Account Executive 4, Higher Ed Specialist

Job Posting Account Executive, Direct Sales Higher Education Specialist Do you have the higher education expertise and strategic acumen to shape markets, create demand, and establish Dell Technologies as the leading partner for digital transformation in U.S. colleges and universities? Higher education is undergoing profound transformation, shaped by artificial intelligence, changing student demographics and engagement patterns, staff burnout, heightened cybersecurity risk, and new opportunities to reimagine teaching, learning, research, and community engagement in a digital economy. Dell Technologies collaborates with colleges and universities to advance their missions of recruiting, retaining, educating, and graduating students by providing secure, scalable, and cost-optimized multicloud and modern infrastructure solutions that span the campus data center, public cloud, and edge environments. Institutions increasingly turn to Dell to establish a modern digital foundation, enhance the student experience, accelerate research, modernize constituent services, and enable institutional innovation and agility. Role Overview The Higher Education Strategist shapes markets, creates demand, and positions Dell as a thought leader in U.S. colleges and universities through strategic advisory work, executive relationship-building, and thought leadership. This role identifies and qualifies opportunities at the top of the funnel, provides market intelligence, and establishes Dell's credibility with senior institutional leaders. This is a strategic advisory and market-shaping role, not a sales support or deal execution role. The strategist engages directly with senior higher education leaders to understand their most pressing challenges and long-term goals, then works with Dell account teams and internal stakeholders to align the right strategies, solutions, and partnerships. They spend significant time on campus and in virtual executive conversations, facilitating dialogue among diverse stakeholders and building deep, trusted relationships. The strategist serves as a bridge between vertical expertise and technical credibility. They bring deep knowledge of higher education - including governance, funding, academic and research missions, and institutional dynamics - combined with technical fluency often gained as former CIOs or CTOs who have led infrastructure modernization, cloud migrations, research computing, and cybersecurity initiatives. This dual expertise allows them to engage leaders on both strategic priorities and technical challenges, connecting how Dell's capabilities address both. When an AE brings a strategist to a meeting, they're bringing someone who understands higher education, understands technology, and can connect the two. This role is supported by vertical leaders and the Head of Public Strategy to ensure effective cross-functional collaboration and organizational influence. What Success Looks Like in Year One In your first year, you will have:

• Established trusted relationships with 7-9 senior institutional leaders at strategic accounts
• Shaped 4-5 strategic opportunities contributing to meaningful pipeline growth
• Positioned Dell as a thought leader through 2-3 major conference speaking engagements
• Facilitated 4-6 high-impact strategic engagements that deepen relationships and uncover opportunities
• Delivered enablement that measurably improves sales teams' ability to engage higher education stakeholders
• Become a trusted resource for account executives who leverage your expertise to win deals

Key Responsibilities: EXTERNAL - Higher Education Institutions & Industry Strategic Advisory & Discovery

• Lead discovery conversations with institutional leaders to understand strategic priorities and desired outcomes across teaching, learning, research, student success, and campus operations, with particular depth in technical areas such as infrastructure modernization, cloud migration, research computing, cybersecurity, and data strategy
• Help higher education leaders align technology initiatives with institutional strategic plans and long-term visions
• Provide consultative guidance on digital campus strategies, hybrid and online learning, research computing, student experience, and data-informed decision making

Executive Relationship Development

• Build and sustain trusted relationships with senior institutional leaders including Presidents, Provosts, CIOs, CFOs, Deans, and Vice Presidents
• Extend Dell's reach beyond IT contacts to engage academic affairs, student success, enrollment, finance, research, and operational leaders
• Serve as strategic advisor to institutional leaders, aligning Dell's capabilities with their missions

Strategic Engagements & Programs

• Design and participate in Executive Briefing Center sessions, Visioning Days, and workshops that bring together academic, administrative, and IT stakeholders to explore future-state possibilities
• Design strategic events i