Sales Manager, Digital Natives

About the team

OpenAI’s mission is to build safe artificial general intelligence (AGI) which benefits all of humanity. This long-term undertaking brings the world’s best scientists, engineers, and business professionals into one lab together to accomplish this.

In pursuit of this mission, our Go To Market (GTM) team is responsible for helping customers learn how to leverage and deploy our highly capable AI products across their business. The team is made of Sales, Solutions, Support, Marketing, and Partnership professionals that work together to create valuable solutions that will help bring AI to as many users as possible.

ABOUT THE ROLE

OpenAI is building a dedicated Digital Natives vertical focused on high-growth technology and internet companies shaping the future of software. As a Sales Manager, you will recruit, develop, and lead a team of senior Account Directors responsible for landing and expanding OpenAI’s largest and most strategic Digital Native customers.

You will define how we win in this segment — establishing the operating cadence, deal strategy, and vertical GTM playbook for engaging sophisticated, technically fluent buyers building AI into their core products.

You will operate as a hands-on front-line leader: deeply involved in complex opportunities, elevating sales discipline, and shaping how OpenAI scales enterprise revenue in the most dynamic segment of the market.

This role is based in San Francisco, CA. We use a hybrid work model of 3 days in the office per week and offer relocation assistance to new employees.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

- Recruit and develop a high-performing team of Account Directors.

- Establish a coaching culture centered on rigorous deal reviews, structured 1:1s, and clear performance standards.

- Raise the talent bar continuously through thoughtful hiring, development, and accountability.

- Architect and refine the GTM strategy for high-growth tech and internet companies.

- Shape territory design, account prioritization, and coverage models aligned to OpenAI’s evolving enterprise segmentation.

- Codify repeatable sales motions in a fast-changing AI landscape.

- Implement disciplined pipeline and forecast management practices with high data integrity.

- Set clear expectations around opportunity qualification, multi-threading, and deal quality.

- Balance new logo acquisition with strategic expansion and platform adoption.

- Coach teams through multi-product, multi-stakeholder opportunities involving APIs, platform integrations, and AI-enabled product innovation.

- Partner closely with security, legal, and compliance teams to navigate complex enterprise environments.

- Help customers translate AI capabilities into product differentiation, revenue acceleration, and operational leverage.

- Collaborate with Marketing to shape vertical messaging and demand generation strategy.

- Provide structured, prioritized feedback to Product on feature gaps, packaging, pricing, and competitive dynamics.

- Work with Finance on commercial structures that balance growth, margin, and risk.

- Align closely with Technical Success and post-sales teams to ensure strong implementation outcomes and durable expansion paths.

WHAT GREAT LOOKS LIKE

- Builds from zero to one: establishes structure without bureaucracy.

- Develops senior sellers into strategic operators, not just quota carriers.

- Operates with forecast accuracy and commercial discipline.

- Wins complex, high-visibility deals in competitive markets.

- Elevates cross-functional standards through clarity, rigor, and low ego leadership.

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR

- 15+ years in enterprise sales or GTM leadership, including significant front-line management experience.

- Proven success leading enterprise motions in high-growth, technical markets.

- Experience building or scaling verticalized sales teams.

- Track record closing and expanding complex, multi-million dollar enterprise opportunities.

- Strong background in data-driven sales management and operational rigor.

- Technical fluency (APIs, platform architecture, AI/ML concepts) with the ability to engage CTOs, Heads of Product, and senior engineering leaders.

- Experience operating in non-standard or emerging GTM environments.

- Demonstrated ability to hire, coach, and retain top enterprise talent.

- Comfort with ambiguity and rapid iteration.

- Public company experience with high accountability standards.

- Experience in consumption-based or platform sales models.

- Exposure to AI-native or developer-first sales motions.

- Experience across both high-growth VC-backed environments and scaled enterprise organizations.

- Direct experience selling to Digital Native tech companies.