Director, Strategic Sales - South Central

About this role

Are you ready to shape the future of authentication? Join 1Kosmos and help lead the next wave in identity assurance and passwordless innovation.
1Kosmos is driving the future of identity security, empowering organizations to eliminate passwords and establish trust at every step of the identity lifecycle. As a vibrant team of innovators, we develop advanced authentication solutions trusted by some of the world’s leading brands. Join us as we create a passwordless world and set new standards for digital identity assurance.
Your Title: Director, Strategic Sales – South Central
Your Location: Remote - Anywhere within the USA
YouReport to: Senior Vice President, Sales
1Kosmos is seeking a Strategic Sales Director – South Central to lead and accelerate commercial growth across a defined set of target verticals and the broader South Central United States. This is a senior individual contributor and market development role for someone who can carry a complex, six- and seven-figure enterprise sales cycle from first conversation to signed contract, and who can operate credibly with CISO, CIO, and procurement stakeholders across industries where identity fraud and credential-based breaches carry direct financial and operational risk.
What you will own:
Territory and Market Development

• Own a combination territory: 1-2 assigned target verticals (drawn from Manufacturing, Financial Services, Retail, BPO, Distribution & Supply Chain, and Travel & Entertainment) plus the South Central United States geography for opportunities outside the company-wide target vertical set.

• Build and execute a territory plan that prioritizes account targeting, whitespace mapping, and partner coverage across the assigned verticals and geography.

• Generate pipeline through direct outreach, partner co-sell motions, industry events, and referral networks across CISO, CIO, VP of Identity, and IT leadership audiences.

• Develop and maintain a qualified pipeline sufficient to support consistent quarterly and annual revenue targets.

• Identify and pursue whitespace opportunities across the full 1Kosmos use case portfolio, including identity verification (onboarding, account recovery, step-up authentication) and passwordless authentication (enterprise and shared/frontline workstation).
Sales Execution and Deal Management

• Own the full sales cycle from discovery through contract execution on net-new and expansion opportunities.

• Lead executive-level engagement with CISO, CIO, VP of Identity, Security, and Procurement stakeholders.

• Articulate 1Kosmos' differentiated value across identity verification and passwordless authentication, connecting both to the specific fraud, compliance, and operational risks relevant to each account's industry.

• Navigate complex, multi-stakeholder deal cycles including security reviews, legal, procurement, and compliance approvals common to enterprise purchasing environments.

• Work with channel partners including Optiv, VARs, and GSIs on partner-assisted and partner-sourced deals.
Customer and Stakeholder Engagement

• Act as the primary executive sponsor and relationship owner for strategic accounts throughout the sales cycle.

• Translate identity security requirements into business outcomes, including reduced help desk volume, fraud loss prevention, and reduced risk of credential-based breaches.

• Partner with Solutions Engineering on proof-of-concept design and execution, ensuring technical validation aligns with customer requirements.

• Coordinate with Customer Success post-sale to support smooth onboarding and expansion planning.
Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with the SVP of Americas Sales on territory planning, forecast accuracy, and executive account strategy.

• Partner with Marketing on vertical-specific campaigns, event strategy, and collateral including case studies, use case briefs, and competitive positioning.

• Provide structured feedback to Product on vertical-specific requirements, integration depth, and use case gaps.

• Collaborate with the Partnerships team to activate and co-sell with systems integrators and technology alliance partners active in the assigned verticals and territory.
Reporting and Forecast Management

• Maintain accurate pipeline, opportunity, and forecast data in CRM.

• Provide regular updates to the SVP of Americas Sales on progress, risks, blockers, and competitive intelligence.

• Track and report on key performance metrics including pipeline coverage, win rates, average contract value, and time to close.
What you bring:

• 10+ years of enterprise software sales experience, with a demonstrated track record of closing six- and seven-figure SaaS or software deals.

• Experience owning a combination territory (named verticals plus a broader geography) and prioritizing effectively across both.

• Deep familiarity with enterprise purchasing environments including CISO, CIO, Procurement, and Legal stakeholders, and typical 6- to 18-month enterprise deal cycles.

• Prior experience selling into one or more of the following verticals strongly preferred: Manufacturing, Financial Services, Retail, BPO, Distribution & Supply Chain, or Travel & Entertainment.

• Comfort operating in a high-growth, fast-moving environment with evolving processes and significant individual ownership.

• Excellent communication and executive presence; able to operate credibly at the C-suite level.

• Based in or able to travel regularly across the South Central United States.
Nice to Have:

• Experience with identity, access management, digital identity, or cybersecurity platforms.

• Prior sales experience at or against vendors such as Okta, Ping Identity, Microsoft, SailPoint, Saviynt, or CyberArk.

• Existing relationships with CISO, CIO, or VP of Identity leaders within the assigned target verticals.

• Background in channel or partner-assisted selling through resellers, systems integrators, or GSIs.
What Success Looks Like:

• A qualified pipeline…