategy, priorities, and operating rhythm across East, West, Central, Nursing, and Business & Economics teams.
  • Lead ESS Team Managers to deliver strong, consistent performance across regions and specialties.
  • Build the national ESS strategy to exceed sales targets, increase subscription revenue growth, and gain market share across disciplines and institutions.
  • Partner with regional sales, enterprise account teams, product, marketing, and customer success to identify and execute high-impact growth opportunities.
  • Strengthen pipeline discipline, forecasting accuracy, territory execution, and account coverage using data, analytics, and CRM rigor.
  • Develop ESS Team Managers into strong people leaders, driving workforce planning, succession planning, and clear change leadership.
  • Build a high-performance culture of accountability, coaching, collaboration, inclusion, and continuous improvement.

About You
  • You bring 5-10+ years of sales leadership experience in higher education, enterprise, or complex B2B environments.
  • You have a proven track record leading sales leaders and multi-region or multi-segment teams to measurable results.
  • You are strong in strategy-setting, account planning, pipeline management, forecasting, and consultative selling.
  • You use data, competitive analysis, and business reporting to inform decisions and drive performance.
  • You have experience leading through change, building leadership capability, and creating scalable operating practices.
  • You communicate with clarity and executive presence, influencing effectively across functions and levels.
  • You bring CRM and sales-operations fluency, with a Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.

What You'll Get

This is a national sales leadership role with the opportunity to shape the future performance of Pearson's Higher Education ESS organization. Success will be measured through achievement of national ESS sales targets, subscription revenue growth, market-share gains, strong engagement and retention of ESS Team Managers and their teams, improved pipeline discipline and forecasting accuracy, and cross-functional collaboration that strengthens customer engagement and creates a scalable, high-quality experience.

Compensation

Compensation at Pearson is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, and specific location. As required by the California, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York State, New York City, Vermont, Washington State, and Washington DC laws, the pay range for this position is as follows:

The minimum full-time base salary range is between $190,000 - $240,000.

This position is eligible to participate in an sales incentive program, and information on benefits

offered is here.

Application Deadline

Applications will be accepted through August, 25 th . This window may be extended depending on business needs

Job: Sales

Job Family: GO_TO_MARKET

Organization: Higher Education

Schedule: FULL_TIME

Workplace Type: Remote

Req ID: 25360

#LI-REMOTE

About Pearson

Pearson is a publishing and education company that provides educational materials, learning technologies, and assessments to schools, universities, and professional organizations. The company's products and services include textbooks, online learning platforms, and certification exams. Pearson's customers include the University of Phoenix, the British Council, and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
Learn more about Pearson
Size
20,744 employees
Market Cap
$8.1 billion
Industry
Net Income
$265 million
Founded
1997
5 Year Trend
-5.5%
Revenue
$3.5 billion
NASDAQ

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