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Sara, Account Executive at Asana: Advize Career Interview
Sara's journey from a family IT staffing business to a mid-market account executive at Asana highlights a career built on strategic decisions and personal passions.
The role at Asana involves helping clients determine their needs and showcasing the product, with each day bringing new challenges and opportunities.
Success hinges on authenticity, strategic thinking, resilience, and the ability to connect with people.
While demanding, particularly with external factors and constant rejection, the role offers a great work-life balance, the satisfaction of improving customers' work lives, and the chance to be at the heart of a business.
The tech industry offers excellent benefits and a supportive environment, attracting those who are competitive, driven, and motivated by financial success.
Contrary to misconceptions, the role emphasizes prioritization and organization over aggressive sales tactics. Entry-level roles like Sales Development Representatives make tech sales accessible, where negotiation skills are key.
Early experiences, like Sara's business fraternity involvement and internships, proved invaluable, and embracing traditionally feminine traits like empathy has been a superpower in navigating the sales landscape.
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Sara Kramer
Account Executive
Asana
University of San Diego
n/a
Business Management & Admin
Technology
Sales and Client Management
Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Pell Grant Recipient, Took Out Loans
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Career Path of an Account Executive at Asana
Sara's career path began with hands-on experience at a family IT staffing business during college, including "sourcing" resumes and later marketing work, followed by marketing internships at Portfolio and Sharewell, the latter revealing a dislike for event marketing despite a valuable team experience. After realizing a desire to work in tech in the Bay Area, Sara transitioned into sales, starting with inbound sales at Udemy and progressing through outbound sales and account executive roles at Udemy, Calm, and BetterUp before landing at Asana, where Sara is currently a mid-market account executive, showcasing a career progression driven by personal passions and strategic career moves.
Main Responsibilities Of An Account Executive At Asana
As an Account Executive at Asana, Sara's main responsibility is determining if Asana is a good fit for potential clients by guiding them through the entire sales process, "talking to them about their needs", and showcasing the product's capabilities. This also includes handling contract negotiations, pricing, and addressing any security-related questions with their legal teams.
A Day In The Life Of An Account Executive At Asana
As an Account Executive at Asana, a typical day is characterized by variety, but fundamentally involves taking calls with clients, "helping them determine their needs", sending emails to find new prospects, and strategically assessing an existing "book of business" to identify opportunities for Asana within those accounts. Sara's favorite part of the role is this unpredictability, stating "no two days ever look the exact same".
Most Important Skills For An Account Executive At Asana
For an Account Executive role at Asana, Sara emphasizes the importance of "authenticity" in sales, highlighting that people buy from those they like, thus showing up and being oneself is key; furthermore, the ability to creatively and strategically connect the product to the client's needs, while demonstrating resilience and emotional regulation in the face of frequent rejection, contributes significantly to a salesperson's success.
Favorite Parts Of Being An Account Executive At Asana
Sara enjoys being an Account Executive because sales feels like "the lifeblood of a business" and provides the satisfaction of helping customers improve their work lives, which was especially fulfilling in a previous role in mental health. Additionally, the role offers a great work-life balance, allowing for flexibility and personal time, ultimately enabling Sara to feel those two things are very much in balance.
Biggest Challenges Faced By An Account Executive At Asana
Sara, an Account Executive at Asana, identifies the biggest challenge in sales as dealing with numerous external factors outside of one's control, such as the economy, new competitors, internal strategy shifts, or marketing spend cuts; despite these uncontrollable elements, revenue goals must still be met, making "emotional regulation and resilience super important." Constant rejection is also a significant hurdle, as one gets told "no" a lot, which can be initially difficult but becomes more manageable with experience.
Favorite Parts of Working in the Tech Industry as an Account Executive
Sara enjoys the innovation and impact of working in the tech industry, noting how "software has become so prevalent in our lives." Furthermore, Sara has found tech sales to offer "really good health insurance benefits," competitive pay, and a supportive environment that encourages bringing one's "whole self to work."
What Type Of Person Thrives In The Tech Sales Industry, According To An Account Executive At Asana
While many different personalities can find success in tech sales, according to Sara, Account Executive at Asana, those who thrive are typically competitive with themselves and "like to take control of their own destiny", seeing a clear link between their effort and results; furthermore, "people in sales who thrive love money and they like to make it."
What an Account Executive at Asana Wishes They Had Known Before Entering the Tech Sales Industry
Sara wishes someone had emphasized that tech sales, particularly as an Account Executive at Asana, is less about "pushing people all day" and more about "prioritization and organization skills." Ultimately, the role is about identifying and guiding interested parties, and even "disqualifying people" who aren't a good fit, rather than being overly persuasive or sacrificing integrity to close deals.
Entry-Level Positions for Aspiring Account Executives at Asana
According to Sara, the tech sales industry has "so many easy entry points," where almost everyone begins in an entry-level role, "usually called a sales development representative or a business development representative," with responsibilities that include fielding inbounds or cold calling to find new clients. This makes tech sales a particularly accessible career path for those just starting out.
Significant Career Lesson From An Account Executive At Asana
A significant lesson Sara has learned is that "everything in life is a negotiation," and people often get to present their best case scenario and meet in the middle, which is especially applicable to negotiating salaries, benefits, and bonuses. Sara wishes they realized sooner how easy it is to "ask for what you want and what you need" and how often companies can provide it.
College Experiences That Helped An Account Executive At Asana Succeed
Sara attributes career success to involvement in a business fraternity, which fostered connections, provided interview practice, and ultimately led to the first job through a connection recommended by the fraternity president, highlighting that "it's obviously like a direct translation of a sales skill" which is very relevant as Sara works in sales. Having "a body of work to talk about when in interviews" through internships and even tracking coursework also proved invaluable, as being able to provide specific examples of past experiences is what employers are looking for.
How Identity Has Influenced An Account Executive At Asana's Career
As a woman in sales, embracing traits often associated with women, such as empathy and deep listening, has been a "superpower" that has contributed to career success. These skills, often honed throughout life, have allowed for more effective communication and relationship-building, which has made them a successful sales professional.
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