AppenAccount Executive (San Francisco)
Appen is hiring an Account Executive (San Francisco) (United States). It pays $150k-$200k a year and Level rates it ; you can apply on Appen.
Level's read on this job
- Works on AI ●●●○ is how Level rates this sales role: the daily work is on AI products, without building the model.
- The listed pay starts 7% above the typical sales posting on Level.
- Tools and skills the posting cites include CRM, AI evaluation and sales.
- Level classifies it as a senior role.
- Level lists 18 other open roles at Appen.
AI in this role
Drive new business and manage strategic enterprise sales for AI data and model training partnerships in San Francisco.
About the Role
Appen's Go to Market team sits at the center of the company's growth strategy, partnering with the world's most ambitious AI programs to deliver the data that makes models work. This role will focus on developing new business with strategic customers across Big Tech, AI Labs, and Enterprise AI adopters.
This is a high-visibility commercial role for a business development professional who understands the AI industry and can identify opportunities, build relationships, and turn customer needs into strategic partnerships.
Location and Work Arrangement
This role is based in the San Francisco Bay Area. You'll be expected to meet clients in person and be comfortable building relationships through regular face-to-face meetings.
Your Impact
You'll own end-to-end sales cycles with both research-led AI labs and enterprise buyers, from discovery and qualification through commercial negotiation and contract execution, working from well-developed territory and account plans.
You'll stay multi-threaded across research, buying, technical, and operational stakeholders, positioning Appen's portfolio as the partner of choice by mapping capabilities directly to each client's AI program priorities. Expect to craft compelling business cases and proposals, and to run regular Executive Business Reviews to keep clients aligned on strategic goals and surface new partnership opportunities.
Pipeline comes from outbound account-based strategies run in partnership with Marketing, backed by strong CRM discipline and accurate, timely forecasts. You'll also orchestrate internal teams across Client Partners, Delivery, Legal, and Finance to shape the solution and pricing behind each bid.
Success in this role looks like year-on-year growth in the accounts you own, and enough standing inside them to influence how those programs are scoped and resourced.
What You Bring
- 5+ years of sales experience with a business development background
- A proven track record of building pipeline and closing large, complex deals with both research-led organizations and traditional enterprises
- Demonstrated success consistently achieving or exceeding quota in new business roles
- Working knowledge of the AI industry, including how models are trained and evaluated, the key players, and the role data plays
- Experience selling technical solutions to research, engineering, and executive audiences
- Strong ability to lead complex RFP responses and negotiate MSAs, SOWs, DPAs, and other enterprise agreements
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with comfort presenting to executive audiences
- A consultative, customer-first mindset with the ability to influence cross-functional internal teams
- Comfort building relationships face to face through regular in-person client meetings across the Bay Area
- Experience in AI training data, RLHF, or model evaluation highly valued
How we rate this
Account Executive (San Francisco) at Appen rates 60 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Works on AI (AI Level 3 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.
Works on AI. The daily work is on AI products, without building the model.
- ●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
- ●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
- ●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
- ●○○○ Little AI0 to 39
Levels come from how often the tools, models and workflows of the role are named in the posting itself. Read the description and count the AI tools, models and workflows it names.
Prepare for this job
Built from this posting and from similar jobs on Level.
Skills and AI tools this role asks for
Also common in sales jobs at this level
Pay
- This job starts at
- $150k
- Typical sales job
- $140k
This posting starts 7% above the typical sales job. See sales jobs
Questions you could be asked
- How do you decide that one model's output is better than another's for a given task?
- Tell me about a project where sales was part of your work. What did you do?
- Tell me about a project where business development was part of your work. What did you do?
- Tell me about a project where enterprise sales was part of your work. What did you do?
- Tell me about a project where ai industry knowledge was part of your work. What did you do?
Adapt your resume
- List these exact terms on your resume: AI Evaluation, Sales, Business Development, Enterprise Sales, and AI Industry Knowledge. An applicant tracking system matches the wording, not the idea.
- Attach one line of real, concrete experience to at least one of them. A tool named with nothing behind it rarely survives a human read.
- Show where AI is part of your daily process, not a one-off project. This role expects it to be a running habit.
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