Account Executive - UK/EMEA

AuthZed is seeking an experienced Enterprise Account Executive for the UK/EMEA region to drive revenue growth by managing complex sales cycles and fostering long-term relationships with enterprise customers. The role involves closing high-value deals, collaborating with BDRs, Marketing, Solutions Engineers, and Customer Success, and building relationships with both net-new and existing accounts. The ideal candidate will navigate seven-figure enterprise deals, engage technical and business stakeholders, and execute a structured collaborative sales approach.

Must Have

• Drive complex sales cycles with enterprise customers from prospecting to relationship growth
• Build, execute, and maintain account plans for sustained customer value
• Source leads and collaborate with BDRs for new opportunities
• Partner with Solutions Engineers to demonstrate technical value
• Work with Customer Success Engineers for smooth onboarding and expansion
• Own and drive complex sales engagements as a project manager
• Develop multi-threaded relationships with technical champions, business sponsors, and executive buyers
• Maintain CRM discipline and accurate forecasting
• Identify opportunities to refine sales processes and improve efficiency
• Articulate differentiators and tailor sales messaging against competitors
• At least 3+ years of experience in enterprise sales, selling complex B2B software to Fortune 500 companies and scale-ups
• Proven ability to navigate seven-figure deals and manage complex sales cycles
• Comfortable discussing technical software solutions and their business impact
• Experience applying sales methodology practices for repeatability
• Ability to align internal and external stakeholders towards business outcomes
• Able to manage accounts post initial sale through successful transitions to CS
• Experience developing deep relationships with technical and business leaders
• Ability to convey complex solutions, handle objections, and position against competitors
• Highly disciplined with forecasting, deal reviews, and pipeline hygiene

Good to Have

• Scrappy and entrepreneurial mindset
• Deeply curious and proactive in asking questions
• Strong relationship-builder
• Takes full ownership and accountability
• Ability to navigate highly technical products
• Strategic and tenacious approach to breaking into accounts
• Exceptional communicator and presenter
• Deeply organized and methodical
• Operates with a founder’s mentality
• Continuously learning and refining sales craft
• Comfortable with nuances of complex enterprise sales cycles and persistent
• Mastered sales methodologies such as MEDDPIC, Challenger Sale, Command of the Message
• Understands modern engagement strategies, leveraging channels like Slack
• Skilled at identifying and developing key relationships within accounts
• Experience developing relationships with senior ICs and executive decision-makers
• Technical background (e.g., software development experience)
• Experience formerly managing projects as a project manager

Perks & Benefits

• Opportunity to work with cutting-edge technology in a rapidly growing sector
• A supportive environment where ideas lead to real impact
• Competitive salary based on experience
• Stock options at an early-stage startup
• A fully remote and flexible schedule to accommodate different timezones
• Twice-yearly travel for team offsites focused on team bonding, collaboration, and fun

About authzed

We’re pioneering open-source authorization solutions for scaling businesses tackling complex end-user permissions in zero-trust architectures. Our focus is on providing SpiceDB—the most mature open-source permissions database inspired by Google’s Zanzibar system—and building managed services that enable planet-scale production authorization services.

Our strategic approach to capital-raising has empowered us to efficiently utilize our $3.9M seed fund and recently secure a $12M Series A. This funding has allowed us to further develop SpiceDB, now the open-source standard in authorization database technology, fortify our reputation as authorization experts, accelerate our open-source community growth, and scale revenue with robust enterprise products.

AuthZed is a fully remote company with employees across the US and Europe. We’re a hardworking group with a software-driven culture; even our sales team understands and loves our technology! We bring integrity to all our interactions, fostering confidence in decision making - trusting and respecting each voice on our team, every day.

Company Values

• Agency
• Everyone should have the capability, freedom, and confidence to bring about changes to our business and product. Organizational processes exist to clearly define our goals, but not restrict how progress is made.
• Collaboration
• Success is defined in various dimensions and no single person can be an expert in all of them. Without valuing the opinions of others, finding compromises, and sharing mutual trust and respect, you cannot arrive at the best possible solution.
• Open-mindness
• Without asking questions, testing assumptions, and questioning our pre-existing biases we risk operating within an echo-chamber. We celebrate the representation of diverse perspectives and backgrounds as a catalyst for creating an inclusive work environment that everyone can appreciate.

About the role

About AuthZed:

We’re pioneering open-source authorization solutions for scaling businesses tackling complex end-user permissions in zero-trust architectures. Our focus is on providing SpiceDB—the most mature open-source permissions database inspired by Google’s Zanzibar system—and building managed services that enable planet-scale production authorization services.

Our strategic approach to capital-raising has empowered us to efficiently utilize our $3.9M seed fund. We’ve developed SpiceDB, now the open source standard in authorization database technology, fortified our reputation as authorization experts, accelerated our open-source community growth, and are scaling revenue with robust enterprise products.

AuthZed is a fully remote company with employees across the US and Europe. We’re a hardworking group with a software-driven culture; even our sales team understands and loves our technology! We bring integrity to all our interactions, fostering confidence in decision making - trusting and respecting each voice on our team, every day.

Company Values:

• Agency: Everyone should have the capability, freedom, and confidence to bring about changes to our business and product. Organizational processes exist to clearly define our goals, but not restrict how progress is made.
• Collaboration: Success is defined in various dimensions and no single person can be an expert in all of them. Without valuing the opinions of others, finding compromises, and sharing mutual trust and respect, you cannot arrive at the best possible solution.
• Open-mindedness: Without asking questions, testing assumptions, and questioning our pre-existing biases we risk operating within an echo-chamber. We celebrate the representation of diverse perspectives and backgrounds as a catalyst for creating an inclusive work environment that everyone can appreciate.

About the Role:

AuthZed is looking for an experienced Enterprise Account Executive (based in UK/EMEA) to drive revenue growth by managing complex sales cycles, landing high-value deals, and fostering long-term relationships with enterprise customers. This role is about closing deals while creating strong and durable relationships with enterprise customers that lead to successful outcomes and expansions.

As an Enterprise AE, you will work closely with BDRs, Marketing, Solutions Engineers, and Customer Success throughout the sales cycle. You will be responsible for creating, managing, and growing relationships with both net-new and existing accounts. Your expertise in navigating seven-figure enterprise deals, building relationships with both technical and business stakeholders, and executing a structured collaborative sales approach will be critical to your success.

This Enterprise Account Executive role is built for someone who can lead sophisticated sales engagements, drive long-term strategic relationships, and thrive in a highly technical selling environment.

What you'll own:

• Enterprise Sales Execution: Drive complex sales cycles with enterprise customers, from initial prospecting to long-term relationship growth
• Strategic Account Development: Build, execute, and maintain account plans that ensure sustained value for customers throughout our customer lifecycle
• Opportunity Creation: Source leads yourself and work with a BDR to develop new opportunities
• Technical Sales Collaboration: Partner with Solutions Engineers to demonstrate technical value and address complex customer requirements
• Post-Sales Growth: Work with Customer Success Engineers to ensure smooth onboarding, adoption, and expansion
• Project Management in Sales : Own and drive the execution of complex sales engagements as a project manager, ensuring seamless coordination between internal and external stakeholders, setting milestones, surfacing blockers & risks early, tracking action items, and ensuring our engagements are progressing efficiently
• Stakeholder Alignment: Develop multi-threaded relationships within target accounts—working with technical champions, business sponsors, and executive buyers to drive deal success
• Forecasting & Pipeline Management: Maintain CRM discipline and accurate forecasting to ensure predictable revenue outcomes
• Sales Strategy & Process Improvement: Identify opportunities to refine sales processes, improve execution efficiency, and provide feedback to sales enablement
• Competitive Selling: Articulate our differentiators and tailor sales messaging to position our product effectively against competitors

Who You Are:

• You’re scrappy and entrepreneurial —able to set a vision, execute, and iterate in an early-stage, high-growth environment
• You’re deeply curious and aren’t afraid to ask questions
• You’re a relationship-builder — you love to create and build relationships
• You take full ownership and hold yourself accountable for success in your role
• You’re not afraid to proactively ask questions and unblock yourself outside of the sales team
• You can navigate highly technical products and understand how to align them with target accounts and prospects
• You have a proven track record in enterprise sales , successfully selling complex B2B software to Fortune 500 enterprises and fast-growing scale-ups
• You are strategic and tenacious —able to organize internal stakeholders to help you break into target accounts and close high-value opportunities
• You’re an exceptional communicator and presenter , capable of articulating complex technical concepts in a way that resonates with both business and technical decision-makers
• You’re deeply organized and methodical , keeping excellent CRM hygiene and leveraging technology to improve your efficiency
• You operate with a founder’s mentality , identifying gaps in the sales process, working cross-functionally to improve seller support, and unblocking yourself when needed
• You are always learning—constantly refining your sales craft and deepening your technical knowledge to empathize with both technical and business buyers
• You can forecast revenue accurately , provide comprehensive deal reviews, and maintain an organized and actionable pipeline
• You are comfortable with the nuances of complex enterprise sales cycles and have the persistence to drive deals forward
• You have mastered sales methodologies such as MEDDPIC, Challenger Sale, Command of the Message , and know how to apply them in different deal contexts
• You understand modern engagement strategies , leveraging channels like Slack to deepen relationships and accelerate deal cycles
• You are skilled at identifying and developing key relationships within accounts, including Technical Champions, Business Champions, Influencers, and Economic Buyers
• You have experience developing relationships with both senior ICs (e.g., Staff/Principal Engineers) and executive decision-makers (VPs, Senior Directors, CTOs, CISOs, etc.)

What You Bring:

• Experience: At least 3+ years of experience in enterprise sales , selling complex B2B software into Fortune 500 companies and scale-ups
• Sales Track Record: Proven ability to navigate seven-figure deals , manage complex sales cycles, and execute structured sales methodologies
• Technical Acumen: While a developer background is not required, you must be comfortable discussing technical software solutions and their business impact
• Sales Methodologies: Experience applying sales methodology practices to improve sales repeatability
• Project Management: Ability to align internal and external stakeholders towards a desired business outcome
• CS Handover and Ongoing Account Management: Able to manage accounts post initial sale through successful transitions to CS to help ensure successful outcomes and continued growth
• Relationship Management: Experience developing deep relationships with both technical (e.g., Staff/Principal Engineers) and business leaders (VPs, Directors, CXOs, etc.)
• Sales Communication & Presentation Skills: Ability to convey complex solutions, handle objections effectively, and position against competitors
• CRM & Pipeline Management: Highly disciplined with forecasting, deal reviews, and pipeline hygiene

Extra Shine:

• You have a technical background (e.g., software development experience) and can deeply understand the engineering challenges our product solves
• You have experience formerly managing projects as a project manager , we see this as a key skillset for success in your role

Life at AuthZed:

• Opportunity to work with cutting-edge technology in a rapidly growing sector
• A supportive environment where your ideas lead to real impact
• Competitive salary based on experience
• Stock options at an early-stage startup
• A fully remote and flexible schedule to accommodate different timezones
• Twice-yearly travel for team offsites focused on team bonding, collaboration, and having fun!

Technology

Given our background, we build upon a foundation of using open source, cloud-native solutions to deliver our products.

We've given some webinars discussing parts of our stack:

• Building a managed database service with Kubernetes Operators
• Running Low-latency Workloads on Kubernetes

Here are some keywords:

• Go
• TypeScript
• Kubernetes
• Kubernetes Operators
• NextJS
• Pulumi
• CockroachDB
• Cloud Spanner
• PostgreSQL
• Prometheus
• Thanos
• ArgoCD