The posting
About Aiven
Aiven is the open source based data platform that builders trust to run PostgreSQL®, Apache Kafka®, ClickHouse®, OpenSearch®, Valkey™ and more in production, on any cloud. Builders ship faster. Their companies run on data that stays available, secure and under control.
The role
You own the commercial relationship with a book of existing Aiven customers across the UK & Ireland, worth more than $4m in ARR. Your job is to keep those customers, grow them, and turn their success into proof for the next customer. You spot risk early, and find the next use case before the customer asks for it.
You also open new doors: cold and warm outreach into accounts that look like your best customers, from first conversation through close.
You lead with AI from the front. It shapes how you plan, how you engage and what you say in every customer conversation. Agents do the research, monitoring and first drafts; you decide what matters and where to push. The outcome is growth: more ARR retained, more expanded and more pipeline created, earlier and more predictably.
Why now: Aiven has ambitious growth plans, and we're on track. Every customer we serve is building AI, and AI depends on the data platform underneath it. Our open source based platform means no lock-in, so builders ship faster and our customers move with more innovation velocity. You sit at the centre of that, working with customers from Fintech and AI innovators through to Utilities whose AI ambitions depend on us.
What you will do
Own the strategic partnership
- Grow each account in your book beyond its current baseline in usage and commitments. This is the primary mandate of the role.
- Build and run an account plan for every priority account, with clear goals, stakeholders, risks and expansion opportunities across the Aiven platform.
- Partner with Solutions Architects and Technical Account Managers on technical validation, and bring in Product Engineering, Aiven leadership and executives where a customer needs senior backing.
Retain and grow ARR
- Spot contraction and churn risk early, using usage and sentiment signals surfaced by agents, then act on them before the customer does. Build a protection plan for each risk with the Aiven customer team.
- Find cross-sell and upsell opportunities across the Aiven platform, and see them through to close.
- Run renewals as a plan, not an event. Know the commercial position, the decision makers and the competing options well before the renewal date. Lead commercial and contract negotiation through to signature.
- Qualify and manage every renewal, expansion and new logo opportunity with MEDDPICC.
Build relationships at every level
- Build relationships with the builders who use the Aiven platform day to day (engineering, platform and product leads) and the teams who consume the services it delivers.
- Build relationships with executives, budget holders and senior IT decision makers.
Turn happy customers into proof
- Use your relationships to build positive sentiment, then work with Marketing to turn it into events, webinars, case studies and references matched to the right prospect.
- Represent Aiven at UKI industry events, and feed customer, competitive and market insight back to Product, Engineering and leadership.
Open new doors
- Own new logo opportunities in the UKI territory, from prospecting through close, using cold and warm outreach.
Run the book AI-native
- Own how your work gets done: decide which tasks you do, which agents do and which stop entirely. Review this as the tools improve.
- Run account research, risk and usage monitoring, outreach drafting and forecasting through agents. Spend your time on judgment, relationships and negotiation.
- Keep Salesforce accurate so the forecast, and the agents reading it, reflect reality.
- Share what works with the team. The way you work is a product too.
What you bring
- 5+ years of experience owning a book of existing customers in enterprise B2B software, with a record of retaining and growing ARR, managing renewals and churn risk, and negotiating contracts.
- Experience selling to technical users and to executive buyers, and adjusting your message for each.
- A structured approach to account planning and multi-threading.
- Clear communication in English, written and spoken.
- Daily, hands-on use of AI tools in your sales workflow, with examples of work you have redesigned or cut as a result.
- High agency: a record of owning accounts end-to-end and solving hard problems without waiting for a blueprint.
Nice to have
- Experience co-selling with cloud providers and partners.
- Comfort with usage-based or consumption pricing, and with using usage data to spot risk and opportunity.
- Experience selling open source based data technology.
- Experience running customer advocacy: references, case studies, event speakers.
How we measure success
- Quota attainment, net revenue retention and gross revenue retention for your book, against target.
- Expansion ARR from cross-sell and upsell, against target.
- Churn and contraction risks flagged early, each with a documented protection plan.
- Executive and budget holder coverage across priority accounts.
- Customer references, case studies and event speakers delivered each year.
- Pipeline creation, deal progression and on-time opportunity booking.
- Forecast accuracy and CRM hygiene.
- Time spent on customer conversations vs. admin and research, trending the right way quarter on quarter.
- Workflow improvements adopted by the wider team.
Role context
- Team: Field Sales EMEA South.
- Book: more than $4m ARR across existing customers.
- Customers: Fintech and AI innovators through to Utilities.
- Reports to: EMEA South Sales Director.
- First 90 days: learn the business, the technology, your customer base and how we work.
- Focus: existing customers first, with new logo opportunities in UKI.
- Works closely with: Solutions Architects, Technical Account Managers, Support, Product Engineering, Marketing, Sales Development and Aiven leadership.
- Location: London, UK, with the right to work there. Hybrid working, with regular time together in the London hub for planning and deal reviews, and travel to customers as needed. Adjustments available.
Equal Opportunities:
Aiven provides equal employment opportunities to all qualified employees and applicants for employment without regard to age, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, religion, sexual orientation, physical and mental ability, marital and family status or without regard to any other similar personal attributes. Aiven complies with applicable local laws governing non-discrimination in employment in every location in which the company operates. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, training and any other terms and conditions related to employment.
At Aiven, we are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities or special needs in our working environment and job application procedures. We make all reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities or who otherwise need support to thrive in the workplace. We are committed to continuously improving workplace accessibility. There is an option to request a discussion in the application process but if you have any questions before applying please write to us at [email protected].
